Queenstown weather in April

In April, Queenstown sees average daytime highs of 11°C and overnight lows near 3°C, with 101 mm of precipitation across 11.3 wet days and about 10.8 hours of daylight. It is the 6th-warmest and 8th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 12°C in the first days to 9°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in April, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 11 h 30 min at the start of April to 10 hours by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, April is Queenstown's 4th-clearest and 7th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Queenstown's year-round climate.

Daytime high
11°
6th warmest
Overnight low
8th coldest
Precipitation
101 mm
11.3 wet days
Daylight
10 h 42 min
8:23 AM – 7:08 PM
Cloud cover
71%
4th clearest
Wind
6 km/h
7th windiest
Solar energy
2.61 kWh/m²
Travel score
2.4
out of 10

Queenstown is resort town in Otago Region, New Zealand.

Founded
1863

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Temperature in April

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 12°C in the first days to 9°C by the end.

A typical April day in Queenstown reaches about 11°C in the afternoon and slips back to 3°C overnight — a 7°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 6°C and 14°C. Set against its neighbours, April runs about 3°C cooler than March and about 4°C warmer than May.

-5°10°15°20°151015202530
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1125
2124
3124
4124
5124
6124
7114
8114
9114
10114
11113
12113
13113
14113
15113
16103
17103
18103
19103
20103
21103
22103
23103
24103
25103
26103
27103
2893
2993
3092

How April really feels in Queenstown

Once humidity and wind are folded in, April averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

April sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Queenstown weather by month

How April compares with the rest of the year at a glance. April is the 6th-warmest and 8th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan16° / 12712.30.5154.6
Feb16° / 9210.30.313.94.8
Mar14° / 10811.80.512.43.8
Apr11° / 10111.31.810.82.4
May / 12514.35.29.40.7
Jun / -3°9812.67.98.60.0
Jul / -4°9011.28.98.90.0
Aug / -2°8911.38.410.10.0
Sep / -1°12513.78.111.70.2
Oct / 13315.36.413.31.3
Nov11° / 13114.63.914.72.5
Dec14° / 13514.9115.43.6

Cloud cover in April

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in April.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of April, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 68%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
13367
23367
33367
43367
53367
63367
73367
83367
93367
103367
113367
123367
133367
143367
153367
163268
173169
183169
193169
203169
213169
223169
233268
243268
253268
263268
273268
283268
293268
303169

Chance of precipitation in April

Any precipitationSnow

Queenstown gets around 101 mm of rain and snow over 11.3 wet days in April. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 37% and peaks near 40% on the wettest days, and about 2 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%50%151015202530
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
1373
2373
3373
4374
5374
6374
7374
8385
9385
10385
11375
12375
13375
14366
15366
16366
17366
18366
19366
20366
21377
22377
23377
24377
25377
26388
27388
28388
29398
30409

Humidity in April

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of April feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, April lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100

Wind in April

Winds average 6 km/h in April.

Across April, daily wind ranges from about 5 km/h on the calmest days to 6 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202530
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
16calm
26calm
36calm
46calm
56calm
66calm
76calm
86calm
96calm
106calm
116calm
126calm
136calm
146calm
156calm
166calm
176calm
186calm
196calm
206calm
216calm
226calm
236calm
246calm
256calm
266calm
276calm
286calm
296calm
305calm

Sunrise & sunset in April

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 30 min at the start of April to 10 hours by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 90 minutes over April. Sunrise moves from 8:04 AM to 8:41 AM, and sunset from 7:36 PM to 6:44 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202530
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
111.58:047:36
211.58:057:34
311.48:077:32
411.48:087:30
511.38:097:28
611.38:117:26
711.28:127:24
811.28:137:23
911.18:147:21
1011.18:167:19
1111.08:177:17
1210.98:187:15
1310.98:207:13
1410.88:217:11
1510.88:227:10
1610.78:237:08
1710.78:257:06
1810.68:267:04
1910.68:277:02
2010.58:297:01
2110.58:306:59
2210.48:316:57
2310.48:326:55
2410.38:346:54
2510.38:356:52
2610.28:366:50
2710.28:376:49
2810.18:396:47
2910.18:406:46
3010.08:416:44

Solar energy in April

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in April, about 2.61 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.18 kWh/m² to a high of 6.48 kWh/m² in January across the year — April's 2.61 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

01234151015202530
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
13.3Moderate
23.2Moderate
33.2Moderate
43.1Moderate
53.1Moderate
63.0Moderate
73.0Moderate
82.9Moderate
92.9Moderate
102.9Moderate
112.8Moderate
122.8Moderate
132.7Moderate
142.7Moderate
152.6Moderate
162.6Moderate
172.5Moderate
182.5Moderate
192.5Moderate
202.4Moderate
212.4Moderate
222.3Moderate
232.3Moderate
242.2Moderate
252.2Moderate
262.2Moderate
272.1Moderate
282.1Moderate
292.1Moderate
302.0Moderate
Planning a trip in April

Is April a good time to visit Queenstown?

Our two travel scores rate April for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

2.4
Sightseeing
6th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

April is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Queenstown.

What to pack for Queenstown in April

From April's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In April, Queenstown sees daytime highs around 11°C and nights near 3°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 11 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Queenstown in April

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in April peaks around 3 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Queenstown peaks around January 14 at about 11 (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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateLowModerateHighVery highJan 14UV 11Jun 16UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb9Very high
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul2Low
Aug2Moderate
Sep5Moderate
Oct6High
Nov8Very high
Dec10Very high
Location & terrain

Where is Queenstown?

Queenstown sits at 45.0°S, 168.7°E, 0 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Wanaka, 53 km away.

InvercargillDunedinTekapoTimaruFranz JosefAshburtonRolleston

Topography around Queenstown

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Queenstown.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Queenstown has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,008 m around an average of 513 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,956 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,884 m.

The land around Queenstown is covered by trees (42%) and water (32%) within 3 km, grassland (55%) and trees (25%) within 16 km, and grassland (64%) and trees (25%) within 80 km.

3 km
1,008 m
16 km
1,956 m
80 km
2,884 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater
April weather nearby: Wanaka 53 km · Invercargill 154 km · Dunedin 172 km · Tekapo 184 km · Timaru 216 km · Franz Josef 219 km · Ashburton 274 km · Rolleston 337 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
no religion 49%Christian 37%objected to answering 7%Hindu 3%

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 Queenstown (-45.0302°, 168.6627°, 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. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).