Tauranga in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Tauranga sees average daytime highs around 22°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 290 mm of rain over about 30 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Over the season highs climb from about 20°C in early December to 22°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.
Summer is Tauranga's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Tauranga's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 22°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 15°C
- Rainfall
- 290 mm
- 30 wet days
- Avg wind
- 14 km/h
- Travel score
- 6.6
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Tauranga in Summer
Over the season highs climb from about 20°C in early December to 22°C by late February.
A typical summer day in Tauranga reaches about 22°C and drops to 15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Tauranga 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° / 16° | 85 | 9.5 | 14.3 | 6.8 |
| Feb | 22° / 16° | 94 | 8.4 | 13.5 | 6.8 |
| Mar | 21° / 15° | 96 | 9.2 | 12.3 | 6.7 |
| Apr | 19° / 13° | 117 | 9.6 | 11.1 | 6.1 |
| May | 16° / 11° | 113 | 9.9 | 10 | 5.2 |
| Jun | 14° / 9° | 129 | 10.7 | 9.4 | 4.1 |
| Jul | 13° / 8° | 134 | 11.6 | 9.7 | 3.6 |
| Aug | 14° / 8° | 117 | 12.5 | 10.5 | 3.8 |
| Sep | 15° / 9° | 112 | 12 | 11.7 | 4.4 |
| Oct | 17° / 10° | 97 | 12.2 | 13 | 5.1 |
| Nov | 19° / 12° | 89 | 10.4 | 14 | 5.8 |
| Dec | 21° / 14° | 112 | 11.9 | 14.6 | 6.1 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 28% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Tauranga gets around 290 mm of rain over 30 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 14 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 14 h 24 min in early December to 13 hours 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.
Hazard calendar for Tauranga
In summer, Tauranga overlaps its cyclone season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Tauranga sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.
Is summer a good time to visit Tauranga?
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 Tauranga for sightseeing.
What to pack for Tauranga in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Tauranga sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 15°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes and rain gear. About 30 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Tauranga in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 20°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea offshore is warmest in February at about 21°C and coldest in August near 15°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from Jan 22 to Mar 26 — 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 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 18 |
| Comfort | Cool | Refreshing | Refreshing | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | 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 | Cool |
| Aug | 15 | Bracing |
| Sep | 15 | Bracing |
| Oct | 15 | Cool |
| Nov | 16 | Cool |
| Dec | 18 | Cool |
UV index in Tauranga in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Tauranga peaks around January 1 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 |
Where is Tauranga?
Tauranga sits at 37.7°S, 176.2°E, 18 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Rotorua, 51 km away.
Topography around Tauranga
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Tauranga.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Tauranga has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 57 m around an average of 9 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 595 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,130 m.
The land around Tauranga is covered by water (43%) and artificial surfaces (28%) within 3 km, water (41%), trees (26%) and grassland (25%) within 16 km, and water (35%), grassland (34%) and trees (27%) 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 Tauranga (-37.6861°, 176.1667°, elevation 18 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.