Wanaka weather in December

In December, Wanaka sees average daytime highs of 16°C and overnight lows near 7°C, with 124 mm of precipitation across 14.1 wet days and about 15.3 hours of daylight. It is the 3rd-warmest and 1st-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 16°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 15 h 06 min at the start of December to 15 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Wanaka's 8th-clearest and 3rd-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Wanaka's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 16°; 3rd warmest
Overnight low: 7°; 10th coldest
Precipitation: 124 mm; 14.1 wet days
Daylight: 15 h 24 min; 5:59 AM – 9:21 PM
Cloud cover: 70%; 8th clearest
Wind: 7 km/h; 3rd windiest
Solar energy: 6.54 kWh/m²
Travel score: 4.4; out of 10

Wanaka is ski and summer resort town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand.

Density: 461/km²; people per km²

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

← November Wanaka year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 16°C through the month.

A typical December day in Wanaka 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, December runs about 3°C warmer than November and about 2°C cooler than January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	15	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	17	17	17
Avg low (°C)	6	6	6	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	6
2	15	6
3	15	6
4	15	7
5	15	7
6	15	7
7	15	7
8	15	7
9	16	7
10	16	7
11	16	7
12	16	7
13	16	7
14	16	7
15	16	7
16	16	7
17	16	7
18	16	7
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	16	7
23	16	8
24	16	8
25	16	8
26	16	8
27	16	8
28	16	8
29	17	8
30	17	8
31	17	8

How December really feels in Wanaka

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December 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

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

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

Wanaka weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 3rd-warmest and 1st-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	17° / 9°	113	11.2	0.1	15	5.4
Feb	18° / 9°	81	9.3	0.1	13.9	5.6
Mar	15° / 7°	96	10.5	0.1	12.4	4.6
Apr	12° / 4°	89	10.2	0.5	10.8	3.2
May	8° / 2°	104	12.7	2.2	9.4	1.4
Jun	4° / -1°	85	10.6	4.3	8.7	0.0
Jul	3° / -3°	79	9.7	5	9	0.0
Aug	5° / -1°	78	10.6	4.6	10.1	0.2
Sep	8° / 1°	110	12.8	3.9	11.7	1.3
Oct	11° / 2°	118	14	2.7	13.3	2.4
Nov	13° / 5°	116	13.4	1.2	14.6	3.4
Dec	16° / 7°	124	14.1	0.3	15.3	4.4

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 12% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 20% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 68%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	36	36	36	34	34	34	34	33	33	32	31	31	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	30	31	31	31	31	32	32	33	33	32	32
Cloudier (%)	64	64	64	66	66	66	66	67	67	68	69	69	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	70	69	69	69	69	68	68	67	67	68	68

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	36	64
2	36	64
3	36	64
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	33	67
9	33	67
10	32	68
11	31	69
12	31	69
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	30	70
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	31	69
23	31	69
24	31	69
25	31	69
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	33	67
30	32	68
31	32	68

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Wanaka gets around 124 mm of rain and snow over 14.1 wet days in December, the wettest month. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 45% and peaks near 47% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	43	43	43	43	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	45	45	45	46	46	46	47	47	47	46	46	46	46	46	45	45	44	44	43
Snow chance (%)	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	2
2	43	2
3	43	2
4	43	2
5	44	2
6	44	2
7	44	1
8	44	1
9	44	1
10	44	1
11	44	1
12	44	1
13	45	1
14	45	1
15	45	1
16	46	1
17	46	0
18	46	0
19	47	0
20	47	0
21	47	0
22	46	1
23	46	1
24	46	1
25	46	1
26	46	1
27	45	1
28	45	1
29	44	1
30	44	1
31	43	1

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

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

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	99
Comfortable (%)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	100	0
13	100	0
14	100	0
15	100	0
16	100	0
17	100	0
18	100	0
19	100	0
20	100	0
21	100	0
22	100	0
23	100	0
24	100	0
25	100	0
26	100	0
27	100	0
28	100	0
29	100	0
30	100	0
31	99	1

