Heavy rain expected in southern Germany, north will stay dry

The German Weather Service (DWD) has forecast heavy rain across southwestern Germany in the coming days. Northern parts of the country are likely to remain dry until early next week.

Expect heavy rain on Sunday and Monday

On Sunday, November 8, a low-pressure area is expected to bring heavy rain to southwestern Germany. On Monday, as the warm front remains in the south, the heavy rain should be contained to the Black Forest and the foothills of the Alps.

According to the DWD, mountainous areas in the south could see around 40 litres of rain per square metre over the course of just 48 hours. Northern and eastern parts of the country, however, are expected to stay dry.

Rainfall will spread on Tuesday and Wednesday

Moving into Tuesday, the southwest will continue to bear the brunt of inclement weather, and warning thresholds may be reached in high-traffic areas. However, the warm front is expected to creep north and eastwards, bringing heavy rain to those parts of the country by Wednesday and continuing into Thursday and Friday. 

Following an exceptionally dry spring and hot summer, water levels at the Kaub gauge in Germany’s Rhine River fell to a record low at the end of September. According to the EU’s Copernicus Programme, water levels at Kaub sat at 55 centimetres on October 26, 2026.

While a wet October offered some respite and heavy rain will continue this coming week, water levels in the river are expected to drop again in the next weeks, choking Europe’s busiest inland waterway and threatening to further disrupt goods deliveries between Switzerland and the port of Rotterdam.