Change of seasons: Time to move the Kiwi summer?

Sick of the summer that's not really been summer? There is a simple proposal to fix the situation - move the official summer months.

Labour Day once heralded in the start of summer - cicadas hissing, sun blazing - but this summer many Kiwis have been more likely to go running for their winter woollies than the swimming togs.

The idea of moving the summer holidays to February would disrupt the school year and likely create chaos in the tourism industry during its peak season, but as the school holidays draw to an end without much sun it's an idea many say is worth considering.

United Future leader Peter Dunne said the holiday period needed to change, suggesting New Zealand follow the European holiday format.

"What we ought to consider doing is having a shorter break at Christmas, and then the main holiday in mid-February to mid-March.

"The funny thing is, everyone says it's a really good idea, then they say 'oh it's too hard to do'.

"It's not really, but it just needs someone to grab it with both hands."

Dunne said there's been a noticeable change in summer's weather patterns, which could be partly due to climate change.

"I think that if you look at the last few years you see February, March, even into April has been pretty good. I don't think that's necessarily always been the case."

WeatherWatch's Philip Duncan described our current summer holiday timing as "bizarre".
He said the past five years had seen summer shift back by about a month.

"We should push [the holidays] out to mid-January and February. That's when the driest, hottest, weather of the year is.

"It's bizarre to me that we shut down at Christmas.

A large tree brought down by storms earlier this week. Photo / Michael Craig

"Obviously there are Christian holidays wrapped around that, but I don't really understand why we shut down then."

Secondary Principals' Association president Sandy Pasley believed there would be some merit in starting the school year later, but it would have to coincide with exam structure.

"Hot classrooms in February can be difficult, but schools need enough time to teach their students the curriculum before exams and it's already really tight at the moment.

If exams were put off until December, they would still have to be done in time for Christmas, and then that would leave NZQA marking them over the Christmas period, which wouldn't be the best."

Tourism Industry Aotearoa chief executive Chris Roberts said the idea of moving the summer holidays would create some challenges but may lead to some benefits for the tourism industry as well.

"On the positive side, more settled, warmer weather would encourage Kiwis to get out and enjoy all the great activities New Zealand has to offer.

A Malaysian tourist battles with her umbrella while on the Mt Victoria lookout last week. Photo / Mark Mitchell

"It would also mean that operators running weather-dependent activities would have less disruption during their peak period."

However, Roberts said moving the school holidays to February would exacerbate the challenges of seasonal demand.

"International visitor arrivals peak during February, and this has been boosted in recent years by visitors travelling to New Zealand for the Chinese New Year holiday. So tourism operators are already very busy through this period."

He said the tourism industry was focused on having year-round tourism, helping operators better utilise their assets and create more permanent jobs.

There's been a noticeable change in summer's weather patterns. Photo / File

"Many holiday parks are full or close to full right now, but are much quieter from April to November. We need to find ways to encourage New Zealanders and international visitors to travel more at off-peak times."

Bishop Jim White, of the Anglican Diocese of Auckland, said he hoped there would still be a few days of holiday at Christmas if the summer break was to change.

"I would want to see the days of religious observation still be holidays so that's Christmas and Boxing Day, and then maybe if there was a third day to allow people time to travel.

"That time is not only important to the church, but also to families who all come together at the time and have a raft of traditions."

The 2016/17 summer has been so bad in some people's eyes that there have been calls to scrap outdoor events in December and January all together.

Wellington City Council has received calls asking why it bothered holding public events in January with such poor weather lurking over the country.

Forced to cancel several outdoor concerts, the council also ditched the Wellington Pasifika Festival, and changed times for several other events.

Last weekend disgruntled customers demanded a refund after Auckland's Ignite Light Show was ruined by heavy rain and strong gusts.

Tennis great Serena Williams famously said this summer was "abhorrent" and provided her with the "least favourite" conditions she's ever played in.

"At least I can get out of these conditions so I can get somewhere better, and warmer weather too," she said after leaving Auckland's ASB Classic earlier this month.

WeatherWatch's Philip Duncan described our current summer holiday timing as "bizarre". Photo / Michael Craig

MetService figures show the average temperature for Auckland has dropped by more than 1C when compared with summer last year, from 19.7C to 18.6C.

Wellington has gone from 16.3C to 15.4C, while Christchurch is slightly lower than last year, from 16.1C to 15.9C.

Summer, for some, is also seen as the period when daylight savings begins and ends - the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April.

Kiwis historically aren't adverse to altering periods of time, and have changed daylight savings several times since it was first officially adopted with the Summer Time Act in 1927.

And in 1941, due to World War II, New Zealand's clocks were moved forward half an hour - a move made permanent in 1945.

The current daylight savings time was implemented following a petition of 42,000 signatures to Parliament calling for an extension to allow extra hours of light.