Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Rain could spoil some people's Christmas plans, with wet weather possible for several parts of the motu next Monday, MetService says.
The weekend brought a mixture of hot temperatures, high humidity and heavy rain around the country.
Kaikōura Airport hit 32C at 3pm on Sunday, while Timaru reached 31C and Napier edged in at 30C. Many others sat high in the 20s.
At the same time, Christchurch residents were being warned about severe thunderstorms.
MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said the sticky weather will stick around for several days.
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"It is looking warm again so we are going to see more of those warm temperatures, but they're not going to be the hot, dry temperatures that we might like to associate with summer time.
"We are seeing some warm air being dragged out of the Tasman Sea so it is going to have that humidity with it, so if you are out and about shopping, do wear some clothing that you won't get too sweaty in if you're hustling and bustling around town."
Ferris told Morning Report with a week to go until Christmas, it was still a bit tricky to be certain of what the weather will look like.
But rain was on the cards, he said.
"We might not just see rain on the west coast of the South Island, it might even be spreading up into the North Island, but the typical hot spots, the eastern parts of the South Island, and the North Island, up in the Bay of Plenty, do look like the most likely places to have settled weather next Monday, but we are still a wee way out."
Ferris said certainty of the weather would become clearer as the week went on.
He suggested people wait a few more days before planning to hold their Christmas Day celebrations indoors or outdoors.
Monday began with high temperatures for many centres, with Napier, Mahia and Tolaga Bay all above 20 degrees celcius at 7am, he said.
"Duvets being kicked off the bed were probably a common occurrence last night, especially for Aucklanders where the MetService airport station only dropped as low as 18.6C overnight," he said.
"This humidity looks to linger around our shores in the lead up to Christmas, so it will likely be worth getting the fans out and knowing that the heat may be playing a part in your sweaty end-of-year stress."
He said on Wednesday, the heat moves to the south and east of the South Island, where Alexandra is picked to be the country's hotspot with a forecast high of 32C.