Crete to avoid weekend rain shift as heat persists through Saturday, forecast shows
Crete is expected to remain largely unaffected by an autumn-style shift in the weather bringing rain, storms and falling temperatures to much of mainland Greece from Sunday, September 14, according to the latest forecast.
Sunshine and high temperatures are set to continue across most of the country through Saturday, with highs reaching 35-36°C in places, before conditions change more noticeably on the mainland. Crete, along with the Cyclades, the Dodecanese and the eastern Aegean, is forecast to keep generally clear skies with only passing cloud.
Friday: sunshine and highs near 35°C
On Friday, September 11, sunshine is expected to dominate most regions. Local cloud may build over mountainous areas of western and northern mainland Greece during the warmer hours, with a chance of brief showers or isolated downpours there.
Winds in the Ionian Sea are forecast from the west to northwest at 2 to 4 Beaufort, locally 5, while in the Aegean they will blow from the north at 3 to 5 and locally 6 Beaufort. Temperatures are expected to hold steady, with mainland highs of 32-35°C, island highs of 29-32°C, and localized readings of 33-34°C in the Dodecanese.
Saturday: heat persists, more instability in the west and north
Saturday is forecast to begin with generally good conditions nationwide, though cloud is expected to build over western and northern areas and locally in central regions as the day progresses. From around midday, local rain and showers are expected, with sporadic storms possible in the Ionian, Epirus and Macedonia, mainly from afternoon into evening. The rest of the country is expected to stay sunny.
Winds are forecast to reach 5 Beaufort locally in the Ionian and 6 in the Aegean. Temperatures are expected to remain high: 32-33°C in northern Greece, 33-35°C and locally 36°C elsewhere on the mainland, and 29-33°C on the islands. In Crete and the Dodecanese, highs of 34-35°C are possible.
Sunday: rain and cooling nationwide — but not in Crete
The forecast points to a more significant change from Sunday, when instability is expected to spread across a larger part of the country. Rain and sporadic storms are forecast initially in the Ionian and in western, central and northern mainland areas, before extending to other mainland regions and the northern Aegean. Improvement is expected from the west by evening.
Crete, however, is not expected to be substantially affected by this autumn shift, with generally clear skies and ample sunshine forecast for the island, similar to the Cyclades, the Dodecanese and the eastern Aegean. Winds over the seas are expected to blow north to northwest at 3 to 5 and locally 6 Beaufort.
Nationwide, temperatures are forecast to drop closer to normal levels for mid-September, with most areas seeing highs of 30-32°C, while southern regions are expected to stay warmer, with local highs of 33-34°C. The pattern follows a run of near-35°C days reported in a recent Crete forecast for Sunday highs, and comes as separate model trends have pointed to milder cooling for Crete than for the mainland in the days ahead.
