Weather: Sunny start to school holidays for NZ but heavy rain could move in from Wednesday

• Families can expect a mostly sunny start to the school holidays, with temperatures in the 20Cs today.
• A weather system from the north may bring major downpours from Wednesday, especially in the North Island.
• Temperatures are expected to drop sharply midweek in Wellington and the South Island.

Families across New Zealand can expect a mostly sunny start to the school holidays today, before what is likely a change moving in midweek, especially in the North Island.

Temperatures are expected to be in the 20Cs across nearly all of the North Island today, while in the South Island they should stay in the high teens.

Forecaster MetService warns it’s still too far out to predict with certainty, there is growing confidence that a weather system moving over the country from the north could bring then major downpours from Wednesday.

For Auckland that means a top of 23C today and 24C before some rain on Tuesday as temperatures fall into the low 20Cs midweek as bad weather hits.

Further north, Whangārei and Northland could take the brunt of the bad weather as the city can expect 21C and some rain today, with temperatures continuing in the low 20Cs through the week.

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Tauranga can expect 23C today and tomorrow before the rainy system is expected to set in on Wednesday, according to MetService.

Further south, Wellington can expect a high of 20C today before the temperature falls to about 16C from Tuesday onwards, with heavier rain expected to arrive around Thursday.

People relax and walk through Cornwall Park on a warm Saturday autumn afternoon at Auckland's One Tree Hill. Photo / Jason Dorday

Christchurch can expect a mostly fine start to the holidays today with a top of 19C that should climb to 22C on Monday before the temperature drops dramatically to 13C on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Vacationers in Queenstown can expect a similarly up and down start to the school holidays with a top of 19C expected today before some rain on Monday and the temperature drops to 11C on Tuesday.

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