Rain to put a damper on Walpurgis Night, May Day festivities in Germany

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

April 29,2016; 11:17PM,EDT

 

 

Rain will threaten to put a damper on Walpurgis Night and May Day festivities across parts of Germany this weekend.
Showers and thunderstorms will arrive on Saturday and evolve into a steadier rain by Walpurgis Night across southwestern Germany, including in Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Saarbrücken.
The rain will pour down heavily at times, threatening to douse bonfires and other activities.
While central and northwestern parts of the country will receive a couple of showers, Berlin and Munich will stay dry. Anyone heading outdoors on Saturday night will need a jacket as temperatures fall to 3-7 C (37-45 F).

People dressed as a devil, left, and a witch, right, dance in front of the Walpurgis fire after a procession of devils and witches in the Harz mountains in Schierke, Germany, on 30 April, 2014. Hundreds of costumed devils and witches meet to celebrate Walpurgis Night, a traditional religious holiday of pre-Christian origins. The event is named after St. Walburga, an English nun who helped convert the Germans to Christianity in the 8th century. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
The rain from Saturday night will taper to spottier showers for May Day in central and southern Germany. Residents will want to keep umbrellas handy and prepare for some disruptions to outdoor activities.
The showers, however, will be light and spotty with parts of the day being dry. Around North Rhine-Westphalia, the showers will even dissipate by the afternoon.
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The best place to enjoy May Day across Germany will be in northern areas from Bremen to Hamburg and Berlin. Sunday will feature dry conditions as some sunshine mixes through clouds.
That is good news for those planning to visit the spring flower show at Spath-Arboretum or the Power to the children festival near Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. Afternoon temperatures on Sunday will be seasonable, rising to near 17 C (62 F).

More seasonable temperatures will unfold across the entire country this weekend, a welcome sight after a cold spell earlier in the week. Conditions will be more comfortable for outdoor activities.
High temperatures on Sunday will range from 13-15 C (55-58 F) in Cologne, Munich and Hamburg to 16-17 F (lower 60s F) in Frankfurt, Nuremberg and Leipzig.
Monday will feature slightly milder conditions with spotty showers confined to southern parts of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. A cold front will sweep the next round of showers across the country on Tuesday.
Content contributed by AccuWeather Meteorologist Eric Leister.