Hawke's Bay school holiday weather: Wild Saturday set to turn into a balmy Sunday

The icy temperatures and low lying snow, as pictured on the Kaweka Range from Ongaonga on Wednesday, of the past few days are set to ease over the weekend. Photo / Warren Buckland.

Make the most of the clear skies and snowy mountains lining the Hawke's Bay countryside - because a warm and unsettled spell is on the way that could melt them in a heartbeat.

A stellar sunny school holiday Sunday in particular is forecast for Hawke's Bay, with highs of at least 20C predicted.

The relatively balmy weather for this time of year is due to warm air being blown from the North, coming from the Tropics and Subtropics, rather than the cold winter air that is usually propelled from the polar regions.

But it comes with a warning for the day before - Hawke's Bay's exposed areas are forecast to be hit by severe gales alongside possible heavy rainfall in the ranges.

For those travelling outside of the region on the weekend MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said holidaymakers should keep an eye on weather developments "because the weekend, especially on Saturday, is going to be quite an active weather day across the North Island".

"Of the whole of the North Island the Hawke's Bay region might be the place that doesn't receive as much rain," he said

Overnight temperatures will remain in the upper single to lower double digits over the weekend, with low-lying cloud providing some relief from the colder overnight temperatures experienced recently.

Makgabutlane said Monday temperatures would cool across Hawke's Bay to between 15C and 17C which was "not super cold considering it's winter".