Rolleston in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Rolleston sees average daytime highs around 21°C and overnight lows near 12°C, with 152 mm of rain over about 24 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 26% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.
Summer is Rolleston's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Rolleston's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 21°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 12°C
- Rainfall
- 152 mm
- 24 wet days
- Avg wind
- 13 km/h
- Travel score
- 6.7
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Rolleston in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C.
A typical summer day in Rolleston reaches about 21°C and drops to 12°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
How summer really feels in Rolleston
Once humidity and wind are folded in, summer brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
summer 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 summer months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22° / 12° | 53 | 8.1 | 14.9 | 6.8 |
| Feb | 22° / 12° | 41 | 6.1 | 13.8 | 7.1 |
| Mar | 20° / 10° | 44 | 6.5 | 12.4 | 6.8 |
| Apr | 17° / 8° | 51 | 8.4 | 10.8 | 5.7 |
| May | 14° / 5° | 48 | 8 | 9.5 | 4.4 |
| Jun | 11° / 3° | 58 | 9 | 8.8 | 3.0 |
| Jul | 11° / 2° | 54 | 8.2 | 9.1 | 2.8 |
| Aug | 12° / 3° | 54 | 9.8 | 10.2 | 3.4 |
| Sep | 14° / 5° | 50 | 9.4 | 11.7 | 4.4 |
| Oct | 16° / 7° | 57 | 10.8 | 13.2 | 5.1 |
| Nov | 18° / 8° | 57 | 9.8 | 14.5 | 5.9 |
| Dec | 20° / 11° | 59 | 9.8 | 15.2 | 6.2 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 26% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Rolleston gets around 152 mm of rain over 24 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 13 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 15 hours in early December to 13 h 12 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Summer
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 6.5 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Rolleston?
Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
summer is a reasonable time to visit Rolleston for sightseeing.
What to pack for Rolleston in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Rolleston sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 12°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 24 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Rolleston in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 16°C across summer — 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 17 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 15 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 16 | Cool |
| Apr | 14 | Bracing |
| May | 13 | Bracing |
| Jun | 11 | Bracing |
| Jul | 9 | Bracing |
| Aug | 9 | Bracing |
| Sep | 10 | Bracing |
| Oct | 12 | Bracing |
| Nov | 14 | Bracing |
| Dec | 15 | Cool |
UV index in Rolleston in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 10 (very high — sun protection essential). 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.
| 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 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.
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.
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 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.