It is known as Goldilocks weather – not too hot and not too cold. For those of us who dislike extreme heat, Ireland may be the best place to go on holiday this summer. Temperatures rarely hit the peaks we experience in south-east England and certainly don’t reach the unpleasantly hot extremes becoming increasingly frequent in resorts around the Mediterranean.
Indeed, if you like your climate to be as equable as possible then head to Valentia Island, County Kerry, one of the most westerly points in Ireland. According to figures from the island’s weather station, the mean temperatures between January and July fluctuate by just 8C.
Occasionally, conditions do get much warmer or cooler: the record high is almost 30C, while the lowest temperature ever recorded is minus 8C.
The only downside to spending a summer holiday in Valentia is the rainfall. It is the wettest of all Ireland’s weather stations, with a total of more than 1,500mm (more than 60ins) of precipitation each year. Sunshine, too, is on the low side: between four and five hours a day during the summer months.
But with such beautiful scenery and spectacular views across the Atlantic, this corner of the Emerald Isle can still give the Med a run for its money.
