Rotorua weather in March

In March, Rotorua sees average daytime highs of 20°C and overnight lows near 11°C, with 85 mm of rain across 9.6 wet days and about 12.3 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 10th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 21°C in the first days to 19°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in March, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 54 min at the start of March to 11 h 42 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Rotorua's 1st-clearest and 10th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Rotorua's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 20°; 3rd warmest
Overnight low: 11°; 9th coldest
Rainfall: 85 mm; 9.6 wet days
Daylight: 12 h 18 min; 7:16 AM – 7:34 PM
Cloud cover: 60%; 1st clearest
Wind: 10 km/h; 10th windiest
Solar energy: 4.41 kWh/m²
Travel score: 6.3; out of 10

Rotorua is city in Bay of Plenty, New Zealand.

Air quality: Good; PM10 18.2 µg/m³ · 2012
Density: 25/km²; people per km²
Founded: 1883

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

← February Rotorua year-round climate April →Best places to visit in March

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 21°C in the first days to 19°C by the end.

A typical March day in Rotorua reaches about 20°C in the afternoon and slips back to 11°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 17°C and 23°C. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 2°C cooler than February and about 3°C warmer than April.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	21	21	21	21	21	21	21	21	21	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	19	19	19	19	19	19	19	19
Avg low (°C)	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	21	12
2	21	12
3	21	12
4	21	12
5	21	12
6	21	12
7	21	12
8	21	12
9	21	11
10	20	11
11	20	11
12	20	11
13	20	11
14	20	11
15	20	11
16	20	11
17	20	11
18	20	11
19	20	11
20	20	11
21	20	11
22	20	11
23	20	11
24	19	11
25	19	11
26	19	11
27	19	11
28	19	11
29	19	11
30	19	11
31	19	10

Rotorua weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 3rd-warmest and 10th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	22° / 13°	84	10.2	14.3	6.5
Feb	22° / 13°	81	8.9	13.5	6.6
Mar	20° / 11°	85	9.6	12.3	6.3
Apr	17° / 9°	100	9.5	11	5.5
May	14° / 7°	101	10.3	10	4.1
Jun	12° / 5°	109	10.9	9.4	2.9
Jul	11° / 4°	118	12.3	9.6	2.5
Aug	12° / 5°	113	13.2	10.5	2.8
Sep	14° / 6°	114	13	11.7	3.5
Oct	15° / 7°	103	12.7	13	4.4
Nov	18° / 9°	93	11.4	14.1	5.4
Dec	20° / 11°	113	13	14.6	5.7

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time in March, the clearest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 20% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 55%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	48	48	48	49	49	47	47	47	46	46	46	46	45	45	46	46	46	44	44	44	44	43	43	43	43	43	42	43	43	42	42
Cloudier (%)	52	52	52	51	51	53	53	53	54	54	54	54	55	55	54	54	54	56	56	56	56	57	57	57	57	57	58	57	57	58	58

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	48	52
2	48	52
3	48	52
4	49	51
5	49	51
6	47	53
7	47	53
8	47	53
9	46	54
10	46	54
11	46	54
12	46	54
13	45	55
14	45	55
15	46	54
16	46	54
17	46	54
18	44	56
19	44	56
20	44	56
21	44	56
22	43	57
23	43	57
24	43	57
25	43	57
26	43	57
27	42	58
28	43	57
29	43	57
30	42	58
31	42	58

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitation

Rotorua gets around 85 mm of rain over 9.6 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable rain averages around 31% and peaks near 33% on the wettest days.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	32	31	31	31	31	31	31	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	31	31	31	31	31	31	31	31	31	32	32	32	32	33	33

	Rain chance (%)
1	32
2	31
3	31
4	31
5	31
6	31
7	31
8	30
9	30
10	30
11	30
12	30
13	30
14	30
15	30
16	30
17	31
18	31
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	31
25	31
26	32
27	32
28	32
29	32
30	33
31	33

Humidity in March

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, March lands in the dry band about 66% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	57	58	60	61	62	63	65	66	66	67	68	68	69	69	70	69	69	68	68	68	67	67	66	66	67	66	66	67	68	69	70
Comfortable (%)	33	32	31	30	29	28	27	26	26	25	25	25	25	25	25	26	26	27	27	27	28	28	28	28	27	27	27	26	25	24	23
Humid (%)	10	10	9	9	9	9	8	8	8	8	7	7	6	6	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	6	6	6	7	7	7	7	7	7

