When you are visiting Norway, you will likely want to check how the weather is like before you arrive. Should you bring shorts, jackets, waterproof clothes or perhaps even wool? There are big differences in the weather between each season in Norway, as well as big spatial differences, so you will want to check out the weather forecast for where you are going. So, what’s the best service to check the weather forecast in Norway?
Norway’s meteorological institute operates the website Yr.no where you will get the best weather forecast for Norway. The service is completely free to use, and it’s available in English, so you don’t have any problems navigating it.
Yr is the website most Norwegians use to get their weather forecast, and while all weather forecasts will have a certain uncertainty, this is as good as you get it. The data comes directly from weather stations all over Norway, and as mentioned, it’s ran by Norway Meteorological Institute. This is a government run institute.
How to use Yr.no to check the weather in Norway
From Yr.no’s main interface, just search for any city or town to see the weather forecast for that particular area. The overview will tell you the minimum and maximum temperature for each of the next 10 days, but you can also click on any date to get a better overview of it, and get the expected temperature, precipitation and wind for every hour.
You will see that all temperatures are written in °C, so you Americans might have to do a bit of converting to get it in your Fahrenheit. The easy way to do this is to write “X C to F” in Google, but you can also use the formula “°F = °C * 1.8 + 32” to get it.
Always prepare for worse weather than the forecast
Norway has a pretty unpredictable weather, and Norwegians quickly learn to prepare for weather that is colder, more windy and has more rain than the forecast predicts. And you should too!
When visiting Norway, always prepare for the worst weather conditions if you want to go hiking or spending the day outside. The weather can be especially unpredictable in the mountains, and it’s no fun being on a hike in shorts and a t-shirt if the wind picks up and it starts raining.
As a matter of fact, tourists that are under-dressed for changing weather while hiking in one of the most common reasons why organizations have to deploy search and rescue operations on the popular trails during summertime. Waterproof shoes, some light wool and a windbreaker jacket can do wonders to keep you warm if the weather suddenly changes.
There are big temperature differences between morning and evening
Another thing to keep in mind when travelling to Norway is that mornings are usually very cold, especially during spring and early summer. While the temperature can reach a nice 20 °C during the middle of the day, there’s also a chance that it’s only gonna be around 4 – 7 °C in the morning. This will be extremely cold if you plan on going exploring before noon and don’t bring warm clothing!
So when preparing for a trip to Norway and checking the weather forecast, don’t forget to check what the temperatures are like in the early morning hours and late evening.