Wind in December

Winds average 7 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	8	8	8	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	7	8	8	8	8	8
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	8	calm
2	8	calm
3	8	calm
4	7	calm
5	7	calm
6	7	calm
7	7	calm
8	7	calm
9	7	calm
10	7	calm
11	7	calm
12	7	calm
13	7	calm
14	7	calm
15	7	calm
16	7	calm
17	7	calm
18	7	calm
19	7	calm
20	7	calm
21	7	calm
22	7	calm
23	7	calm
24	7	calm
25	7	calm
26	7	calm
27	8	calm
28	8	calm
29	8	calm
30	8	calm
31	8	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 15 h 06 min at the start of December to 15 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 12 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 5:59 AM to 6:06 AM, and sunset from 9:07 PM to 9:27 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	15.1	15.2	15.2	15.2	15.2	15.2	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.3	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.4	15.3	15.3
Sunrise (AM)	5:59	5:59	5:59	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:58	5:59	5:59	5:59	5:59	6:00	6:00	6:01	6:01	6:02	6:02	6:03	6:04	6:04	6:05	6:06	6:06
Sunset (PM)	9:07	9:08	9:09	9:10	9:11	9:12	9:13	9:14	9:15	9:16	9:17	9:18	9:18	9:19	9:20	9:21	9:21	9:22	9:22	9:23	9:24	9:24	9:24	9:25	9:25	9:26	9:26	9:26	9:26	9:27	9:27

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	15.1	5:59	9:07
2	15.2	5:59	9:08
3	15.2	5:59	9:09
4	15.2	5:58	9:10
5	15.2	5:58	9:11
6	15.2	5:58	9:12
7	15.3	5:58	9:13
8	15.3	5:58	9:14
9	15.3	5:58	9:15
10	15.3	5:58	9:16
11	15.3	5:58	9:17
12	15.3	5:58	9:18
13	15.3	5:58	9:18
14	15.3	5:58	9:19
15	15.4	5:58	9:20
16	15.4	5:59	9:21
17	15.4	5:59	9:21
18	15.4	5:59	9:22
19	15.4	5:59	9:22
20	15.4	6:00	9:23
21	15.4	6:00	9:24
22	15.4	6:01	9:24
23	15.4	6:01	9:24
24	15.4	6:02	9:25
25	15.4	6:02	9:25
26	15.4	6:03	9:26
27	15.4	6:04	9:26
28	15.4	6:04	9:26
29	15.4	6:05	9:26
30	15.3	6:06	9:27
31	15.3	6:06	9:27

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 6.54 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 1.21 kWh/m² to a high of 6.66 kWh/m² in January across the year — December's 6.54 kWh/m² sits near the top of that range.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	6.4	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.5	6.6	6.6	6.6	6.7	6.7	6.8	6.8	6.9	6.9	7.0	7.0	7.0	7.0
Level	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense	Intense

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	6.4	Intense
2	6.5	Intense
3	6.5	Intense
4	6.5	Intense
5	6.5	Intense
6	6.5	Intense
7	6.5	Intense
8	6.5	Intense
9	6.5	Intense
10	6.5	Intense
11	6.5	Intense
12	6.5	Intense
13	6.5	Intense
14	6.5	Intense
15	6.5	Intense
16	6.5	Intense
17	6.5	Intense
18	6.5	Intense
19	6.6	Intense
20	6.6	Intense
21	6.6	Intense
22	6.7	Intense
23	6.7	Intense
24	6.8	Intense
25	6.8	Intense
26	6.9	Intense
27	6.9	Intense
28	7.0	Intense
29	7.0	Intense
30	7.0	Intense
31	7.0	Intense

Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Wanaka?

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

4.4

Sightseeing

4th-best month of the year

0.5

Beach & pool

3rd-best month of the year

December is a reasonable time to visit Wanaka for sightseeing.

What to pack for Wanaka in December

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

In December, Wanaka sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 7°C. Pack rain gear and sun protection. Worth having: a warm layer. About 14 days see rain.

rain gearsun protectiona warm layer

UV index in Wanaka in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks 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 Wanaka peaks around January 15 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	9	6	3	2	1	2	2	5	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	9	Very high
Mar	6	High
Apr	3	Moderate
May	2	Low
Jun	1	Low
Jul	2	Low
Aug	2	Moderate
Sep	5	Moderate
Oct	6	High
Nov	8	Very high
Dec	10	Very high

Location & terrain

Where is Wanaka?

Wanaka sits at 44.7°S, 169.2°E, 0 m above sea level, in New Zealand. The nearest listed city is Queenstown, 53 km away.

Topography around Wanaka

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Wanaka has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 258 m around an average of 325 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,573 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,837 m.

The land around Wanaka is covered by grassland (49%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, grassland (64%) within 16 km, and grassland (68%) and trees (20%) within 80 km.

