North Island to see mainly fine weather this week

One person took advantage of the North Island's lingering summer heat this weekend to bake on a rock ledge at McLaren Falls in the Kaimai Ranges west of Tauranga. Photo / Alan Gibson

Settled weather is set to continue late into this week, thanks to a ridge of high pressure that brought cloudless skies around the North Island on Sunday - even Wellington felt barely a breeze.

That high pressure ridge will move north on Monday, maintaining "pretty decent" weather for the next few days, according to MetService meteorologist Josh Griffin.

Westerly winds will dominate, with highs in the low 20s in all the main centres, and a chance of scattered showers in the north of the North Island. A smattering of rain would be seen from Taranaki down to Westland.

Sun lovers should make the most of the good weather because a low pressure system is set to roll in from the west just in time for the weekend, bringing heavy rain for Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Whangarei and Wellington which will last through till Monday or Tuesday next week.

However Griffin said the rain would be "nothing like what we had last week", referring to the system that saw heavy flooding in Auckland and the Coromandel.

MetService said the timing and intensity of the low were still uncertain so people should check the most recent forecasts before making plans.

A severe weather warning is in place for the south of the South Island, with southwest gales expected tomorrow evening.

"Right now we have heavy rain potentially in parts of the South Island although that's with low confidence at the moment," Griffin said. "There's a low pressure system approaching from the Tasman Sea late Thursday or Friday, mainly about the ranges of Nelson and Buller."

Today's forecast:

Whangarei: Cloudy periods, chance of afternoon showers. 24C
Auckland: Cloudy with showers possible. Southwesterly breezes. 22C
Hamilton: Chance of morning showers. Southwesterlies. 22C
Tauranga: Fine, westerlies developing. 23C
Wellington: Fine with Northerlies. 20C
Christchurch: Fine with high cloud. 25C
Dunedin: Showers in afternoon, strong southerly. 23C