A cold front is moving into NZ from Friday to Sunday with low pressure developing west of NZ and then tracking over the upper North Island going into next week. This low may become quite large, and while large doesn’t always mean stormy it does push subtropical fuelled moisture into some regions – and when that mixes with polar air it can create heavy snow in a narrow area and wintry weather conditions.

At this stage heavy rain risks affect a number of regions, but the lower North Island (like Wairarapa) might be exposed to some of this rain, along with Marlborough and Canterbury.

The West Coast will get the heavy rain first – and some thunderstorms – to start with over the next couple of days.

Windier weather will also move up NZ in the coming days, being a nor’wester it will push daytime and overnight temperatures up, before the polar air moves in and drops them. The South Island is most exposed to polar air but the North Island will also feel it for a time too.

Because of the various wind directions, coupled with our mountains and ranges, some regions may still have some long, dry, stretches with the sun coming out too.