Rolleston in Fall

In fall (March, April and May), Rolleston sees average daytime highs around 17°C and overnight lows near 8°C, with 143 mm of rain over about 23 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs ease from about 21°C in early March to 13°C by late May. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time across fall, and the air most often feels dry.

Fall is Rolleston's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Rolleston's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
17°C
2nd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
8°C
Rainfall
143 mm
23 wet days
Avg wind
11 km/h
Travel score
5.6
2nd-best season
Months
Mar · Apr · May

Temperature in Rolleston in Fall

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 21°C in early March to 13°C by late May.

A typical fall day in Rolleston reaches about 17°C and drops to 8°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is March, the coolest May.

10°20°30°MarAprMay

How fall really feels in Rolleston

Once humidity and wind are folded in, fall brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

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

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

Rolleston weather by month

How the three fall months (March, April and May) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan22° / 12°538.114.96.8
Feb22° / 12°416.113.87.1
Mar20° / 10°446.512.46.8
Apr17° / 518.410.85.7
May14° / 4889.54.4
Jun11° / 5898.83.0
Jul11° / 548.29.12.8
Aug12° / 549.810.23.4
Sep14° / 509.411.74.4
Oct16° / 5710.813.25.1
Nov18° / 579.814.55.9
Dec20° / 11°599.815.26.2

Cloud cover in Fall

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 35% of the time across fall.

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Chance of precipitation in Fall

Any precipitation

Rolleston gets around 143 mm of rain over 23 wet days across fall. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%MarAprMay

Humidity in Fall

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%MarAprMay

Wind in Fall

Winds average 11 km/h across fall.

051015MarAprMay

Sunrise & sunset in Fall

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 06 min in early March to 9 hours by late May. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMMarAprMay

Solar energy in Fall

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across fall, about 3.1 kWh/m².

0246MarAprMay
Planning a trip in fall

Is fall a good time to visit Rolleston?

Our two travel scores rate fall for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

5.6
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
1.7
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

fall is a reasonable time to visit Rolleston for sightseeing.

What to pack for Rolleston in Fall

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

In fall, Rolleston sees daytime highs around 17°C and nights near 8°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 23 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Rolleston in Fall

The nearest coast averages about 14°C across fall — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 32 km away) is warmest in February at about 17°C and coldest in August near 9°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

10°15°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan17Cool
Feb17Cool
Mar16Cool
Apr14Bracing
May13Bracing
Jun11Bracing
Jul9Bracing
Aug9Bracing
Sep10Bracing
Oct12Bracing
Nov14Bracing
Dec15Cool

UV index in Rolleston in Fall

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across fall averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Rolleston peaks around January 16 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 17 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 16UV 11Jun 17UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb10Very high
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul2Low
Aug2Moderate
Sep4Moderate
Oct6High
Nov8Very high
Dec10Very high
Location & terrain

Where is Rolleston?

Rolleston sits at 43.6°S, 172.4°E, 60 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Christchurch, 21 km away.

TimaruTekapoKaikouraFranz JosefRichmond

Topography around Rolleston

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Rolleston has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 45 m around an average of 59 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 166 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,161 m.

The land around Rolleston is covered by grassland (42%) and cropland (27%) within 3 km, grassland (52%) and cropland (30%) within 16 km, and water (37%) and grassland (36%) within 80 km.

3 km
45 m
16 km
166 m
80 km
2,161 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Fall weather nearby: Christchurch 21 km · Rangiora 35 km · Ashburton 63 km · Timaru 128 km · Tekapo 160 km · Kaikoura 167 km · Franz Josef 179 km · Richmond 259 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 Rolleston (-43.5833°, 172.3833°, elevation 60 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.