Wanaka weather in July

In July, Wanaka sees average daytime highs of 3°C and overnight lows near -3°C, with 79 mm of precipitation across 9.7 wet days and about 9 hours of daylight. It is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 3°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 6% of the time in July, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 8 h 42 min at the start of July to 9 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, July is Wanaka's 12th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Wanaka's year-round climate.

Daytime high
12th warmest
Overnight low
-3°
1st coldest
Precipitation
79 mm
9.7 wet days
Daylight
8 h 54 min
9:21 AM – 6:17 PM
Cloud cover
78%
12th clearest
Wind
5 km/h
12th windiest
Solar energy
1.46 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
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.

Temperature in July

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 3°C through the month.

A typical July day in Wanaka reaches about 3°C in the afternoon and slips back to -3°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -1°C and 6°C. Set against its neighbours, July runs about 1°C cooler than June and about 2°C cooler than August.

-10°-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13-3
23-3
33-3
43-3
53-3
63-3
73-3
83-3
93-3
103-3
113-3
123-3
133-3
143-3
153-3
163-3
173-3
183-3
193-3
203-2
213-2
223-2
233-2
243-2
253-2
263-2
273-2
283-2
294-2
304-2
314-2

How July really feels in Wanaka

Once humidity and wind are folded in, July averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 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
31
wind chill below the day's low

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

Wanaka weather by month

How July compares with the rest of the year at a glance. July is the 12th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan17° / 11311.20.1155.4
Feb18° / 819.30.113.95.6
Mar15° / 9610.50.112.44.6
Apr12° / 8910.20.510.83.2
May / 10412.72.29.41.4
Jun / -1°8510.64.38.70.0
Jul / -3°799.7590.0
Aug / -1°7810.64.610.10.2
Sep / 11012.83.911.71.3
Oct11° / 118142.713.32.4
Nov13° / 11613.41.214.63.4
Dec16° / 12414.10.315.34.4

Cloud cover in July

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 6% of the time in July, the cloudiest month of the year.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of July, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 80%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12377
22278
32278
42179
52179
62179
72179
82179
92179
102179
112080
122179
132179
142080
152080
162080
172080
182080
192080
202080
212080
222080
231981
241981
251981
261981
271981
281981
292080
301981
311981

Chance of precipitation in July

Any precipitationSnow

Wanaka gets around 79 mm of rain and snow over 9.7 wet days in July. 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 34% on the wettest days, and about 5 days bring snow.

0%10%20%30%40%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
13418
23318
33218
43218
53218
63117
73117
83017
93017
103017
113016
122916
132916
142916
153016
163016
173015
183015
193015
203015
213115
223115
233115
243215
253215
263215
273215
283215
293215
303215
313315

Humidity in July

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, July 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%151015202531
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
31100

Wind in July

Winds average 5 km/h in July, the calmest month.

Across July, daily wind ranges from about 4 km/h on the calmest days to 5 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
15calm
25calm
35calm
45calm
55calm
65calm
75calm
85calm
95calm
105calm
114calm
124calm
134calm
144calm
155calm
165calm
175calm
185calm
195calm
205calm
215calm
225calm
235calm
245calm
255calm
265calm
275calm
285calm
295calm
305calm
315calm

Sunrise & sunset in July

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 8 h 42 min at the start of July to 9 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 42 minutes over July. Sunrise moves from 9:27 AM to 9:07 AM, and sunset from 6:06 PM to 6:32 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
18.79:276:06
28.79:276:07
38.79:276:07
48.79:276:08
58.79:266:09
68.79:266:09
78.79:266:10
88.89:256:11
98.89:256:11
108.89:246:12
118.89:246:13
128.89:236:14
138.99:236:14
148.99:226:15
158.99:226:16
168.99:216:17
179.09:206:18
189.09:206:19
199.09:196:20
209.09:186:21
219.19:176:22
229.19:166:23
239.19:156:24
249.29:146:25
259.29:136:26
269.29:126:27
279.39:116:28
289.39:106:29
299.39:096:30
309.49:086:31
319.49:076:32

Solar energy in July

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in July, about 1.46 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 — July's 1.46 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

00.511.522.5151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
11.3Dim
21.3Dim
31.3Dim
41.3Dim
51.3Dim
61.3Dim
71.3Dim
81.4Dim
91.4Dim
101.4Dim
111.4Dim
121.4Dim
131.4Dim
141.4Dim
151.4Dim
161.4Dim
171.5Dim
181.5Dim
191.5Dim
201.5Dim
211.5Dim
221.5Dim
231.6Dim
241.6Dim
251.6Dim
261.6Dim
271.6Dim
281.7Dim
291.7Dim
301.7Dim
311.8Dim
Planning a trip in July

Is July a good time to visit Wanaka?

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

0.0
Sightseeing
11th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
7th-best month of the year

July is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Wanaka.

What to pack for Wanaka in July

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

In July, Wanaka sees daytime highs around 3°C and nights near -3°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 10 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

UV index in Wanaka in July

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in July peaks around 2. 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highModerateLowModerateHighVery highJan 15UV 11Jun 16UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb9Very high
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul2Low
Aug2Moderate
Sep5Moderate
Oct6High
Nov8Very high
Dec10Very 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.

TekapoFranz JosefDunedinTimaruInvercargillAshburtonRolleston

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
16 km
1,573 m
80 km
2,837 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewater
July 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
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 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).