It was looking like the best summer in three years - until this week.

Civil Defence urges campers to hatch a wet weather plan head of 30 hr-plus deluge.

Holidaymakers are advised to keep updated as traffic congestion builds in some areas.

Holiday hotspots are the place to be right now and into the new year.

Holiday hotspots are the place to be right now and into the new year.

The person is being medically assessed.

It's a mixed bag of weather over the next few days.

Meteorologist says a break in the unsettled weather could be on the cards for Christmas.

The closure, which begins on Friday, would be initially in place for three months.

There are road closures in Waikato and Bay of Plenty.

Jaden Melgren jailed six years, four months for raping a sleeping woman.

The formal identification of a body found in Beachlands on Sunday is ongoing.

Evacuations have occurred in Tokomaru Bay on the East Coast as river levels rise.

Stormy weather causing problems as it moves south.

But rain and frost warnings for some parts of the country.

A slow-moving front has made for a soggy start to school holidays in the north.

Rain descends on the North Island just in time for the school holidays.