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	57	33	10
2	58	32	10
3	60	31	9
4	61	30	9
5	62	29	9
6	63	28	9
7	65	27	8
8	66	26	8
9	66	26	8
10	67	25	8
11	68	25	7
12	68	25	7
13	69	25	6
14	69	25	6
15	70	25	5
16	69	26	5
17	69	26	5
18	68	27	5
19	68	27	5
20	68	27	5
21	67	28	5
22	67	28	5
23	66	28	6
24	66	28	6
25	67	27	6
26	66	27	7
27	66	27	7
28	67	26	7
29	68	25	7
30	69	24	7
31	70	23	7

Wind in March

Winds average 10 km/h in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 10 km/h on the calmest days to 11 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	10	10	10	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	10	calm
2	10	calm
3	10	calm
4	11	calm
5	11	calm
6	11	calm
7	11	calm
8	11	calm
9	11	calm
10	11	calm
11	11	calm
12	11	calm
13	11	calm
14	11	calm
15	11	calm
16	11	calm
17	10	calm
18	10	calm
19	10	calm
20	10	calm
21	10	calm
22	10	calm
23	10	calm
24	10	calm
25	10	calm
26	10	calm
27	10	calm
28	10	calm
29	10	calm
30	10	calm
31	10	calm

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 54 min at the start of March to 11 h 42 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 72 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 7:00 AM to 7:30 AM, and sunset from 7:56 PM to 7:10 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	12.9	12.9	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.7	12.7	12.6	12.6	12.6	12.5	12.5	12.4	12.4	12.3	12.3	12.3	12.2	12.2	12.1	12.1	12.1	12.0	12.0	11.9	11.9	11.8	11.8	11.8	11.7	11.7
Sunrise (AM)	7:00	7:01	7:03	7:04	7:05	7:06	7:07	7:08	7:09	7:10	7:11	7:12	7:13	7:14	7:15	7:16	7:16	7:17	7:18	7:19	7:20	7:21	7:22	7:23	7:24	7:25	7:26	7:27	7:28	7:29	7:30
Sunset (PM)	7:56	7:55	7:53	7:52	7:50	7:49	7:47	7:46	7:45	7:43	7:42	7:40	7:38	7:37	7:35	7:34	7:32	7:31	7:29	7:28	7:26	7:24	7:23	7:21	7:20	7:18	7:17	7:15	7:13	7:12	7:10

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	12.9	7:00	7:56
2	12.9	7:01	7:55
3	12.8	7:03	7:53
4	12.8	7:04	7:52
5	12.8	7:05	7:50
6	12.7	7:06	7:49
7	12.7	7:07	7:47
8	12.6	7:08	7:46
9	12.6	7:09	7:45
10	12.6	7:10	7:43
11	12.5	7:11	7:42
12	12.5	7:12	7:40
13	12.4	7:13	7:38
14	12.4	7:14	7:37
15	12.3	7:15	7:35
16	12.3	7:16	7:34
17	12.3	7:16	7:32
18	12.2	7:17	7:31
19	12.2	7:18	7:29
20	12.1	7:19	7:28
21	12.1	7:20	7:26
22	12.1	7:21	7:24
23	12.0	7:22	7:23
24	12.0	7:23	7:21
25	11.9	7:24	7:20
26	11.9	7:25	7:18
27	11.8	7:26	7:17
28	11.8	7:27	7:15
29	11.8	7:28	7:13
30	11.7	7:29	7:12
31	11.7	7:30	7:10

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 4.41 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.79 kWh/m² to a high of 6.59 kWh/m² in January across the year — March's 4.41 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	5.0	5.0	5.0	4.9	4.9	4.8	4.8	4.8	4.7	4.7	4.7	4.6	4.6	4.5	4.5	4.4	4.4	4.3	4.3	4.3	4.2	4.2	4.1	4.1	4.0	4.0	3.9	3.9	3.8	3.8	3.7
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	5.0	Bright
2	5.0	Bright
3	5.0	Bright
4	4.9	Bright
5	4.9	Bright
6	4.8	Bright
7	4.8	Bright
8	4.8	Bright
9	4.7	Bright
10	4.7	Bright
11	4.7	Bright
12	4.6	Bright
13	4.6	Bright
14	4.5	Bright
15	4.5	Bright
16	4.4	Bright
17	4.4	Bright
18	4.3	Bright
19	4.3	Bright
20	4.3	Bright
21	4.2	Bright
22	4.2	Bright
23	4.1	Bright
24	4.1	Bright
25	4.0	Bright
26	4.0	Moderate
27	3.9	Moderate
28	3.9	Moderate
29	3.8	Moderate
30	3.8	Moderate
31	3.7	Moderate

Planning a trip in March

Is March a good time to visit Rotorua?

