Challans weather in May

In May, Challans sees average daytime highs of 18°C and overnight lows near 12°C, with 52 mm of rain across 9.9 wet days and about 14.8 hours of daylight. It is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 16°C in the first days to 19°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 14 h 06 min at the start of May to 15 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, May is Challans's 6th-clearest and 8th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Challans's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 18°; 5th warmest
Overnight low: 12°; 7th coldest
Rainfall: 52 mm; 9.9 wet days
Daylight: 14 h 48 min; 5:39 AM – 8:29 PM
Cloud cover: 62%; 6th clearest
Wind: 17 km/h; 8th windiest
Solar energy: 5.84 kWh/m²
Travel score: 5.6; out of 10

Challans is human settlement in France.

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← April Challans year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in May

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 16°C in the first days to 19°C by the end.

A typical May day in Challans reaches about 18°C in the afternoon and slips back to 12°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 14°C and 22°C. Set against its neighbours, May runs about 3°C warmer than April and about 3°C cooler than June.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	18	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19
Avg low (°C)	10	10	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	13	13	13	13	13	13	13	13

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	16	10
2	16	10
3	16	11
4	16	11
5	16	11
6	16	11
7	16	11
8	17	11
9	17	11
10	17	11
11	17	11
12	17	11
13	17	11
14	17	11
15	17	12
16	18	12
17	18	12
18	18	12
19	18	12
20	18	12
21	18	12
22	18	12
23	18	12
24	19	13
25	19	13
26	19	13
27	19	13
28	19	13
29	19	13
30	19	13
31	19	13

Challans weather by month

How May compares with the rest of the year at a glance. May is the 5th-warmest and 6th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	9° / 6°	71	11.7	8.8	1.9
Feb	10° / 5°	53	9.6	10	2.1
Mar	12° / 7°	50	10.2	11.6	3.2
Apr	14° / 9°	47	10.1	13.3	4.3
May	18° / 12°	52	9.9	14.8	5.6
Jun	20° / 15°	39	8.3	15.6	6.5
Jul	22° / 16°	37	8.1	15.3	7.2
Aug	22° / 16°	43	7.6	14	7.3
Sep	20° / 14°	52	8.1	12.4	6.7
Oct	17° / 12°	76	12.1	10.6	5.0
Nov	13° / 9°	81	12.6	9.2	3.3
Dec	10° / 6°	81	12.4	8.4	2.2

Cloud cover in May

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in May.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 17% of May, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 57%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	37	36	35	35	37	37	37	38	39	39	40	41	41	41	42	43	44	44	45	46	47	47	47	48	48	48	49	48	48	47	47
Cloudier (%)	63	64	65	65	63	63	63	62	61	61	60	59	59	59	58	57	56	56	55	54	53	53	53	52	52	52	51	52	52	53	53

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	37	63
2	36	64
3	35	65
4	35	65
5	37	63
6	37	63
7	37	63
8	38	62
9	39	61
10	39	61
11	40	60
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	42	58
16	43	57
17	44	56
18	44	56
19	45	55
20	46	54
21	47	53
22	47	53
23	47	53
24	48	52
25	48	52
26	48	52
27	49	51
28	48	52
29	48	52
30	47	53
31	47	53

Chance of precipitation in May

Any precipitation

Challans gets around 52 mm of rain over 9.9 wet days in May. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 32% and peaks near 38% on the wettest days. The odds ease toward the end of the month.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	38	38	37	37	36	35	35	34	33	33	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	32	31	31	31	31	31	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30

	Rain chance (%)
1	38
2	38
3	37
4	37
5	36
6	35
7	35
8	34
9	33
10	33
11	32
12	32
13	32
14	32
15	32
16	32
17	32
18	32
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	30
25	30
26	30
27	30
28	30
29	30
30	30
31	30

Humidity in May

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of May feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, May lands in the dry band about 76% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	88	87	86	84	84	83	83	82	82	81	81	81	80	80	80	79	79	78	76	75	74	72	71	69	67	66	64	63	61	59	59
Comfortable (%)	12	13	14	15	15	16	16	17	17	18	18	18	18	18	18	19	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	28	29	30	31	32	33	33
Humid (%)	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	4	4	5	5	5	6	6	7	8	8

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	88	12	0
2	87	13	0
3	86	14	0
4	84	15	1
5	84	15	1
6	83	16	1
7	83	16	1
8	82	17	1
9	82	17	1
10	81	18	1
11	81	18	1
12	81	18	1
13	80	18	2
14	80	18	2
15	80	18	2
16	79	19	2
17	79	19	2
18	78	20	2
19	76	21	3
20	75	22	3
21	74	23	3
22	72	24	4
23	71	25	4
24	69	26	5
25	67	28	5
26	66	29	5
27	64	30	6
28	63	31	6
29	61	32	7
30	59	33	8
31	59	33	8

Wind in May

Winds average 17 km/h in May.

