Not even one full week into the spring season yet and the Netherlands is already breaking weather records. The past few weeks have seen sunny skies and mild temperatures, but Tuesday took things to another level and meteorologists have announced that it was the warmest March 22 ever recorded.
At 1.20pm on Tuesday, the Dutch Weather Institute (KNMI) recorded a temperature of 19,4 degrees at their offices in De Bilt - a town near Utrecht - breaking the record set in 2012 and making it the warmest March 22 the Netherlands had ever seen.
While towns and cities across the country enjoyed a nice, sunny day on Tuesday, some parts of the country were luckier than others. In the south, for example, some places saw mercury exceed 20 degrees and at 2.30pm in Westdorpe, Zeeland, residents enjoyed the country’s first local warm day of the year, as temperatures hit 20,1 degrees.
This marks the second temperature record of the year, after January 1 was the warmest New Year’s Day since records began - and it isn’t the first weather record broken in March, either. Earlier this month, meteorologists reported that the Netherlands had seen its sunniest start to March ever.
But how long can we expect this lovely weather to last? With April - and various public holidays - right around the corner, many are likely hoping this spring will resemble the gorgeous weather the Netherlands saw back in 2020.
This week, conditions will remain dry and sunny but temperatures are expected to drop slightly, with highs of between 14 degrees on the Wadden islands and 19 degrees in Zeeland, Brabant, and Limburg predicted for Wednesday. From Thursday, forecasts say there will likely be a couple of clouds in the sky, and the wind will pick up again this weekend leading to a further drop in temperatures. Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and The Hague should expect temperatures of around 14 degrees on Saturday and Sunday.
Long-term forecasts show that, as the country heads into April, temperatures will drop further and that there will be a little more rain on the cards - but hopefully, this should clear up by the middle of the month. Easter weekend is currently looking sunny and reasonably warm (around 14 degrees in Amsterdam), while King's Day might bring grey skies and rain.