A wet, rather than a white Christmas for western Spain

Changeable weather will be the order of the day for Christmas week, with rain forecast in various parts of the country. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are likely to be wet in a number of regions, as an intense storm and several cold weather fronts head this way.

The rains are expected to be heavy towards the end of the week in the west of Spain, especially along the south coast of Galicia, in Extremadura and western Andalusia. 

Other parts of Spain are likely to see some showers too, but the snow level remains high for the time being, with only very mountainous regions seeing snowfall instead of rain.

According to the latest data from Aemet (the Spanish state meteorological office), there will be cloud and rain in western Galicia and in the extreme western parts of the Meseta (Spain's central plateau) and in Andalusia, with the heaviest rainfall forecast for northern Extremadura. 

During the week, a storm driven by an atmospheric river of subtropical humid air will move in from the west, affecting western and southern regions of the country, with northern and Mediterranean areas escaping most of the rain. 

The movement of these weather fronts will produce both rises and falls in temperatures, although overall they look set to be slightly higher than normal and there will be fewer frosts due to the warmer western winds.

So, no white Christmas for most of Spain, but many western parts of the country will see rain. 

Tuesday and Wednesday will see the arrival of another weather front, bringing heavy rains in its wake for the whole of the Atlantic region and the gulf of Cadiz. 

The rest of the week will be characterised by generalised rainfall across the country, except along the Mediterranean coast. 

In the Canary Islands the rain will be heavier on Tuesday and Thursday.