Weather in Norway and Iceland

Hi, have just booked a late deal for Norway and Iceland in July and wondering what the weather would be like?

Do I need to pack layers for Iceland? We have a tour booked in Reykjavik and one booked for the Flaam railway so I am presuming we will need coats! Thanks.

For Flam I would suggest a light jacket.

For Iceland, be prepared to layer for rain. When we were there in July the weather could change in a heartbeat.

Lows probably in the 40's most days, but may hit 30's on occasion. Highs in the 60's but could top out in the 50's. Bring clothes that can be layered as it can change during the day.

Google search weather for a couple of your ports. Try "Flam weather July", for example.

Search is your friend.

Hi, have just booked a late deal for Norway and Iceland in July and wondering what the weather would be like?

Do I need to pack layers for Iceland? We have a tour booked in Reykjavik and one booked for the Flaam railway so I am presuming we will need coats! Thanks.

During a June cruise it was warm in Flaam. We were in Reykjavik during September and it was also warm. I would bring layers including a rain jacket as you can expect anything from shorts to coats.

We were in Norway last August and the weather was cool but comfortable. Same for Iceland. Layers are definitely the way to go. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Hi, have just booked a late deal for Norway and Iceland in July and wondering what the weather would be like?

Do I need to pack layers for Iceland? We have a tour booked in Reykjavik and one booked for the Flaam railway so I am presuming we will need coats! Thanks.

There are lots of very good weather and climate sites on the internet. Try using Google to find one that works for you. Or else tty typing "weather in 'the name of your city' in July".

DON

Layering is a good plan. Norway, a windbreaker with maybe a sweater underneath ought to be sufficient. Iceland: plan for rain and wind. The wind was strong enough that I had to hold my cap onto my head. A hood on my jacket would have been much appreciated.

We were also in Norway last August. We had beautiful weather most of the trip - warmer than I expected. When we we got back to the ship from an excursion to the North Cape in Honnisgvag, people were swimming in the pool...it was that warm! The only place we had a bit of rain was in Tromso. I over-packed the cold weather clothing! People explained that Norway doesn't really get that cold in summer, at least, because it gets the warm air from the Gulf Stream.

I did Norway for summer solstice-end of June / beginning of July. I mostly wore a hooded sweatshirt. We had a couple warm days in the low 60’s. Honnigsvag was crazy windy and that made it cold. I wore a packable down jacket, hat and gloves. Most people didn’t stay outside because it was so cold. My biggest recommendation is to bring good rain gear. We had a couple very rainy days. It was beautiful overall.

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Depending on what you'll be doing in Iceland, consider waterproof pants (shell) as well. We were there in June, and needed hat, scarf, gloves, our light weight down jackets, and rain coat - sometimes. The weather truly changes every 10 minutes, so hit warm sun, sleet, sideways rain, etc. No umbrellas - the wind has been known to rip car doors off.

Good waterproof hiking shoes if you'll be hiking, but if you're just going to drive and jump out to see the main sights, regular shoes are fine.

We are on Marella Discovery in July and will be taking jeans, t.shirts, fleece, waterproof shoes and jacket for Iceland. For Norway we're hoping to wear lighter clothing.

Weather in Iceland . . . it's a country, not a city and different parts of the island can experience very different weather on the same day. Even the same location can go from sun to clouds/wind/rain within a few hours.

The area around Reykjavik is typically nice in mid-summer -- highs usually in the 60s. That was the case when I visited for a week in August a number of years ago. More recently, we were there in late July and the weather was cool, rainy and windy at Gullfoss and the geyser -- sunny, warmer and windy near the Blue Lagoon.

If you venture toward Keflavik and the Blue Lagoon, it's always windy there. On the average day you can expect 25 mph+ of wind. Anything less is possible, but rare.

Thus, layers are a must. In the summer, start with a light shirt (e.g., T-shirt), add a light sweater, and bring a light rain jacket. I would stick with lightweight pants (vs. shorts). If you're going in shoulder season (before July 1 and after August 15), bring medium weight clothes.

Despite the country's name, even in winter, it rarely gets bitter cold in the greater Reykjavik area, b/c it's on the coast. However, the wind tends to make the weather seem worse than it is, year-round. That said, some summer days can be truly spectacular.

Depending on what you'll be doing in Iceland, consider waterproof pants (shell) as well. We were there in June, and needed hat, scarf, gloves, our light weight down jackets, and rain coat - sometimes. The weather truly changes every 10 minutes, so hit warm sun, sleet, sideways rain, etc. No umbrellas - the wind has been known to rip car doors off.

 

Good waterproof hiking shoes if you'll be hiking, but if you're just going to drive and jump out to see the main sights, regular shoes are fine.

I second the suggestion of rain pants. If you're planning to visit some of the waterfalls, the wind blows a lot of the water into the air, and venturing at all close can be a damp experience. I found it a lot more comfortable to just throw on my rain pants whenever we stopped to visit one.

Are you going anywhere besides Reykjavik and Flåm? Parts of the west coast of Norway can be notoriously windy and rainy. In those areas, it's worth having a good waterproof/windproof jacket, since umbrellas are pretty useless (they're not a great choice for Iceland either).

Temperature-wise, in Norway you need to plan for anything. This is part of why layers are so important, because there really is no "normal" weather. There may be a range that's statistically more likely, but a lot of that comes from balancing the two extremes. I've been out sunbathing in a swimsuit on the same day that it snowed another year.

To get a vague idea of the averages, the Norwegian weather site yr has plenty of historical statistics. For example, here are the average July temperatures for Flåm: https://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Sogn_og_Fjordane/Aurland/Fl%C3%A5m/climate.month07.html and here is the day-by-day graph from last year: https://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Sogn_og_Fjordane/Aurland/Fl%C3%A5m/statistics.html

In general, for the southwestern coast of Norway, I'd plan for mostly 10°C to 20°C with a contingency plan for extremes above and below that (e.g. being able to combine multiple warmer layers and having a few lightweight layers to wear alone if it's unusually hot).

One additional thing to keep in mind is that if you do luck into warm weather, it can be a good idea to carry an extra layer. The sun is intense, so the difference in temperature when it goes behind a cloud is astonishing.

We went to Iceland at end of July and the weather was OK. On average it was around 15-18c during the day. Norway will probably be the same. We've been to Bergen twice and had torrential rain, but is considered Europe's wettest city.

Take layers and waterproof jackets and waterproof over trousers.

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when I checked today at about 1pm local time

Flam, Bergen and Oslo were all in the 80's (f).

If you google the city the quik reply that pops up gives current weather

example: I just did a search for "flam Norway"

when I checked today at about 1pm local time

 

Flam, Bergen and Oslo were all in the 80's (f).

Much of Norway is currently experiencing the hottest May on record. I definitely wouldn’t plan for a trip up to two months out based on the current unusual weather! Especially since there are several recent years when a warm (but not this hot) May/June was followed by an especially cold and rainy July.

Much of Norway is currently experiencing the hottest May on record. I definitely wouldn’t plan for a trip up to two months out based on the current unusual weather! Especially since there are several recent years when a warm (but not this hot) May/June was followed by an especially cold and rainy July.

I was in Norway last year in mid July and cold and rainy was my experience. I am headed there again next week and plan to be prepared despite the warm temperatures I am seeing right now.