Across May, daily wind ranges from about 17 km/h on the calmest days to 17 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17	17
Feels	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze	light breeze

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	17	light breeze
2	17	light breeze
3	17	light breeze
4	17	light breeze
5	17	light breeze
6	17	light breeze
7	17	light breeze
8	17	light breeze
9	17	light breeze
10	17	light breeze
11	17	light breeze
12	17	light breeze
13	17	light breeze
14	17	light breeze
15	17	light breeze
16	17	light breeze
17	17	light breeze
18	17	light breeze
19	17	light breeze
20	17	light breeze
21	17	light breeze
22	17	light breeze
23	17	light breeze
24	17	light breeze
25	17	light breeze
26	17	light breeze
27	17	light breeze
28	17	light breeze
29	17	light breeze
30	17	light breeze
31	17	light breeze

Sunrise & sunset in May

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 14 h 06 min at the start of May to 15 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 72 minutes over May. Sunrise moves from 6:01 AM to 5:24 AM, and sunset from 8:09 PM to 8:45 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	14.1	14.2	14.2	14.3	14.3	14.4	14.4	14.5	14.5	14.6	14.6	14.7	14.7	14.7	14.8	14.8	14.9	14.9	14.9	15.0	15.0	15.1	15.1	15.1	15.2	15.2	15.2	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3
Sunrise (AM)	6:01	5:59	5:57	5:56	5:54	5:53	5:51	5:50	5:48	5:47	5:46	5:44	5:43	5:42	5:40	5:39	5:38	5:37	5:35	5:34	5:33	5:32	5:31	5:30	5:29	5:28	5:28	5:27	5:26	5:25	5:24
Sunset (PM)	8:09	8:10	8:11	8:13	8:14	8:16	8:17	8:18	8:20	8:21	8:22	8:23	8:25	8:26	8:27	8:29	8:30	8:31	8:32	8:33	8:35	8:36	8:37	8:38	8:39	8:40	8:41	8:42	8:43	8:44	8:45

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	14.1	6:01	8:09
2	14.2	5:59	8:10
3	14.2	5:57	8:11
4	14.3	5:56	8:13
5	14.3	5:54	8:14
6	14.4	5:53	8:16
7	14.4	5:51	8:17
8	14.5	5:50	8:18
9	14.5	5:48	8:20
10	14.6	5:47	8:21
11	14.6	5:46	8:22
12	14.7	5:44	8:23
13	14.7	5:43	8:25
14	14.7	5:42	8:26
15	14.8	5:40	8:27
16	14.8	5:39	8:29
17	14.9	5:38	8:30
18	14.9	5:37	8:31
19	14.9	5:35	8:32
20	15.0	5:34	8:33
21	15.0	5:33	8:35
22	15.1	5:32	8:36
23	15.1	5:31	8:37
24	15.1	5:30	8:38
25	15.2	5:29	8:39
26	15.2	5:28	8:40
27	15.2	5:28	8:41
28	15.3	5:27	8:42
29	15.3	5:26	8:43
30	15.3	5:25	8:44
31	15.3	5:24	8:45

Solar energy in May

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in May, about 5.84 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.04 kWh/m² to a high of 6.28 kWh/m² in June across the year — May's 5.84 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	5.3	5.3	5.3	5.4	5.4	5.4	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.6	5.6	5.7	5.7	5.8	5.8	5.8	5.9	5.9	6.0	6.0	6.0	6.1	6.1	6.1	6.1	6.2	6.2	6.2	6.2	6.2	6.2
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	5.3	Bright
2	5.3	Bright
3	5.3	Bright
4	5.4	Bright
5	5.4	Bright
6	5.4	Bright
7	5.5	Bright
8	5.5	Bright
9	5.6	Bright
10	5.6	Bright
11	5.6	Bright
12	5.7	Bright
13	5.7	Bright
14	5.8	Bright
15	5.8	Bright
16	5.8	Bright
17	5.9	Bright
18	5.9	Bright
19	6.0	Bright
20	6.0	Bright
21	6.0	Intense
22	6.1	Intense
23	6.1	Intense
24	6.1	Intense
25	6.1	Intense
26	6.2	Intense
27	6.2	Intense
28	6.2	Intense
29	6.2	Intense
30	6.2	Intense
31	6.2	Intense

Planning a trip in May

Is May a good time to visit Challans?

