Chilly change on the way

Guy Williams will offer a respite from winter's chills with his You Can Sense the Desperation show at the upcoming Auckland Comedy Festival. Photo / Michael Craig

Wintry blast bearing hail and snow set to bring our golden summer to an end

Dust off your coat and put an extra blanket on the bed - winter's first chills will hit this week with hail and snow forecast.

Temperatures are set to drop in the coming days - by up to 10°C in the Auckland region - as a polar blast roars up New Zealand.

The temperature plunge comes after a golden summer, then an unseasonably warm start to April when the mercury regularly reached the mid-20°Cs in Auckland.

Metservice meteorologist Emma Blades said the front would bring biting south to southwest winds and showers laced with hail and rain.

The South Island will bear the brunt of the cold snap. Snow is expected to fall to 400m in Canterbury and North Otago tomorrow.

"It looks like it's a blast coming up straight up from the Antarctic bringing really, really cold weather," Blades said.

"Because it's not passing over any land between Antarctica and us, it doesn't warm that much so we get hit."

The North Island would start to feel the icy blast tomorrow night.

Wellington could expect to be lashed by strong northerly gales before a southerly change ushered in heavy showers and hail.

Auckland weather would also start to pack up tomorrow with rain followed by showers and strengthening westerly winds.

And while temperatures in the Auckland region today were expected to reach 20°C, they would drop to 16°C on Tuesday.

Overnight temperatures were forecast to be well down on the balmy 16-18°C last night, and a chilly 8°C is forecast for Wednesday.

The coldest overnight temperatures were expected in the central South Island towns of Alexandra and Twizel, where the mercury was likely to drop below 0°C.

Wednesday would bring some respite, but rain was expected to return in time for next weekend.

Motorists have been warned to drive to the conditions and beware of ice. Farmers should prepare to move livestock to low-lying areas.

Checklist: 10 ways to get ready for winter

Winter weekends are a great time to set up in front of your TV in the warmth. Photo / Thinkstock

• Check your electric blankets and gas heaters to make sure they're in working order.

• Stock up on firewood. And don't forget your annual chimney sweep.

• Check your smoke alarms.

• Shop around for the best power provider.

• If you need cheering up in the cold snap, check out the Auckland Comedy Festival, April 24 to May 17.

• Join a winter sports team. If you don't like the wet, sign up with your local gym.

• Winter weekends are a great time to set up in front of your TV in the warmth, so shop around and find the pay-TV provider that suits your viewing habits.

• Pack away your summer threads and splash out on a new winter wardrobe.

• And when the winter blues kick in, see your travel agent. With the rising NZ dollar, overseas holidays have never been cheaper.

• Some basic DIY to fix houshold draughts could shave hundreds off your power bill.