So we’re sitting here in our own little cold snap in the southern United States. This next week brings our vacation to (what else?) Old Blighty. And while every time we check the departure status of our plane, it looks like its still on, news sources tell us that it is hit-or-miss at best when it comes to flying into Heathrow.
And this brings us back to a conversation the British love: the weather. On numerous occasions I have found great amusement in how many different ways UK weather forecasters can say, “It might rain part of the day and it might be dry part of the day, but we’re not really sure further than that.” But what we have going here is an extended cold spell that might break records.
We have the advantage of having friends and family in the UK, so they can relay any information to us. But if you don’t have this luxury, where does one look to find out about the weather? I’ve supplied a list of web links I have been giving lots of traffic:
- Heathrowairport.com: While the site does not provide weather forecasts, their home page does provide some updated information. Also, looking at the arrivals board over an extended period can be something of a help as to where flights are being allowed to land and which ones have a high likelihood cancelation.
- ba.com: We’re flying British Airways (hopefully). All major airlines do a decent job of updating their customers but BA’s website feels dated, at best. But it does the job. Make sure the airport have your contact information so that they can email, text, or call in case there are last minute changes.
- weather.com: Atlanta based The Weather Channel has been a staple of american cable and satellite television. Their website is also quite good. Over the past few years, their coverage of international destinations has improved.
- news.sky.com: Sky News, though not my favorite source of information, provides their weather reports for streaming over the internet. Additionally, their iPhone app provides streaming video of their weather reports.
- news.bbc.co.uk/weather: A little hard to navigate but you can access their forecasts as well as a stream of their weather report.
- metoffice.co.uk: The Met is the U.K.’s version of NOAA. They have some decent information, if you have patience to wade through it.
Other sites to consider are your national newspapers, BBC regional newscasts, and even local papers’ websites. All easily discoverable via your favorite search engine.
But I have also gotten some good information via Twitter. Searching on items such as Heathrow or British Airways provides a lot of junk but also good information, if you can filter through the trash. Also, British Airways‘ and Heathrow’s twitter account and the latter’s accompanying hashtags are good sources of more official information.
What’s the Weather Like, Again?
So we’re sitting here in our own little cold snap in the southern United States. This next week brings our vacation to (what else?) Old Blighty. And while every time we check the departure status of our plane, it looks like its still on, news sources tell us that it is hit-or-miss at best when it comes to flying into Heathrow.
And this brings us back to a conversation the British love: the weather. On numerous occasions I have found great amusement in how many different ways UK weather forecasters can say, “It might rain part of the day and it might be dry part of the day, but we’re not really sure further than that.” But what we have going here is an extended cold spell that might break records.
We have the advantage of having friends and family in the UK, so they can relay any information to us. But if you don’t have this luxury, where does one look to find out about the weather? I’ve supplied a list of web links I have been giving lots of traffic:
Other sites to consider are your national newspapers, BBC regional newscasts, and even local papers’ websites. All easily discoverable via your favorite search engine.
But I have also gotten some good information via Twitter. Searching on items such as Heathrow or British Airways provides a lot of junk but also good information, if you can filter through the trash. Also, British Airways‘ and Heathrow’s twitter account and the latter’s accompanying hashtags are good sources of more official information.