Siesta then fiesta: Enjoy Europe like the locals |
Siesta then fiesta: Enjoy Europe like the locals
As temperatures soar across Europe, travellers are skipping the hottest hours and discovering that the continent's best summer experiences happen after sunset.
When Dane Maxwell's carefully planned Seville itinerary was nearly derailed by a three-day heatwave, he made a choice that ended up defining the trip: "We flipped to the local rhythm."
That meant sleeping until 11:00 and lazy breakfasts through to 13:00. He worked indoors during peak heat – a suffocating 44C (111F) – and took dinner from 20:00 before venturing into the Spanish city from midnight to 02:00. The midnight window proved to be the most memorable. "The streets were full but unhurried. The Cathedral exterior was lit and almost empty of tourists. The local tapas bars were at their liveliest."
With Europe's heatwave season falling early this year, Maxwell and his friends are part of a different wave: noctourism. The traditional, revered European summer holiday has become not just uncomfortable but potentially unsafe. Italy has already issued its first red alert warning people to stay out of the Sun, while both France and Portugal have seen new highest temperature records set for May. This summer promises to be hotter yet.
"We are seeing a real shift toward noctourism (nighttime tourism) as travellers look to reclaim their holidays from the midday heat and avoid daytime crowds," says Tricia Handley-Hughes, the UK & Ireland managing director at travel agency InteleTravel. "The traditional 10:00 to 16:00 sightseeing window is being traded for stargazing, night markets and moonlit tours."
Like the locals, smart summertime travellers are staying indoors during the hottest parts of day and venture out after dark for night-focused activities, ranging from organised nighttime city walks to dinners that stretch towards midnight. While they're at it, they're sidestepping the overtourism that can shape sightseeing in Europe.
With average summer temperatures of 36C (97F), Seville is one of the premier examples of European cities working to make the summer months more bearable for residents and tourists alike.
Shade canopies now stretch across parts of the historic centre from May until autumn, with the city aiming to plant around 100,000 trees by 2039. In 2022, the city welcomed CartujaQanat, an urban climate adaptation project that utilises an underground canal network, shady public spaces and water misting to help cool outdoor public spaces by up to 10C.
While the city is engineering cooling infrastructure, locals know that the best antidote dates back generations: the siesta.
"The siesta is not only because you need to rest, but also to keep away from the heat. It can be 40C (104F) at 16:00 and that's really not the best time to be outside," says Saida Segura from the Sevilla City Office.
A 30-year Seville resident, Segura says summers there have never been cool, but that doesn't mean the city goes into hiding. "Everything still happens, but just a little bit later in the day."
Remote worker Becki Rendell wasted little time slipping into a later tempo when she moved from the UK to Seville six years ago. Now, one of the things she loves about her adopted city are the night........