Barcelona prepares for a week of polar cold and unexpected rain

Warm weather is proving reluctant to arrive in Barcelona. A mass of polar air will bring rain and conditions more typical of late winter. Temperatures will fall and the city will experience days unusual for May. Discover how it will affect your daily life.

Next week, Barcelona will leave behind mild, springlike conditions to face a sudden change in the weather. A mass of polar air is approaching and promises to bring cold and rain back to the city, just when many were expecting the good weather to arrive for good. This meteorological shift will affect both those who were planning outdoor activities and those who rely on pleasant temperatures for their daily journeys.

Temperatures will remain mild on Sunday, but Monday will be the last truly settled, warm day, with highs that could approach 25 ºC. From Tuesday, the thermometer will begin to fall and sunshine will give way to clouds and showers, especially inland and in areas just inland from the coast, although occasional rain on the coast cannot be ruled out.

The most noticeable change will arrive between Thursday and Saturday, when an incursion of cold air from polar latitudes will cause a sharp drop in temperatures, which could be several degrees below the norm for this time of year. European models point to particularly low minimum temperatures in inland Catalonia, and snow could return at high elevations in the Pyrenees, although there is still uncertainty about the exact location of the coldest spell. It will be time to bring out jackets and long sleeves again in the middle of May.

The unsettled conditions will also bring rain, although there is still some uncertainty about its intensity and exact location. The most likely scenario is for rainfall to be concentrated between Thursday and Friday, with a greater impact in the districts of Barcelona and Girona. Storms accompanied by hail cannot be ruled out and, at high elevations in the Pyrenees, snow could return above 1,200 metres, an unusual phenomenon for this time of year.

Wind will be another major feature, especially from Wednesday onwards. The mestral is expected to blow strongly in Terres de l’Ebre and the tramontana in Empordà, which could alter sea conditions and complicate the situation on the coast. All signs point to a colder and wetter week than usual, breaking the warm trend of recent months and requiring plans and routines to be adapted.

After an April that broke temperature records, May seems determined to bring the weather back to values more typical of the season, reminding Barcelona residents that the weather in the city can always spring a surprise.

The rebuf phenomenon, common when cold air moves in from the north, can intensify rainfall on the coast and in areas just inland from the coast in Barcelona and Girona. This maritime wind, which blows from the sea towards land, encourages the formation of clouds and localised showers, especially when it coincides with the arrival of cold fronts. Although its appearance is unpredictable, the rebuf usually means sudden changes and episodes of intense rainfall in the city and the surrounding area.