Our two travel scores rate May for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

5.6

Sightseeing

5th-best month of the year

1.7

Beach & pool

5th-best month of the year

May is a reasonable time to visit Challans for sightseeing.

What to pack for Challans in May

From May's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In May, Challans sees daytime highs around 18°C and nights near 12°C. Worth packing: rain gear and sun protection. About 10 days see rain.

rain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Challans in May

The nearest coast averages about 14°C in May — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 19 km away) is warmest in August at about 19°C and coldest in February near 9°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°C)	10	9	10	12	14	17	18	19	18	16	14	11
Comfort	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Cool	Bracing	Bracing

	Sea temperature (°C)	Comfort
Jan	10	Bracing
Feb	9	Bracing
Mar	10	Bracing
Apr	12	Bracing
May	14	Bracing
Jun	17	Cool
Jul	18	Cool
Aug	19	Cool
Sep	18	Cool
Oct	16	Cool
Nov	14	Bracing
Dec	11	Bracing

UV index in Challans in May

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in May peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Challans peaks around August 10 at about 7 (very high) — sunscreen and a hat are worth it in the middle of the day. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 7 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	1	2	4	5	6	7	7	7	5	3	2	1
Level	Low	Low	Moderate	High	High	High	High	Very high	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Low

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	1	Low
Feb	2	Low
Mar	4	Moderate
Apr	5	High
May	6	High
Jun	7	High
Jul	7	High
Aug	7	Very high
Sep	5	Moderate
Oct	3	Moderate
Nov	2	Low
Dec	1	Low

Location & terrain

Where is Challans?

Challans sits at 46.8°N, 1.9°W, 13 m above sea level, in France. The nearest listed city is Les Sables-d'Olonne, 39 km away.

Topography around Challans

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Challans.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Challans has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 44 m around an average of 12 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 84 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 340 m.

The land around Challans is covered by grassland (37%), artificial surfaces (30%) and trees (26%) within 3 km, grassland (54%) and cropland (22%) within 16 km, and water (36%), grassland (26%) and cropland (22%) within 80 km.

3 km

44 m

grassland 37%

16 km

84 m

grassland 54%

80 km

340 m

water 36%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetland

← April Challans year-round climate June →Best places to visit in May

May weather nearby: Les Sables-d'Olonne 39 km · La Roche-sur-Yon 40 km · Bouguenais 42 km · Couëron 43 km · Saint-Herblain 44 km · Rezé 45 km · Vertou 47 km · Nantes 48 km

France travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 2; Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs: Type C / E; 230 V · 50 Hz
Prices: ≈ 77% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $48,986; 2025
Happiness: 6.6 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 100%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 1.3; per 100k, 2023
Road deaths: 5.1; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: High; World Bank
English: Moderate; EF EPI 539
Religion

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Challans (46.8458°, -1.8794°, elevation 13 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	16	10
2	16	10
3	16	11
4	16	11
5	16	11
6	16	11
7	16	11
8	17	11
9	17	11
10	17	11
11	17	11
12	17	11
13	17	11
14	17	11
15	17	12
16	18	12
17	18	12
18	18	12
19	18	12
20	18	12
21	18	12
22	18	12
23	18	12
24	19	13
25	19	13
26	19	13
27	19	13
28	19	13
29	19	13
30	19	13
31	19	13

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	37	63
2	36	64
3	35	65
4	35	65
5	37	63
6	37	63
7	37	63
8	38	62
9	39	61
10	39	61
11	40	60
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	42	58
16	43	57
17	44	56
18	44	56
19	45	55
20	46	54
21	47	53
22	47	53
23	47	53
24	48	52
25	48	52
26	48	52
27	49	51
28	48	52
29	48	52
30	47	53
31	47	53

	Rain chance (%)
1	38
2	38
3	37
4	37
5	36
6	35
7	35
8	34
9	33
10	33
11	32
12	32
13	32
14	32
15	32
16	32
17	32
18	32
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	30
25	30
26	30
27	30
28	30
29	30
30	30
31	30

