Weather, forecast for New Year’s Eve: last days with the sun, from December 31st the wave of frost arrives

Sun, clean skies and mild temperatures: this is how Italy will say goodbye to 2025. But it is a deceptive farewell. Because on New Year’s Eve the cold, the real one, is already on its way to the Peninsula. In the next few hours, however, high pressure will dominate the Mediterranean and will accompany our country towards New Year’s Eve with clear skies and mild temperatures, often above seasonal averages. In the Alps and in much of the Central-South, winter seems to have slowed down, allowing a few days of respite before the change of scenery.

The turning point

The turning point is expected between the final hours of the year and the start of 2026. «From the high latitudes of Northern Europe, between the Scandinavian Peninsula and Russia, masses of freezing air are setting in motion and are destined to descend towards our country», explains Stefano Federico, researcher at the Institute of Atmospheric and Climate Sciences of the National Research Council (Cnr-Isac). “It will help clean up the air quality and it will be the first real cold wave on a continental scale of the season, with noticeable effects already on New Year’s Eve,” he adds. For the expert, thermometers will drop between minus five and minus ten degrees on the Northern plains and in the internal areas of the Centrecreating the conditions for widespread frosts.
«The Po Valley and the internal areas of the Center will be the areas most exposed to the cold wave because there will be no precipitation and the cold air will thicken», continues Stefano Federico. Good news for holidaymakers who love skiing. «Close to New Year’s Eve they will find ideal conditions to spend days on the track – continues the researcher – and, in many destinations, after sunset, the mercury could drop to minus ten degrees, bringing back fully winter conditions”.
The drop in temperatures will also affect the South, where the temperature drop will be accentuated by strong winds arriving from the North. A dry cold, more biting than the absolute values ​​indicate, which will be felt especially in the evening and night hours. Between New Year’s Eve and the following Friday night the weather could worsen throughout the Centre-South. In fact, scattered precipitation with snowfall is expected in the internal Apennine areas above nine hundred thousand metres.

Evolution

The evolution, however, remains linked to a key element: «The possible interaction between the icy air arriving from Northern Europe and a low pressure forming over the Mediterranean», observes the Cnr-Isac researcher. If this situation were to occur, “it cannot be ruled out that the snow could reach lower altitudes”. Meanwhile, the last days of the year will still flow in the name of a fragile balance. Today temperatures will be dropping, but there will be clear skies over much of the country, while in the South local rain is possible, especially in Sicily. Tomorrow, however, there could be morning fog in the North, some precipitation in the Center and a strengthening wind in the South: a prelude to the meteorological turning point. «Rains could arrive in spurts not only in Sicily but also in Calabria», concludes Federico. On Wednesday, the traditional midnight toast will take place under clear skies, but frost will already be on the streets. A detail to keep in mind for the millions of motorists who will set off in the following hours.

December 28, 2025 (changed December 29, 2025 | 06:50)

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