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

6.3

Sightseeing

3rd-best month of the year

3.3

Beach & pool

3rd-best month of the year

March is a reasonable time to visit Rotorua for sightseeing.

What to pack for Rotorua in March

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

In March, Rotorua sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 11°C. Worth packing: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

rain gear

Sea temperature near Rotorua in March

The nearest coast averages about 20°C in March — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 44 km away) is warmest in February at about 21°C and coldest in August near 14°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jan 22 to Mar 25 — about 2.1 months when the water holds above 20°C.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Sea temperature (°C)	20	21	20	19	18	16	15	14	14	15	16	18
Comfort	Cool	Refreshing	Refreshing	Cool	Cool	Cool	Bracing	Bracing	Bracing	Cool	Cool	Cool

	Sea temperature (°C)	Comfort
Jan	20	Cool
Feb	21	Refreshing
Mar	20	Refreshing
Apr	19	Cool
May	18	Cool
Jun	16	Cool
Jul	15	Bracing
Aug	14	Bracing
Sep	14	Bracing
Oct	15	Cool
Nov	16	Cool
Dec	18	Cool

UV index in Rotorua in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 8 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Rotorua peaks around December 22 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 9 months of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	12	11	8	5	3	2	2	3	5	7	11	12
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate	Low	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Very high	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	12	Extreme
Feb	11	Extreme
Mar	8	Very high
Apr	5	High
May	3	Moderate
Jun	2	Low
Jul	2	Moderate
Aug	3	Moderate
Sep	5	Moderate
Oct	7	Very high
Nov	11	Extreme
Dec	12	Extreme

Location & terrain

Where is Rotorua?

Rotorua sits at 38.1°S, 176.2°E, 287 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Tauranga, 51 km away.

Topography around Rotorua

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Rotorua has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 84 m around an average of 292 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 572 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,180 m.

The land around Rotorua is covered by artificial surfaces (36%), trees (22%) and water (22%) within 3 km, trees (46%) and grassland (37%) within 16 km, and trees (44%) and grassland (36%) within 80 km.

3 km

84 m

artificial surfaces 36%

16 km

572 m

trees 46%

80 km

1,180 m

trees 44%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← February Rotorua year-round climate April →Best places to visit in March

March weather nearby: Tauranga 51 km · Taupo 62 km · Whakatane 68 km · Cambridge 76 km · Hamilton East 92 km · Hamilton 93 km · Pukekohe East 155 km · Napier 161 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 Rotorua (-38.1387°, 176.2452°, elevation 287 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. Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. 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).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	21	12
2	21	12
3	21	12
4	21	12
5	21	12
6	21	12
7	21	12
8	21	12
9	21	11
10	20	11
11	20	11
12	20	11
13	20	11
14	20	11
15	20	11
16	20	11
17	20	11
18	20	11
19	20	11
20	20	11
21	20	11
22	20	11
23	20	11
24	19	11
25	19	11
26	19	11
27	19	11
28	19	11
29	19	11
30	19	11
31	19	10

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	48	52
2	48	52
3	48	52
4	49	51
5	49	51
6	47	53
7	47	53
8	47	53
9	46	54
10	46	54
11	46	54
12	46	54
13	45	55
14	45	55
15	46	54
16	46	54
17	46	54
18	44	56
19	44	56
20	44	56
21	44	56
22	43	57
23	43	57
24	43	57
25	43	57
26	43	57
27	42	58
28	43	57
29	43	57
30	42	58
31	42	58

	Rain chance (%)
1	32
2	31
3	31
4	31
5	31
6	31
7	31
8	30
9	30
10	30
11	30
12	30
13	30
14	30
15	30
16	30
17	31
18	31
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	31
25	31
26	32
27	32
28	32
29	32
30	33
31	33

