Tekapo weather in September

In September, Tekapo sees average daytime highs of 9°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 103 mm of precipitation across 12.7 wet days and about 11.7 hours of daylight. It is the 9th-warmest and 6th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs climb over the month, from about 7°C in the first days to 10°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time in September, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 54 min at the start of September to 12 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, September is Tekapo's 2nd-clearest and 5th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Tekapo's year-round climate.

Daytime high
9th warmest
Overnight low
4th coldest
Precipitation
103 mm
12.7 wet days
Daylight
11 h 42 min
7:41 AM – 7:23 PM
Cloud cover
59%
2nd clearest
Wind
7 km/h
5th windiest
Solar energy
3.87 kWh/m²
Travel score
1.5
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 September

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs climb over the month, from about 7°C in the first days to 10°C by the end.

A typical September day in Tekapo reaches about 9°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 5°C and 12°C. Set against its neighbours, September runs about 3°C warmer than August and about 3°C cooler than October.

-5°10°15°151015202530
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
170
270
370
470
570
680
780
880
980
1081
1181
1281
1381
1491
1591
1691
1791
1891
1991
2091
2191
2291
2391
2491
25101
26101
27101
28102
29102
30102

How September really feels in Tekapo

Once humidity and wind are folded in, September averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 30 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
30
wind chill below the day's low

The story in September is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Tekapo weather by month

How September compares with the rest of the year at a glance. September is the 9th-warmest and 6th-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 September

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time in September.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 16% of September, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 51%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
15050
25050
34951
44852
54852
64753
74753
84753
94753
104753
114852
124852
135050
145050
155050
165050
175050
185050
195149
205149
215149
225149
235050
245050
254951
264951
274951
284852
294753
304753

Chance of precipitation in September

Any precipitationSnow

Tekapo gets around 103 mm of rain and snow over 12.7 wet days in September. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 41% and peaks near 45% on the wettest days, and about 4 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%151015202530
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
14015
24015
34115
44115
54115
64214
74214
84214
94214
104213
114113
124112
134012
143912
153911
163911
173911
183911
193911
204011
214011
224012
234112
244112
254212
264212
274312
284412
294413
304513

Humidity in September

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, September lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202530
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100

Wind in September

Winds average 7 km/h in September.

Across September, daily wind ranges from about 6 km/h on the calmest days to 7 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202530
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
16calm
26calm
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

Sunrise & sunset in September

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 54 min at the start of September to 12 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 90 minutes over September. Sunrise moves from 8:10 AM to 7:15 AM, and sunset from 7:06 PM to 7:40 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202530
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
110.98:107:06
211.08:087:07
311.08:067:08
411.18:047:09
511.18:027:10
611.28:007:12
711.27:597:13
811.37:577:14
911.37:557:15
1011.47:537:16
1111.47:517:18
1211.57:497:19
1311.57:477:20
1411.67:457:21
1511.67:437:22
1611.77:417:23
1711.87:397:25
1811.87:387:26
1911.97:367:27
2011.97:347:28
2112.07:327:29
2212.07:307:31
2312.17:287:32
2412.17:267:33
2512.27:247:34
2612.27:227:35
2712.37:207:37
2812.37:187:38
2912.47:167:39
3012.47:157:40

Solar energy in September

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in September, about 3.87 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 — September's 3.87 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

012345151015202530
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
13.2Moderate
23.3Moderate
33.3Moderate
43.4Moderate
53.4Moderate
63.5Moderate
73.5Moderate
83.6Moderate
93.6Moderate
103.7Moderate
113.7Moderate
123.8Moderate
133.8Moderate
143.9Moderate
153.9Moderate
163.9Moderate
174.0Moderate
184.0Bright
194.1Bright
204.1Bright
214.1Bright
224.2Bright
234.2Bright
244.3Bright
254.3Bright
264.3Bright
274.3Bright
284.4Bright
294.4Bright
304.4Bright
Planning a trip in September

Is September a good time to visit Tekapo?

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

1.5
Sightseeing
9th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

September is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Tekapo.

What to pack for Tekapo in September

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

In September, Tekapo sees daytime highs around 9°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 13 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Tekapo in September

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in September peaks around 5 — 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
September 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).