Franz Josef in Winter
In winter (June, July and August), Franz Josef sees average daytime highs around 3°C and overnight lows near -4°C, with 721 mm of precipitation over about 41 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 3°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Franz Josef's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Franz Josef's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 3°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -4°C
- Precipitation
- 721 mm
- 41 wet days
- Avg wind
- 4 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Jun · Jul · Aug
Temperature in Franz Josef in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 3°C.
A typical winter day in Franz Josef reaches about 3°C and drops to -4°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is August, the coolest July.
How winter really feels in Franz Josef
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 92 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Franz Josef weather by month
How the three winter months (June, July and August) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 14° / 6° | 309 | 16 | 0.8 | 14.8 | 3.3 |
| Feb | 14° / 6° | 228 | 14.1 | 0.9 | 13.8 | 3.6 |
| Mar | 12° / 5° | 251 | 14.1 | 1.4 | 12.4 | 3.0 |
| Apr | 10° / 2° | 264 | 13.5 | 2.8 | 10.8 | 1.9 |
| May | 7° / -1° | 286 | 15.1 | 6.7 | 9.5 | 0.7 |
| Jun | 3° / -4° | 261 | 13.1 | 8.7 | 8.8 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 3° / -4° | 228 | 12.8 | 10.6 | 9.1 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 3° / -3° | 232 | 14.6 | 11.8 | 10.2 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 5° / -2° | 316 | 16.7 | 12.1 | 11.7 | 0.1 |
| Oct | 7° / -0° | 324 | 19 | 10 | 13.2 | 0.6 |
| Nov | 9° / 2° | 303 | 18.3 | 6.5 | 14.5 | 1.5 |
| Dec | 12° / 5° | 342 | 19.1 | 2.7 | 15.2 | 2.4 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Franz Josef gets around 721 mm of rain and snow over 41 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 4 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 hours in early June to 10 h 54 min by late August. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 2.0 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Franz Josef?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Franz Josef.
What to pack for Franz Josef in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Franz Josef sees daytime highs around 3°C and nights near -4°C. Pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear. About 41 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Franz Josef in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 13°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 25 km away) is warmest in February at about 18°C and coldest in August near 13°C.
The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 17 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 16 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Cool |
| Feb | 18 | Cool |
| Mar | 17 | Cool |
| Apr | 16 | Cool |
| May | 15 | Bracing |
| Jun | 14 | Bracing |
| Jul | 13 | Bracing |
| Aug | 13 | Bracing |
| Sep | 13 | Bracing |
| Oct | 13 | Bracing |
| Nov | 14 | Bracing |
| Dec | 16 | Cool |
UV index in Franz Josef in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Franz Josef peaks around January 15 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 16 at about 1 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 11 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Very high | High | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 10 | Very high |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 2 | Low |
| Jun | 1 | Low |
| Jul | 2 | Low |
| Aug | 2 | Moderate |
| Sep | 4 | Moderate |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 8 | Very high |
| Dec | 10 | Very high |
Where is Franz Josef?
Franz Josef sits at 43.4°S, 170.2°E, 0 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Tekapo, 73 km away.
Topography around Franz Josef
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Franz Josef.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Franz Josef has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,047 m around an average of 294 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,067 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,635 m.
The land around Franz Josef is covered by trees (72%) within 3 km, trees (59%) within 16 km, and water (29%), grassland (27%) and trees (23%) within 80 km.
New Zealand travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type I
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 86% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $49,591
- 2025
- Happiness
- 7.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 100%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 1.5
- per 100k, 2022
- Road deaths
- 9.6
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- Religion
Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Franz Josef (-43.3891°, 170.1819°, elevation 0 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.