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August 2025 is already shaping up to be the hottest on record in Spain and the upcoming long weekend will be a perfect example of why. The heatwave shows no sign of letting up, with more than ten days of 40-plus degree temperatures in much of the country.

 

The August bank holiday begins on Friday August 15, a national holiday, and will be marked by soaring temperatures. It will not be until Monday August 18 that the heat will finally start to ease and the heatwave can be declared over.

 

In the meantime, much of eastern and southern Spain can expect boiling temperatures of up to 42ºC during the weekend.

 

Wednesday brought us some relief with a brief drop in heat in coastal areas, but the mercury is due to shoot back up on Thursday August 14. Thunderstorms are forecast in Catalonia but the day should be cloudless and sunny everywhere else.

 

 

Several regions, including Andalucía, the Region of Murcia and the Valencian Community have been placed on high alert for dangerously high temperatures.

 

The heat will intensify once more on Friday August 15 in the northern half of the country, particularly in the Cantabrian Sea. Aemet is predicting “anticyclonic weather under the influence of high pressure” and temperatures above 40ºC in large areas of the southern half of the Atlantic coast. Highs could reach 42ºC in Bilbao, Córdoba and Ourense, and up to 43ºC in Badajoz.

 

 

The weekend will see very high temperatures “increasing in the southeastern half of the country and the archipelagos,” while “drops in the Cantabrian Sea and Galicia” will provide some relief there.

 

Temperatures will exceed 35ºC in most of Spain and hit 40ºC in large areas of the southern Atlantic coast, the northeastern depressions and inland Valencia. Cities including Zaragoza, Sevilla and Córdoba could reach 42ºC.

 

 

Night-time will bring little comfort, as minimum temperatures will not fall below 20ºC in the southern half of the country, the northern plateau and in depressions in the northeast. They may even remain above 25ºC along the Mediterranean and in low-lying areas on the southern Atlantic coast.

 

When the long weekend ends, temperatures will begin to drop. Monday August 18 should be the final day of the heatwave, although highs will still surpass 40ºC in some areas. A more noticeable relief is expected from Tuesday August 19.

 

 

Over the August bank holiday, the arrival of an anticyclone “under the influence of high pressure” will mean stable, sunny weather for most of the country, according to Aemet. Light rain could appear in coastal areas of the Cantabrian Sea on Friday, and there may be some isolated showers in the northeast and inland, which “may be accompanied by a storm.”

 

The pattern will continue over the weekend, with occasional showers in mountain areas, sometimes with a storm.

 

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Images: Aemet