Tekapo weather in March

In March, Tekapo sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 93 mm of precipitation across 9.4 wet days and about 12.4 hours of daylight. It is the 4th-warmest and 10th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 17°C in the first days to 15°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 30% of the time in March, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 13 h 06 min at the start of March to 11 h 36 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, March is Tekapo's 3rd-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Tekapo's year-round climate.

Daytime high
16°
4th warmest
Overnight low
10th coldest
Precipitation
93 mm
9.4 wet days
Daylight
12 h 24 min
7:36 AM – 7:59 PM
Cloud cover
59%
3rd clearest
Wind
7 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
4.25 kWh/m²
Travel score
5.0
out of 10

Tekapo is locality in Mackenzie District, Canterbury Region, New Zealand.

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

Temperature in March

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 17°C in the first days to 15°C by the end.

A typical March day in Tekapo reaches about 16°C in the afternoon and slips back to 7°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 11°C and 20°C. Set against its neighbours, March runs about 2°C cooler than February and about 3°C warmer than April.

10°15°20°25°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
1178
2178
3178
4178
5178
6168
7168
8168
9168
10168
11168
12168
13167
14167
15167
16167
17167
18167
19167
20167
21167
22167
23157
24157
25157
26157
27157
28157
29157
30156
31156

How March really feels in Tekapo

Once humidity and wind are folded in, March 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

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

Tekapo weather by month

How March compares with the rest of the year at a glance. March is the 4th-warmest and 10th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan18° / 10810.90.114.95.6
Feb18° / 869.40.113.85.8
Mar16° / 939.40.212.45.0
Apr13° / 9710.60.910.83.5
May / 10511.429.51.9
Jun / -1°9710.64.38.80.2
Jul / -2°9410.35.690.0
Aug / -1°8811.25.110.20.2
Sep / 10312.7411.71.5
Oct11° / 11913.63.513.22.5
Nov14° / 11112.7214.63.6
Dec16° / 11412.50.415.24.6

Cloud cover in March

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 30% of the time in March.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 18% of March, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 52%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
14951
24951
34852
44852
54753
64654
74753
84753
94753
104753
114753
124753
134753
144753
154852
164852
174852
184852
194852
204951
214951
224852
234951
245050
255149
265149
275149
285149
295149
305149
315149

Chance of precipitation in March

Any precipitation

Tekapo gets around 93 mm of rain and snow over 9.4 wet days in March. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 31% and peaks near 33% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)
132
232
332
431
531
631
731
831
931
1031
1131
1231
1331
1432
1532
1632
1732
1832
1932
2032
2131
2231
2331
2431
2531
2631
2731
2831
2932
3032
3133

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 99% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)Comfortable (%)
1982
2982
3982
4991
5991
6991
7991
8991
9991
10991
11991
12991
13991
14991
15991
16991
17991
18991
19991
20991
21991
22991
23991
24991
25991
26991
27991
28991
29991
30991
31991

Wind in March

Winds average 7 km/h in March.

Across March, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 7 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
117calm
127calm
137calm
147calm
157calm
167calm
177calm
187calm
197calm
207calm
217calm
227calm
237calm
247calm
257calm
267calm
277calm
287calm
297calm
307calm
317calm

Sunrise & sunset in March

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 06 min at the start of March to 11 h 36 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 90 minutes over March. Sunrise moves from 7:17 AM to 7:55 AM, and sunset from 8:26 PM to 7:31 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
113.17:178:26
213.17:188:24
313.07:208:22
413.07:218:20
512.97:228:19
612.97:248:17
712.87:258:15
812.87:268:13
912.77:288:12
1012.77:298:10
1112.67:308:08
1212.67:318:06
1312.57:338:05
1412.57:348:03
1512.47:358:01
1612.47:367:59
1712.37:387:57
1812.37:397:55
1912.27:407:53
2012.27:417:52
2112.17:437:50
2212.17:447:48
2312.07:457:46
2412.07:467:44
2511.97:487:42
2611.97:497:40
2711.87:507:38
2811.87:517:37
2911.77:537:35
3011.67:547:33
3111.67:557:31

Solar energy in March

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in March, about 4.25 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.45 kWh/m² to a high of 6.55 kWh/m² in January across the year — March's 4.25 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

024151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
15.0Bright
24.9Bright
34.9Bright
44.8Bright
54.8Bright
64.7Bright
74.7Bright
84.6Bright
94.6Bright
104.5Bright
114.5Bright
124.4Bright
134.4Bright
144.3Bright
154.3Bright
164.2Bright
174.2Bright
184.1Bright
194.1Bright
204.1Bright
214.0Bright
224.0Moderate
233.9Moderate
243.9Moderate
253.9Moderate
263.8Moderate
273.8Moderate
283.7Moderate
293.7Moderate
303.6Moderate
313.6Moderate
Planning a trip in March

Is March a good time to visit Tekapo?

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

5.0
Sightseeing
3rd-best month of the year
0.6
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

March is a reasonable time to visit Tekapo for sightseeing.

What to pack for Tekapo in March

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

In March, Tekapo sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 7°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 9 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Tekapo in March

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in March peaks around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Tekapo peaks around January 16 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeModerateLowModerateHighVery highJan 16UV 11Jun 16UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb10Extreme
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul2Low
Aug3Moderate
Sep5Moderate
Oct6High
Nov9Very high
Dec10Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Tekapo?

Tekapo sits at 44.0°S, 170.5°E, 0 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Franz Josef, 73 km away.

AshburtonWanakaRollestonChristchurchQueenstownRangiora

Topography around Tekapo

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Tekapo has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 358 m around an average of 746 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,523 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,635 m.

The land around Tekapo is covered by grassland (65%) within 3 km, grassland (84%) within 16 km, and grassland (61%) within 80 km.

3 km
358 m
16 km
1,523 m
80 km
3,635 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater
March weather nearby: Franz Josef 73 km · Timaru 75 km · Ashburton 101 km · Wanaka 131 km · Rolleston 160 km · Christchurch 181 km · Queenstown 184 km · Rangiora 186 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 Tekapo (-44.0064°, 170.4803°, 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).