3 km

258 m

grassland 49%

16 km

1,573 m

grassland 64%

80 km

2,837 m

grassland 68%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater

← November Wanaka year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Queenstown 53 km · Tekapo 131 km · Franz Josef 167 km · Dunedin 168 km · Timaru 170 km · Invercargill 199 km · Ashburton 224 km · Rolleston 286 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 Wanaka (-44.7°, 169.15°, 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).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	6
2	15	6
3	15	6
4	15	7
5	15	7
6	15	7
7	15	7
8	15	7
9	16	7
10	16	7
11	16	7
12	16	7
13	16	7
14	16	7
15	16	7
16	16	7
17	16	7
18	16	7
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	16	7
23	16	8
24	16	8
25	16	8
26	16	8
27	16	8
28	16	8
29	17	8
30	17	8
31	17	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	36	64
2	36	64
3	36	64
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	33	67
9	33	67
10	32	68
11	31	69
12	31	69
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	30	70
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	31	69
23	31	69
24	31	69
25	31	69
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	33	67
30	32	68
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	2
2	43	2
3	43	2
4	43	2
5	44	2
6	44	2
7	44	1
8	44	1
9	44	1
10	44	1
11	44	1
12	44	1
13	45	1
14	45	1
15	45	1
16	46	1
17	46	0
18	46	0
19	47	0
20	47	0
21	47	0
22	46	1
23	46	1
24	46	1
25	46	1
26	46	1
27	45	1
28	45	1
29	44	1
30	44	1
31	43	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	100	0
13	100	0
14	100	0
15	100	0
16	100	0
17	100	0
18	100	0
19	100	0
20	100	0
21	100	0
22	100	0
23	100	0
24	100	0
25	100	0
26	100	0
27	100	0
28	100	0
29	100	0
30	100	0
31	99	1

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	6
2	15	6
3	15	6
4	15	7
5	15	7
6	15	7
7	15	7
8	15	7
9	16	7
10	16	7
11	16	7
12	16	7
13	16	7
14	16	7
15	16	7
16	16	7
17	16	7
18	16	7
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	16	7
23	16	8
24	16	8
25	16	8
26	16	8
27	16	8
28	16	8
29	17	8
30	17	8
31	17	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	36	64
2	36	64
3	36	64
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	33	67
9	33	67
10	32	68
11	31	69
12	31	69
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	30	70
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	31	69
23	31	69
24	31	69
25	31	69
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	33	67
30	32	68
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	2
2	43	2
3	43	2
4	43	2
5	44	2
6	44	2
7	44	1
8	44	1
9	44	1
10	44	1
11	44	1
12	44	1
13	45	1
14	45	1
15	45	1
16	46	1
17	46	0
18	46	0
19	47	0
20	47	0
21	47	0
22	46	1
23	46	1
24	46	1
25	46	1
26	46	1
27	45	1
28	45	1
29	44	1
30	44	1
31	43	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	100	0
13	100	0
14	100	0
15	100	0
16	100	0
17	100	0
18	100	0
19	100	0
20	100	0
21	100	0
22	100	0
23	100	0
24	100	0
25	100	0
26	100	0
27	100	0
28	100	0
29	100	0
30	100	0
31	99	1

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	15	6
2	15	6
3	15	6
4	15	7
5	15	7
6	15	7
7	15	7
8	15	7
9	16	7
10	16	7
11	16	7
12	16	7
13	16	7
14	16	7
15	16	7
16	16	7
17	16	7
18	16	7
19	16	7
20	16	7
21	16	7
22	16	7
23	16	8
24	16	8
25	16	8
26	16	8
27	16	8
28	16	8
29	17	8
30	17	8
31	17	8

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	36	64
2	36	64
3	36	64
4	34	66
5	34	66
6	34	66
7	34	66
8	33	67
9	33	67
10	32	68
11	31	69
12	31	69
13	30	70
14	30	70
15	30	70
16	30	70
17	30	70
18	30	70
19	30	70
20	30	70
21	30	70
22	31	69
23	31	69
24	31	69
25	31	69
26	32	68
27	32	68
28	33	67
29	33	67
30	32	68
31	32	68

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	43	2
2	43	2
3	43	2
4	43	2
5	44	2
6	44	2
7	44	1
8	44	1
9	44	1
10	44	1
11	44	1
12	44	1
13	45	1
14	45	1
15	45	1
16	46	1
17	46	0
18	46	0
19	47	0
20	47	0
21	47	0
22	46	1
23	46	1
24	46	1
25	46	1
26	46	1
27	45	1
28	45	1
29	44	1
30	44	1
31	43	1

	Dry (%)	Comfortable (%)
1	100	0
2	100	0
3	100	0
4	100	0
5	100	0
6	100	0
7	100	0
8	100	0
9	100	0
10	100	0
11	100	0
12	100	0
13	100	0
14	100	0
15	100	0
16	100	0
17	100	0
18	100	0
19	100	0
20	100	0
21	100	0
22	100	0
23	100	0
24	100	0
25	100	0
26	100	0
27	100	0
28	100	0
29	100	0
30	100	0
31	99	1