Timaru in Fall
In fall (March, April and May), Timaru sees average daytime highs around 14°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 178 mm of rain over about 29 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the 3rd-wettest season.
Over the season highs ease from about 17°C in early March to 11°C by late May. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across fall, and the air most often feels dry.
Fall is Timaru's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Timaru's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 14°C
- 2nd-warmest season
- Avg overnight low
- 9°C
- Rainfall
- 178 mm
- 29 wet days
- Avg wind
- 12 km/h
- Travel score
- 4.2
- 2nd-best season
- Months
- Mar · Apr · May
Temperature in Timaru in Fall
Over the season highs ease from about 17°C in early March to 11°C by late May.
A typical fall day in Timaru reaches about 14°C and drops to 9°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is March, the coolest May.
How fall really feels in Timaru
Once humidity and wind are folded in, fall brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
fall sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.
Timaru weather by month
How the three fall months (March, April and May) 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° / 12° | 81 | 12.8 | 0 | 15 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 18° / 13° | 72 | 10.7 | 0 | 13.9 | 5.5 |
| Mar | 17° / 11° | 63 | 10.1 | 0 | 12.4 | 5.2 |
| Apr | 14° / 9° | 64 | 10.5 | 0 | 10.8 | 4.2 |
| May | 12° / 7° | 52 | 8.3 | 0 | 9.4 | 3.3 |
| Jun | 9° / 4° | 51 | 8.6 | 0.6 | 8.7 | 2.0 |
| Jul | 9° / 3° | 54 | 7.7 | 0.3 | 9 | 1.7 |
| Aug | 10° / 4° | 53 | 9.1 | 0.4 | 10.2 | 2.2 |
| Sep | 12° / 6° | 48 | 9 | 0.4 | 11.7 | 3.0 |
| Oct | 13° / 7° | 62 | 11.5 | 0.1 | 13.2 | 3.5 |
| Nov | 15° / 9° | 74 | 12.6 | 0.1 | 14.6 | 4.0 |
| Dec | 16° / 11° | 80 | 13.8 | 0 | 15.3 | 4.6 |
Cloud cover in Fall
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across fall.
Chance of precipitation in Fall
Timaru gets around 178 mm of rain over 29 wet days across fall. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Fall
Most of fall feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Fall
Winds average 12 km/h across fall.
Sunrise & sunset in Fall
Daylight runs from about 13 h 12 min in early March to 8 h 54 min by late May. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Fall
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across fall, about 3.0 kWh/m².
Is fall a good time to visit Timaru?
Our two travel scores rate fall for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
fall is a reasonable time to visit Timaru for sightseeing.
What to pack for Timaru in Fall
From fall's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In fall, Timaru sees daytime highs around 14°C and nights near 9°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 29 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Timaru in Fall
The nearest coast averages about 14°C across fall — 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 17°C and coldest in August near 9°C.
The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 15 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing | Bracing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 16 | Cool |
| Apr | 14 | Bracing |
| May | 12 | Bracing |
| Jun | 10 | Bracing |
| Jul | 9 | Bracing |
| Aug | 9 | Bracing |
| Sep | 10 | Bracing |
| Oct | 11 | Bracing |
| Nov | 13 | Bracing |
| Dec | 15 | Bracing |
UV index in Timaru in Fall
Clear-sky midday UV across fall averages around 3 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Timaru peaks around January 15 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 17 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 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Very high | High | Moderate | Low | Low | Low | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 10 | Very high |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 3 | Moderate |
| May | 2 | Low |
| Jun | 1 | Low |
| Jul | 1 | Low |
| Aug | 2 | Moderate |
| Sep | 3 | Moderate |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 8 | Very high |
| Dec | 10 | Very high |
Air quality in Timaru in Fall
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where fall falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Timaru is worst in September — around 23 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.2× the cleanest month (June, 7 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Timaru's WHO annual average of 15 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 18 | 21 | 21 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 12 | 23 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | Moderate |
| Feb | 21 | Moderate |
| Mar | 21 | Moderate |
| Apr | 11 | Good |
| May | 8 | Good |
| Jun | 7 | Good |
| Jul | 8 | Good |
| Aug | 12 | Good |
| Sep | 23 | Moderate |
| Oct | 16 | Moderate |
| Nov | 17 | Moderate |
| Dec | 18 | Moderate |
Where is Timaru?
Timaru sits at 44.4°S, 171.3°E, 14 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Ashburton, 67 km away.
Topography around Timaru
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Timaru.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Timaru has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 57 m around an average of 11 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 383 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,287 m.
The land around Timaru is covered by water (44%) and artificial surfaces (26%) within 3 km, water (47%) and grassland (28%) within 16 km, and grassland (54%) and water (28%) 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 Timaru (-44.3967°, 171.2536°, elevation 14 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.