Stay here for Easter, it will be hotter than the Costa

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Forecasters said today the bank holiday weekend will be clear and sunny, with temperatures outdoing many European resorts.

"It's going to be a very pleasant Easter weekend and we expect temperatures in the early twenties for London," said Met Office forecaster Keith Fenwick.

"We've been looking at temperatures across the continent and London is actually a better bet in most cases.

"In the Costa del Sol, for instance, it will be slightly cooler and with a high chance of storms.

"Across southern Europe it's going to be be very unsettled, while here we think the good weather will continue into next week.

"At the moment temperatures in Cyprus are the same as ours, with quite a lot of sun. Venice is also seeing temperatures of 17 and 18 degrees, going down to 14C or 15C on the coastal resorts.

"Temperatures along the Costa del Sol are ranging from 13 degrees in Gibraltar to 15 or 16 degrees in Alicante and Malaga and there is some rain and showers at the moment."

In London, temperatures rose at the beginning of the week, hitting 18C in St James's Park on Monday.

Since then, it has been cool and breezy with some light rain but conditions are set to improve again by Good Friday. The Easter sunshine comes after record mild spring weather.

The Met Office said that last month Britain had 142.9 hours of bright sunshine, 48 per cent higher than the March average of 96.3 hours.

The South-East enjoyed nearly 177 hours of sunshine, topping the record of 169 hours that was set in 1929 - the year records began.

Last month was also warmer than usual, with an average temperature of 9.9C, above the average of 8.5C.

Motoring groups say the Easter getaway could see 18 million vehicles on the road, with the M25 and junctions around Heathrow hardest hit. RAC spokesman Adam Cracknell said he expected the South-East's roads to be "chaos". He advised drivers to leave at least 40 minutes early, as journey times could be 60 per cent longer than usual. The worst time will be early on Thursday evening.