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	88	12	0
2	87	13	0
3	86	14	0
4	84	15	1
5	84	15	1
6	83	16	1
7	83	16	1
8	82	17	1
9	82	17	1
10	81	18	1
11	81	18	1
12	81	18	1
13	80	18	2
14	80	18	2
15	80	18	2
16	79	19	2
17	79	19	2
18	78	20	2
19	76	21	3
20	75	22	3
21	74	23	3
22	72	24	4
23	71	25	4
24	69	26	5
25	67	28	5
26	66	29	5
27	64	30	6
28	63	31	6
29	61	32	7
30	59	33	8
31	59	33	8

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	16	10
2	16	10
3	16	11
4	16	11
5	16	11
6	16	11
7	16	11
8	17	11
9	17	11
10	17	11
11	17	11
12	17	11
13	17	11
14	17	11
15	17	12
16	18	12
17	18	12
18	18	12
19	18	12
20	18	12
21	18	12
22	18	12
23	18	12
24	19	13
25	19	13
26	19	13
27	19	13
28	19	13
29	19	13
30	19	13
31	19	13

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	37	63
2	36	64
3	35	65
4	35	65
5	37	63
6	37	63
7	37	63
8	38	62
9	39	61
10	39	61
11	40	60
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	42	58
16	43	57
17	44	56
18	44	56
19	45	55
20	46	54
21	47	53
22	47	53
23	47	53
24	48	52
25	48	52
26	48	52
27	49	51
28	48	52
29	48	52
30	47	53
31	47	53

	Rain chance (%)
1	38
2	38
3	37
4	37
5	36
6	35
7	35
8	34
9	33
10	33
11	32
12	32
13	32
14	32
15	32
16	32
17	32
18	32
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	30
25	30
26	30
27	30
28	30
29	30
30	30
31	30

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	88	12	0
2	87	13	0
3	86	14	0
4	84	15	1
5	84	15	1
6	83	16	1
7	83	16	1
8	82	17	1
9	82	17	1
10	81	18	1
11	81	18	1
12	81	18	1
13	80	18	2
14	80	18	2
15	80	18	2
16	79	19	2
17	79	19	2
18	78	20	2
19	76	21	3
20	75	22	3
21	74	23	3
22	72	24	4
23	71	25	4
24	69	26	5
25	67	28	5
26	66	29	5
27	64	30	6
28	63	31	6
29	61	32	7
30	59	33	8
31	59	33	8

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	16	10
2	16	10
3	16	11
4	16	11
5	16	11
6	16	11
7	16	11
8	17	11
9	17	11
10	17	11
11	17	11
12	17	11
13	17	11
14	17	11
15	17	12
16	18	12
17	18	12
18	18	12
19	18	12
20	18	12
21	18	12
22	18	12
23	18	12
24	19	13
25	19	13
26	19	13
27	19	13
28	19	13
29	19	13
30	19	13
31	19	13

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	37	63
2	36	64
3	35	65
4	35	65
5	37	63
6	37	63
7	37	63
8	38	62
9	39	61
10	39	61
11	40	60
12	41	59
13	41	59
14	41	59
15	42	58
16	43	57
17	44	56
18	44	56
19	45	55
20	46	54
21	47	53
22	47	53
23	47	53
24	48	52
25	48	52
26	48	52
27	49	51
28	48	52
29	48	52
30	47	53
31	47	53

	Rain chance (%)
1	38
2	38
3	37
4	37
5	36
6	35
7	35
8	34
9	33
10	33
11	32
12	32
13	32
14	32
15	32
16	32
17	32
18	32
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	30
25	30
26	30
27	30
28	30
29	30
30	30
31	30

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	88	12	0
2	87	13	0
3	86	14	0
4	84	15	1
5	84	15	1
6	83	16	1
7	83	16	1
8	82	17	1
9	82	17	1
10	81	18	1
11	81	18	1
12	81	18	1
13	80	18	2
14	80	18	2
15	80	18	2
16	79	19	2
17	79	19	2
18	78	20	2
19	76	21	3
20	75	22	3
21	74	23	3
22	72	24	4
23	71	25	4
24	69	26	5
25	67	28	5
26	66	29	5
27	64	30	6
28	63	31	6
29	61	32	7
30	59	33	8
31	59	33	8