Tekapo in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Tekapo sees average daytime highs around 17°C and overnight lows near 8°C, with 308 mm of precipitation over about 33 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.
Over the season highs climb from about 15°C in early December to 17°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.
Summer is Tekapo's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Tekapo's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 17°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 8°C
- Precipitation
- 308 mm
- 33 wet days
- Avg wind
- 7 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.3
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Tekapo in Summer
Over the season highs climb from about 15°C in early December to 17°C by late February.
A typical summer day in Tekapo reaches about 17°C and drops to 8°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
How summer really feels in Tekapo
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.
Tekapo 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 | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18° / 9° | 108 | 10.9 | 0.1 | 14.9 | 5.6 |
| Feb | 18° / 9° | 86 | 9.4 | 0.1 | 13.8 | 5.8 |
| Mar | 16° / 7° | 93 | 9.4 | 0.2 | 12.4 | 5.0 |
| Apr | 13° / 5° | 97 | 10.6 | 0.9 | 10.8 | 3.5 |
| May | 9° / 2° | 105 | 11.4 | 2 | 9.5 | 1.9 |
| Jun | 5° / -1° | 97 | 10.6 | 4.3 | 8.8 | 0.2 |
| Jul | 4° / -2° | 94 | 10.3 | 5.6 | 9 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 5° / -1° | 88 | 11.2 | 5.1 | 10.2 | 0.2 |
| Sep | 9° / 1° | 103 | 12.7 | 4 | 11.7 | 1.5 |
| Oct | 11° / 3° | 119 | 13.6 | 3.5 | 13.2 | 2.5 |
| Nov | 14° / 5° | 111 | 12.7 | 2 | 14.6 | 3.6 |
| Dec | 16° / 7° | 114 | 12.5 | 0.4 | 15.2 | 4.6 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 25% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Tekapo gets around 308 mm of rain and snow over 33 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 7 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 15 h 06 min 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 6.2 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Tekapo?
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 Tekapo for sightseeing.
What to pack for Tekapo in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Tekapo sees daytime highs around 17°C and nights near 8°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: a warm layer and rain gear. About 33 days see rain.
UV index in Tekapo 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 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 11 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | High | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 10 | Extreme |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 2 | Low |
| Jun | 1 | Low |
| Jul | 2 | Low |
| Aug | 3 | Moderate |
| Sep | 5 | Moderate |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 9 | Very high |
| Dec | 10 | Extreme |
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.
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.
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 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.