The cold start to 2026 in Europe

In much of Western Europe, no matter how much people yearn for a white Christmas — I hear Bing Crosby’s song in my head — it rarely happens these days.

Despite often hovering around 0C during our festive break in Paris, snow refused to tumble.

Well, that’s until the first week of January when white flakes began to fall we were being driven to Charles de Gaulle airport.

The snow quickly became heavier and heavier before easing off a little.

Our UK-bound flight was delayed for 90 minutes as provisions were made to de-ice the plane and runway. But we were among the lucky ones.

Over the coming days, as temperatures plummeted below -5C at some European airports, including CDG and Amsterdam’s Schiphol, hundreds of flights would be severely delayed or cancelled.

Snow ploughs would fire into action. Schools would close. Buses and trains would scrap their timetables. Snowmen would be built. Snow balls would be thrown.

Feeling fortunate to have safely taken off from Paris before the full brunt of this Arctic blast, we experienced mostly clear skies as we flew over the snow-tickled countryside of northern France before crossing La Manche (or The Channel) to soar above the similarly white-powdered farmland and vineyards of southern England.

We’re afforded a glimpse of London, the River Thames writhing in the distance.

The views actually became less snowy — and more verdant — as we crossed the Midlands and descended towards Manchester, the de facto capital of England’s North.

As the city skyline gleamed ahead, the mountains of Wales — lavishly doused in snow — drew our gaze westwards, while spreading out below was the Peak District, England’s oldest national park, where ice-clawed escarpments and moors overlooked lush undulating slopes.

The next morning in Manchester, we awoke to the best winter combination possible: snowy scenery and cloudless skies.

Wow.

Almost as rare as white Christmases are the big cities of England being coated in a decent blanket of snow.

The heat generated by all the buildings, traffic and people — allied with the largely low-lying altitudes —means it’s far less likely for snow to stick around even on the relatively rare occasions when it does come.

Give it two or three days and it usually vanishes.

Sticking on boots with a good grip, plus several layers of clothes, a big coat, hat and gloves, I embark on an urban hike, mindful of the danger lurking amid the entrancing cityscape.

Beware especially the sporadic chunks of black ice menacing the pavements.

Manchester’s mish-mash of architecture — Georgian-era cotton mills and townhouses, Victorian libraries and warehouses, Brutalist blocks, soaring 21st century apartments — always fascinates, even on the city’s overcast days.

Yet it’s all the more entrancing kissed by the sun and with white powder cloaking rooftops, benches, lawns and stationary car windscreens.

There are regular flashes of yellow from the passing trams and double-decker buses of the Bee Network — the region’s transport system. Remnants of the city’s Christmas markets — including a big wheel and a giant Santa — are still waiting to be taken down. I notice locations from Run Away — the latest in the array of Harlan Coben dramas filmed for Netflix in England’s north-west.

The cast for this one includes James Nesbitt, who starred in Cold Feet, perhaps the most popular TV comedy-drama ever shot in Manchester. I’ve spotted him a few times before in this city but not today. Instead, catching my gaze, are the canals.

During the northern summer of 2025 — the warmest, driest year on record for much of Britain — these waterways had largely run dry before being replenished by autumnal downpours.

They’re now strewn in ice and snow.

The Canada geese look at home, perched comfortably on the frozen waterways. This is positively balmy weather for them. In their native North America, they can endure temperatures as low as -40C.

For most humans, however, there’s only so long you enjoy being outdoors when it’s around 0C. Particularly when clouds spring up and drown out the sunshine.

Helpfully, like most UK cities, Manchester has excellent admission-free museums and galleries and an abundance of pleasing places in which to eat, drink and cosy up, from trendy food halls and coffee shops to classic “greasy spoon” cafes and pubs.

And in January, many establishments are offering “50 per cent off” deals to tempt punters suffering post-yuletide hangovers and depleted bank balances.

A few hours into my invigorating walk and I’m in the mood for a hearty pie and a pint by a roaring fire. Even though I’m a tad envious seeing the toasty summer temperatures of Western Australia right now, I must say that freezing cold Europe does have its charms.

fact file + To help plan a trip to Manchester and Britain, see visitmanchester.com and visitbritain.com