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	57	33	10
2	58	32	10
3	60	31	9
4	61	30	9
5	62	29	9
6	63	28	9
7	65	27	8
8	66	26	8
9	66	26	8
10	67	25	8
11	68	25	7
12	68	25	7
13	69	25	6
14	69	25	6
15	70	25	5
16	69	26	5
17	69	26	5
18	68	27	5
19	68	27	5
20	68	27	5
21	67	28	5
22	67	28	5
23	66	28	6
24	66	28	6
25	67	27	6
26	66	27	7
27	66	27	7
28	67	26	7
29	68	25	7
30	69	24	7
31	70	23	7

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	21	12
2	21	12
3	21	12
4	21	12
5	21	12
6	21	12
7	21	12
8	21	12
9	21	11
10	20	11
11	20	11
12	20	11
13	20	11
14	20	11
15	20	11
16	20	11
17	20	11
18	20	11
19	20	11
20	20	11
21	20	11
22	20	11
23	20	11
24	19	11
25	19	11
26	19	11
27	19	11
28	19	11
29	19	11
30	19	11
31	19	10

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	48	52
2	48	52
3	48	52
4	49	51
5	49	51
6	47	53
7	47	53
8	47	53
9	46	54
10	46	54
11	46	54
12	46	54
13	45	55
14	45	55
15	46	54
16	46	54
17	46	54
18	44	56
19	44	56
20	44	56
21	44	56
22	43	57
23	43	57
24	43	57
25	43	57
26	43	57
27	42	58
28	43	57
29	43	57
30	42	58
31	42	58

	Rain chance (%)
1	32
2	31
3	31
4	31
5	31
6	31
7	31
8	30
9	30
10	30
11	30
12	30
13	30
14	30
15	30
16	30
17	31
18	31
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	31
25	31
26	32
27	32
28	32
29	32
30	33
31	33

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	57	33	10
2	58	32	10
3	60	31	9
4	61	30	9
5	62	29	9
6	63	28	9
7	65	27	8
8	66	26	8
9	66	26	8
10	67	25	8
11	68	25	7
12	68	25	7
13	69	25	6
14	69	25	6
15	70	25	5
16	69	26	5
17	69	26	5
18	68	27	5
19	68	27	5
20	68	27	5
21	67	28	5
22	67	28	5
23	66	28	6
24	66	28	6
25	67	27	6
26	66	27	7
27	66	27	7
28	67	26	7
29	68	25	7
30	69	24	7
31	70	23	7

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	21	12
2	21	12
3	21	12
4	21	12
5	21	12
6	21	12
7	21	12
8	21	12
9	21	11
10	20	11
11	20	11
12	20	11
13	20	11
14	20	11
15	20	11
16	20	11
17	20	11
18	20	11
19	20	11
20	20	11
21	20	11
22	20	11
23	20	11
24	19	11
25	19	11
26	19	11
27	19	11
28	19	11
29	19	11
30	19	11
31	19	10

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	48	52
2	48	52
3	48	52
4	49	51
5	49	51
6	47	53
7	47	53
8	47	53
9	46	54
10	46	54
11	46	54
12	46	54
13	45	55
14	45	55
15	46	54
16	46	54
17	46	54
18	44	56
19	44	56
20	44	56
21	44	56
22	43	57
23	43	57
24	43	57
25	43	57
26	43	57
27	42	58
28	43	57
29	43	57
30	42	58
31	42	58

	Rain chance (%)
1	32
2	31
3	31
4	31
5	31
6	31
7	31
8	30
9	30
10	30
11	30
12	30
13	30
14	30
15	30
16	30
17	31
18	31
19	31
20	31
21	31
22	31
23	31
24	31
25	31
26	32
27	32
28	32
29	32
30	33
31	33

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)	Humid (%)
1	57	33	10
2	58	32	10
3	60	31	9
4	61	30	9
5	62	29	9
6	63	28	9
7	65	27	8
8	66	26	8
9	66	26	8
10	67	25	8
11	68	25	7
12	68	25	7
13	69	25	6
14	69	25	6
15	70	25	5
16	69	26	5
17	69	26	5
18	68	27	5
19	68	27	5
20	68	27	5
21	67	28	5
22	67	28	5
23	66	28	6
24	66	28	6
25	67	27	6
26	66	27	7
27	66	27	7
28	67	26	7
29	68	25	7
30	69	24	7
31	70	23	7