מזג האוויר בז'נבה בפברואר

Forum posters note that at only around 400m elevation, Annecy itself rarely holds snow for long - a few snowfalls a year that might stick to the ground for a couple of weeks at most - and the lake itself never freezes in winter. Posters are candid that February weather here is genuinely unpredictable day to day, with one poster suggesting Lyon as a fallback if conditions turn particularly bad during a stay. The upside of visiting in this genuinely quiet low season: hotels and apartments are easy to book on short notice, crowds are minimal, and the restaurants that stay open tend to be the more authentic, locals-oriented spots rather than the touristy options that dominate in summer.

Regulars are specific that anyone heading up to mountain areas above roughly 2,500 meters should still pack a thick sweater and warm layers, temperatures there capable of sitting at or below freezing even as the city itself runs mild. Our row backs that mild, genuinely wet read, 20C over 8.7C nights feeling 7C, with 78.4mm of rain across 10.4 days and a trace of very late snow, 1.1cm, reflecting those higher-elevation totals. Regulars are consistent this month stays genuinely changeable in the city too, some visitors reporting surprising highs near 30C on an unusually warm stretch while others needed air conditioning indoors and a coat outdoors within the same week. Layers covering a wide temperature range remain the standard advice regardless of which version of the month arrives. The record: humidity 75 percent, 10.5 hours of sun, a 10.7 kph wind and AQI 43.

July here runs in the mid to high twenties with the occasional record-breaking day in the mid thirties, and regulars say the breeze off the lake is what makes the city bearable when it is hot. Our row gives 28C reading as 30C with only 56.4mm of rain across 6.5 days and 12.3 hours of sun. The lake is the other half of the answer and our columns do not carry it: the board puts the water at about 19 to 20C in midsummer, cold and fresh rather than warm, with the Bains des Paquis the swim everyone names. Nights fall to 15.2C, which is a jumper on a terrace. The record: humidity 70 percent, a 10.1 kph wind and AQI 39.

Regulars say September here can be as warm as summer or carry the first tang of autumn, and that the two arrive at different heights: the grass is browning off up in the mountains while the plain is still summery green. Our row sits between at 22.2C days over 10.9C nights. What the month buys is access - from about mid-September the crowds thin and everything in the mountains is still open - and the vineyard paths above the lake are what they recommend walking. Anyone coming for colour is early: they put the peak between the 20th of October and the 5th of November. Our 70.8mm falls across 8.2 days. The record: humidity 77 percent, 9.3 hours of sun and AQI 39.

August in Geneva is hot and, regulars note, has been getting hotter - one recent year had a fortnight from the 13th to the 26th with every daily maximum above 25C and a peak of 34.5C. Our row's 27.7C reads as 29C. What makes the city liveable in it is the lake: thousands swim every day, the Bains des Paquis is the name everyone gives, and the water sits around 19 to 20C in midsummer. The breeze off it matters as much as the swim does. The fixture is the city's festival in the first fortnight, with lakeside attractions and one of the world's largest firework displays on the second Saturday. Pack summer clothes plus a jumper for the evenings. The record: 14.7C nights, 7 precipitation days carrying 55.3mm and 11.4 hours of sun.