Climate in New Zealand

The climate throughout the country is mild and temperate, mainly maritime, with temperatures rarely falling below 0 °C or rising above 30 °C in populated areas. Historical maxima and minima are 42.4 °C in Rangiora, Canterbury and −21.6 °C in Ophir, Otago.

Conditions vary sharply across regions from extremely wet on the West Coast of the South Island to semi-arid in the Mackenzie Basin of inland Canterbury and subtropical in Northland.

Of the main cities, Christchurch is the driest, receiving only 640 mm of rain per year; Auckland, the wettest, receives almost twice that amount. Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch all receive a yearly average in excess of 2000 hours of sunshine.

The southern and south-western parts of South Island have a cooler and cloudier climate, with around 1400–1600 hours; the northern and north-eastern parts of the South Island are the sunniest areas of the country and receive approximately 2400–2500 hours.