First of all, it depends on where you go. Metropolitan France has 4 seasons: Autumn, Winter, Spring, Summer.

If you go to cities located in the north like Lille, Paris, Nantes, Strasbourg: Autumn and Winter are cold and rainy but international students normally adapt themselves well. By spring and summer, the weather is good and, in general, not as hot as in South Africa.

If you go to cities in the South like Marseille, Aix en Provence, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Montpellier, the weather is not as cold. Spring and Summer are wonderful, people can go to the seaside and swim (more in Summer than Spring), Autumn is ok. Winter is colder from a South African point of view but much better than the North of France. In any case, if you go to France, you should take with you clothes for both cold and hot weather. But remember that you will need to buy a coat in France (nothing you buy here – even if it’s a good brand – will measure up to their winter and to what you can buy there).

If you go to an overseas department (except Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon) you will find, in general, a tropical climate with hot weather (perfect to go to the seaside) and a raining season rather than a winter season.