Wild thunderstorms and rain in the west, warm 21C temperatures in the east and snow in the south – welcome to spring in New Zealand.
Road snow warnings were in place for some South Island alpine passes early this morning, with more falls possible later today, and Wellington and Wairarapa are under a strong wind watch until 3pm.
State Highway 94 to Milford Sound is closed because of snow – up to 20cm may accumulate in the Homer Tunnel area – and the highway is not expected to reopen before mid to late tomorrow morning, according to the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA).
A road snowfall warning is also in place for Haast Pass (SH6) till 2pm, with earlier warnings for other alpine roads – such as the Crown Range – now expired.
🧁 Crown Range looking good enough to eat after a fresh dusting of snow overnight (just don't eat the yellow snow...)
— MetService (@MetService) September 25, 2025
🟠🚙 Road Snowfall Warnings are still in place for Arthur's Pass (SH73) and Lewis Pass (SH7) until 10am this morning - keep up with any updates from @nztacwc pic.twitter.com/TcXigkD9il
However, motorists were warned by NZTA on X just before 8am that chains were essential due to snow between Otira and Arthurs Pass on SH73, and the highway was closed to towing vehicles.
But while parts of the south shiver, warm weather is on the way this weekend for some in the east.
Others can expect a wet mid-school holidays weekend, MetService meteorologist John Law said.
It’d already been a “real classic spring week with plenty of windy weather, plenty of showers and temperatures all over the place”, Law told Michael Morrah on Herald NOW this morning.
Gusts of up to 100km/h had been recorded at [Westport’s] Cape Foulwind this morning, and it was a windy day in Wellington, Law said.
“We’ve got snow down south, but even as we head through the weekend, we’ll find temperatures up to around 20C in some parts of New Zealand. So we’re going to keep hold of this pattern at least through the weekend and even through into what’s perhaps the start of next week as well.”
While it would be mild in Auckland tomorrow, with a high of 19C, those heading to Eden Park for the All Blacks test against Australia were warned to pack a brolly.
Kickoff is at 5.05pm.
“The weekend is going to be one of those east-west splits across the country with more showery weather on those western sides,” Law said.
“And I think particularly for Saturday afternoon, there could be one or two sharper ones around Auckland. Hopefully, by the time we get towards the end of the game we’ll find the worst of those showers clearing through.”
The good news was Sunday – the first day of summer hours after clocks are put forward at 2am – was looking like the best day of the weekend for many, Law said.
Highs in the low 20s were forecast across a swathe of towns and cities, including 20C for Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga and Dunedin, 21C in Blenheim, 22C in Whangārei, Gisborne and Christchurch, and 23C in Napier, according to the MetService website.
“There’s plenty of clear sky and sunshine still with us,” Law said.
“I think we’re going to find a bit more cloud on those western coasts. But with more northwesterly winds, those areas in the east actually get a bit of a boost in their temperatures.
“So places like Christchurch and Canterbury are looking pretty nice by the time we head through towards Sunday afternoon [and] some spots like Napier and Hastings [will be] seeing their temperatures rise to around 24C – that’s about seven degrees warmer than normal for this time of year.”