Europe. It’s so hot right now. Temperatures will climb to the triple digits in places like Paris, Zürich, and Berlin through the weekend. Summer is prime travel season all over Europe, which is a great reason why I avoid it. If I can help it, the two aforementioned factors are strong reasons why summer in Europe is not desirable. I understand that this comes with the privilege of not having kids since they’re off for the summer. I also cannot bring myself to pretend to enjoy long lines to get into squished museums, public transit that lacks air conditioning, and overall minimal places to cool off in general. While Americans do like the air conditioning, some places haven’t prioritized temperature controls at this time. Sure thing that lots of hotels will have climate control options, but many European countries prefer not to alter the air flow (and lack thereof) in old buildings for the sake of comfort for a few months out of the year. It could compromise the look of the buildings as well.
I can understand to a point. But also, it seems as though that region is just getting hotter. It goes from the 70s to 90s easily and for longer periods of time. Americans in the South scoff at the complaints as they quickly forget they live and breathe in constant air conditioning. Most homes in Europe are built with concrete-type materials which helps regulate house temps as well. Perhaps since they live in tolerable temperatured homes, they can tolerate the temps outside.
I was in Austria for a conference in July, and the 90-degree weather was sweltering, with no relief. The conference was in a hot room, we walked in between buildings, and we usually ate outside since we were a big group (many restaurants are in old buildings and have no space for large groups). No relief. When I did my study abroad program back in 2009, I was on the city bus on a hot day in May. With so many bodies packed on a bus, it was so hot and stuffy and it was amazing that no one had opened more windows. On some city buses, only every other window has the ability to open a small window at the top. We stopped at a bus stop and this young lady walked on. She sits in a seat and SHUTS the window. The looks that people gave her, but no one said a word.
Suffice to say, if you love hot weather and crowds, by all means travel! I’ll stick to shoulder season. Besides, I really like summers in the Midwest. We get a handful of days of hot and humid weather. However, we rarely hit triple digits (maybe 1-2 days in the summer). Plenty of water to cool off. Also, evenings tend to be comfortable as well. I consider us pretty lucky.
