After breaking the 30°C mark on Tuesday, temperatures in the United Kingdom will reach 33°C today and continue to rise throughout the week.
Temperatures are expected to climb again on Thursday to 34°C and, according to the Met Office, there is a 20% chance that Britain will bask in record-breaking temperatures on Friday. The highest temperature ever recorded was 38.5°C in Kent in 2003.
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The UK is best known for its frequent downpours, but it is doing a good job of hiding it this month with browned grass, sweaty pits and sleepless nights now the norm.
In fact, Britain will offer better weather than many of the world’s sun-kissed holiday hotspots this week. Here are a selection of places colder than the UK this week as you work out the best of the British summer in an air-conditioned office:
Australia
This one isn’t really anything to write home about, given that Australia is in the middle of its winter season. But even when high temperatures average around 18°C, it’s not often that you can say that the UK is hotter than Australia.
In Melbourne, highs will average around 17°C throughout the week, but fall as low as 12°C on Sunday.
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By GlobalDataSydney is slightly warmer, averaging around 21°C. However, as the UK sees 33°C on Thursday, temperatures will fall to 18°C down under.
Barbados
Going by what you see posted on the social media profiles of stars and celebrities, the Caribbean is a paradise with an endless summer.
Yet temperatures will struggle to climb above 30°C this week in Barbados. In the middle of its hurricane season, a continuous shower of rain is expected throughout the week. Elsewhere, London will see temperatures peak at 33°C on Thursday.
Brazil
Brazil is home to some of the world’s best beaches. The Copacabana in Rio de Janeiro springs to mind, but those on the beach this week will only see highs of 29°C on Sunday.
The UK will be much cooler by then, with the heatwave set to retreat over the weekend, sending temperatures back down to the mid-20s. However, as Brits boil in 33°C heat on Thursday, those in Rio will only have to deal with 25°C.
Canary Islands
With temperatures of 33°C expected in London on Thursday, Santa Cruz, the capital of the Spanish island of Tenerife, will offer a much cooler 23°C, with clouds covering the island from the afternoon sun.
Temperatures in Tenerife will fluctuate between 20°C and 24°C throughout the week.
Other islands, such as Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Fuerteventura, will offer similar temperatures.
Cyprus
Cyprus welcomed more than 3.5 million tourists last year to its sandy beaches. A record-breaking number of British travellers visited the island to enjoy its weather, which sits above 30°C throughout the summer months.
Little has changed this year, with temperatures in the capital expected to reach 36°C next week. However, it will fall to 32°C on Thursday as Nicosia received some much-welcomed rain.
In Paphos, a popular coastal city, temperatures will sit at around 29°C for the remainder of the week.
Dominican Republic
As the most visited region in the Caribbean, the sovereign state of the Dominican Republic welcomes more than six million tourists each year. The majority of those are from North America, but it also attracts its fair share of sun-seekers from Europe. Some 180,000 Brits visited the island last year.
The Dominican Republic is midway through its rainy season, but it has a year-round tropical climate that sees temperatures soar above 30°C on most days.
It will be 32°C in Santo Domingo on Thursday. Still very, very hot, but not quite as sweltering as the UK.
France
If it isn’t sunny Spain (which is matching the UK for heat this week), then it’s the south of France for Brits on a budget. However, you will be better off cancelling your Eurostar tickets and heading for the South of England instead.
While London basks in temperatures above 31°C for the next three days, Nice, usually one of the French Riviera’s go-to cities, will only reach a high of 30°C, with lows of 22°C expected on Friday.
Goa
Goa, India’s top hotspot, has seen a huge increase in visitors in recent years as tourists flock to the Indian coastal state to spend some time on its sandy beaches and in its crystal clear waters.
However, the region is expecting rain for the rest of the week, followed by thunderstorms from Monday. Temperatures will stay between 26°C and 29°C throughout, but won’t break through the 30°C mark for at least the next seven days.
Greece
As Athens continues to fight wildfires caused by soaring temperatures in the Attica region that have resulted in more than 70 deaths, the area should get some vital relief, with rain and thunderstorms expected to start today and stretch into next week.
Temperatures will fall below 30°C today, with lows of 19°C, and remain much the same until next Wednesday.
Italy
Rome is set to get the worst of the heat at the end of the week, with temperatures rising to 35°C on Sunday. It will be hot all week regardless, with highs of 33°C on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.
London will match the Italian capital on Thursday, with temperatures elsewhere in England expected to top that of cities like Rome, Milan and Venice.
Maldives
The number of tourists flocking to the Maldives has been on the up in recent years, with a large portion of visitors hailing from the UK.
However, it’s probably best to skip the ten-hour flight and 6,000-mile trip this week, with rain expected and temperatures sitting at a measly 30°C over the weekend.
Why sit on a golden, sandy beach in Malé when you could be in Bournemouth instead?
Mexico
Mexico was the seventh most visited tourist destination in the world in 2017 with 39.3 million visitors. That put it one place ahead of the UK, which attracted 38.7 million tourists. However, while tourists visit the UK for its historic sights, many travel to Mexico for its warm climate and idyllic beaches.
However, the two will swap places this week. While Britain basks in the heat, those in the popular beach city of Cancun will be treated to warm showers over the weekend. Temperatures remain high on Wednesday, before falling gradually over the week, averaging around 25°C in Mexico City.
Thailand
Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, entered its rainy season this month. Subsequently, showers and thunderstorms are to be expected throughout the week.
It will remain hot, averaging 32°C in the city, but not quite on par with the UK, so you won’t feel quite so jealous seeing the social media posts of that one friend currently backpacking around Asia while you’re stuck in the office.
United States
July and August are Florida’s hottest months, with average temperatures of 28°C. It will be hotter than average during many parts of the week. Highs of 32°C are expected in the coming days.
However, a long stretch of showers will interrupt the heat. Florida broke rain records in May and that has continued well into the summer, drenching the Disney-goers that flock to Orlando, Florida’s Disney World resort for their summer breaks.
Los Angeles, California, will match London with highs of 33°C. However, forecasts predict other parts of the UK to be even hotter this week.
Read more: These are the places with the best weather in the world.
