Strong wind chill of -12°C means very cold, but sunny Christmas holiday week

Those out and about in the Netherlands during the holiday-shortened week will experience a wind chill making the air temperature feel well below freezing. Overnight temperatures are expected to fall to a national average of -4 degrees Celsius, but will feel closer to -12 degrees, according to national meteorological office KNMI.

Clear skies are expected almost everywhere in the Netherlands, but the sunny days will provide little relief from the cold, said weather website WeerOnline. Winds out of the northeast will bring gusts of up to 60 kilometers per hour along the IJsselmeer, with gale-force winds also expected along the coast on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day.

Although the national weather center in De Bilt, Utrecht, may see -4 degrees overnight, parts of the country could see the mercury fall to -7 degrees this week. The high temperatures will range from -1 degrees in the east to 2 degrees in the Wadden Sea area on Christmas Day. Boxing Day will be sunny, and dry, with temperatures just above freezing.

"Then, cloud cover will gradually increase, with maximum temperatures slowly rising to around the long-term average after the weekend," said the KNMI. WeerOnline predicted Limburg will see the coldest high temperature this weekend at about 4 degrees during the daytime, with coastal stations expected to report highs of 7 degrees.

The chance of "persistent" fog was predicted for Sunday, along with light frost during the overnight hours, the KNMI said. This could lead to local weather alerts for icy roads and slippery conditions Sunday night and the following morning, despite the dry weather.

Overnight frost will make way for high temperatures ranging from 4 to 8 degrees on Monday and Tuesday. The wind shifting from out of the northwest means a slightly higher chance of precipitation, and a near certainty for extensive cloud cover at the start of the week.

Variable weather will bring a close to the New Year, with the KNMI expecting the national average temperature to be around 6 degrees on New Year's Day.