Europe emerges as growing extreme weather risk zone for travellers, says Safeture

Europe can no longer be considered a low-risk destination when it comes to severe weather disruption, according to the latest Hurricane Informer 2026 report from Safeture and travel risk intelligence provider Riskline.

The report warns that rising sea surface temperatures, changing weather patterns, and the potential development of a strong El Niño event this year are increasing the likelihood of severe storms, flooding, and transport disruption across regions traditionally viewed as relatively safe from tropical weather systems.

While direct hurricane strikes remain rare in Europe, the effects of tropical and subtropical storms are becoming more pronounced. The report highlights a rise in Mediterranean tropical-like cyclones, known as ‘medicanes’, alongside increasingly severe windstorms and flooding events affecting Southern and Western Europe.

For travel risk managers, insurers, and assistance providers, the findings reflect a broader trend identified by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Copernicus Climate Change Service, which recently reported that Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with record sea-surface temperatures and widespread marine heatwaves recorded in 2025. More than 95% of Europe experienced above-average temperatures last year, increasing the conditions that can fuel extreme weather events.

According to Safeture, storms during the 2025/26 season caused widespread disruption across Southern Europe, damaging transport infrastructure, and triggering evacuations in parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

“Extreme weather events are increasingly developing into a global travel risk, including in regions that have rarely been associated with such risks in the past,” said Marcel Brandt, Chief Sales Officer at Safeture.

The warning comes as Europe experiences another summer of weather-related disruption. Recent heatwaves have prompted transport cancellations, infrastructure concerns, and public health alerts across several countries, underlining the growing operational challenges facing the travel sector.