Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Wanaka New Zealand

In Wanaka, the summers are comfortable, the winters are very cold, and it is wet and partly cloudy year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 34°F to 70°F and is rarely below 27°F or above 77°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Wanaka for warm-weather activities is from mid January to late February.

The warm season lasts for 3.3 months, from December 5 to March 16, with an average daily high temperature above 65°F. The hottest month of the year in Wanaka is February, with an average high of 69°F and low of 51°F.

The cool season lasts for 3.0 months, from May 25 to August 24, with an average daily high temperature below 49°F. The coldest month of the year in Wanaka is July, with an average low of 35°F and high of 45°F.

In Wanaka, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Wanaka begins around August 29 and lasts for 7.2 months, ending around April 6.

The clearest month of the year in Wanaka is February, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 54% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 6 and lasts for 4.7 months, ending around August 29.

The cloudiest month of the year in Wanaka is May, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 58% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Wanaka varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 9.4 months, from September 13 to June 25, with a greater than 37% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Wanaka is October, with an average of 12.9 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 2.6 months, from June 25 to September 13. The month with the fewest wet days in Wanaka is February, with an average of 9.5 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Wanaka is October, with an average of 12.9 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 44% on October 6.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Wanaka experiences some seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Wanaka. The month with the most rain in Wanaka is December, with an average rainfall of 5.0 inches.

The month with the least rain in Wanaka is July, with an average rainfall of 3.5 inches.

The length of the day in Wanaka varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 21, with 8 hours, 48 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 15 hours, 35 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:51 AM on December 10, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 30 minutes later at 8:21 AM on June 27. The earliest sunset is at 5:08 PM on June 15, and the latest sunset is 4 hours, 23 minutes later at 9:31 PM on January 2.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Wanaka during 2024, starting in the spring on September 29 and ending in the fall on April 7.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

The perceived humidity level in Wanaka, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, remaining a virtually constant 0% throughout.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Wanaka experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 6.7 months, from September 4 to March 26, with average wind speeds of more than 7.3 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Wanaka is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 8.7 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 5.3 months, from March 26 to September 4. The calmest month of the year in Wanaka is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 6.0 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Wanaka varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the west for 1.1 months, from May 12 to June 15 and for 1.5 months, from October 19 to December 2, with a peak percentage of 41% on November 13. The wind is most often from the north for 4.1 months, from June 15 to October 19 and for 5.3 months, from December 2 to May 12, with a peak percentage of 41% on September 15.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Wanaka throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Wanaka for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid January to late February, with a peak score in the first week of February.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Wanaka for hot-weather activities is from mid January to mid February, with a peak score in the first week of February.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

The growing season in Wanaka typically lasts for 8.7 months (264 days), from around September 9 to around May 31, rarely starting before August 9 or after October 15, and rarely ending before April 30 or after June 27.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

Based on growing degree days alone, the first spring blooms in Wanaka should appear around October 27, only rarely appearing before October 15 or after November 8.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.6 months, from October 30 to February 16, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Wanaka is December, with an average of 7.2 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.8 months, from April 25 to August 18, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.5 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Wanaka is June, with an average of 1.3 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Wanaka are -44.700 deg latitude, 169.150 deg longitude, and 1,066 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Wanaka contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 837 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,078 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (5,115 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (9,882 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Wanaka is covered by grassland (58%) and trees (19%), within 10 miles by grassland (61%) and trees (17%), and within 50 miles by grassland (63%) and trees (22%).