Get your skis on - the worst of winter's over

Despite the sunny weather, woolly hats and jackets were still a necessity for fishermen on the wharf at Okahu Bay yesterday. Photo / Sarah Ivey

The cold nights and mild days look set to continue this week but the worst of winter is over, forecasters say.

Weather Watch chief analyst Philip Duncan said a big high was moving over the Tasman Sea this week which would bring clear skies.

"The very north and the very south of New Zealand will have a little bit more changeable weather with a bit of cloud and maybe a little bit of wind - but apart from that, it's going to be settled and mostly sunny," Mr Duncan said.

"But we'll continue with the cold nights and mild days, but the temperatures during the day won't actually be that bad."

The MetService said temperatures would hit the early to mid-teens during the day and would drop to below 5C at night.

Mr Duncan said the worst of winter was over following the year's coldest day last Monday.

"From here on out, it should start to get better ... By the end of August, our days will have an extra hour of sunlight."

He said the weather would be perfect for skifields across the country this week.

"There won't be a lot of snow [this] week, but the temperatures will be good for locking in whatever fell last week," Mr Duncan said.

"It'll be a great week for skiing, it couldn't be better - blue skies, low winds."

MetService duty forecaster Derek Holland said frosts at night were likely across the country this week because of the clear skies.