Stretching almost 1200km from the Alpine resorts of Trentino to the sun-baked southern tip of Sicily, Italy experiences a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions throughout the year. Local weather is often complicated by coastal effects (the Italian peninsula doesn't get much wider than a couple of hundred kilometres) and the presence of a high, mountainous backbone (the Apennines), so weather forecasts are often more of an art-form than an exact science.
Athough extremes of temperature are to be found in the north and south, the vast bulk of central Italy enjoys a Mediterranean climate, at its hottest in July and August, but with mild, sunny springs and autumns. The average maximum temperatures in Bolzano (Trentino: map - 6-day forecast) rarely go above 29°C or fall much below 5°C, while in Palermo (Sicily: map 6-day forecast) they rise into the 30s in mid-summer and seldom if ever fall below 15°C. Florence (Tuscany: map 6-day forecast) enjoys a climate somewhere in between, and summer temperatures across most of Italy average in the mid 20s.
Rainfall tends to be higher in the mountains of the north, while summer droughts are not uncommon in the deep south, which is on the same latitude as Algiers. Hot, dry, African winds like the Sirocco and the Libeccio keep the humidity down (sometimes delivering Saharan sand in the process), while the cooler Tramontana and Mistral from from the north will often bring storms and rain. Sea breezes have a warming effect on the coasts in winter and help to keep even the hottest days tolerable in summer, especially with the mountains near at hand.
The Italian weather, while variable, offers pleasurable conditions though most of the year - a compromise between the chill of northern Europe and the sun-baked plains of Africa. Always a popular summer destination, Italy is rapidly gaining popularity with winter visitors, largely because of its alpine resorts and the mild conditions in the centre and south.
