best weather please

[ralf-nz]

[B]The further north you go, the closer to the equator. This means (generally speaking) more sunshine and higher summer temps... but also more humidity and likelihood of catching a tropical storm (or its tail end).

Very general only, as it does not take into account sunshine in Nelson or Hawkes Bay or temperatures inland especially Central Otago.

[ralf-nz]

We checked the weather records for the various areas and decided on Christchurch due to lack of rain and reasonably high sunshine hours. I dislike humidty so it mostly suits me fine here as the Christchurch heat is quite dry, and I have experienced far greater discomfort from humidity in Scotland. It means that it feels cooler even when it is warm. It can be windy in the summer months though, but to someone used to wind meaning cold it is a bit of a shock. Here it is like a hair dryer.

The least rain fall apparently is in Central Otago, especially Alexandra.

[roky1983]

uve all gone to town on this topic thnx it gives me a lot to think about

[roky1983]

the areas ive considered are nelson, christchurch ,or tauranga

[hoping2win]

has to be Blenheim....sunny, no humidity, good wine, but no meaningful employment...

[Potato]

Sunshine is highest in the northeast of both islands. i.e. Nelson area and Bay of Plenty.

Rainfall highest in the west of both islands.

Temperatures highest in the north, with the most extremes in the inland South Island.

Windiest major city is Wellington, windiest town is Kaikoura (it has more gales than Wellington). Auckland runs fairly high in the wind stakes, due to its typical southwesterly.
Christchurch gets an interesting warm northwesterly wind, but it's very infrequent (actually happens only about 3% of the time). The prevailing wind there is southwesterly (often cool) and northeasterly (usually cool).

However, this year is the strongest La Nina in decades, possibly ever, so everywhere is somewhat atypical.

It's true the humidity in NZ is usually nothing compared to....well, where do you start, everywhere in the tropics, most places in the southeast USA, much of eastern Australia and so on. And, compared to the hottest and most humid place in the world (the Persian Gulf - coastal Saudi, UAE etc) NZ is real small fry (as is everywhere in Australia, USA etc).
However this year has brought tropical airmasses into New Zealand on a few occasions, bringing dewpoints up to 23C in Northland and Auckland, and even 22C in Wellington earlier this week. Such conditions are really quite exceptional but you won't see them every year.

Unfortunately the general public have a poor understanding of humidity, see for example the number of people that claim places like Brisbane (or Darwin/Sydney etc etc) have 40C and 95% humidity (such conditions have never happened anywhere on earth and probably never will). So it's difficult to categorise this.

[benandclare]

Christchurch gets an interesting warm northwesterly wind, but it's very infrequent (actually happens only about 3% of the time). The prevailing wind there is southwesterly (often cool) and northeasterly (usually cool).

http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/te...y1-d1-d21.html

Canterbury is not so notorious for its winds as Wellington; but the early settlers found that they blew with a persistence and continuity unknown in England. The prevailing wind is east or in Christchurch and the vicinity—northeast. It is, of course, a sea wind, sometimes raw and damp, but seldom rainy. The rainy wind is the south-west—in winter, often a furious storm blast, page 31 bringing torrents of rain and hail. Usually the south-west wind follows upon that most characteristic and remarkable of Canterbury winds, the nor'wester. The north-west wind is all along the West Coast of New Zealand, a rainy wind. In the South Island the moisture with which it is laden is, however, precipitated upon the snow-clad ridges of the Southern Alps. It then sweeps over the sun-scorched plains, and reaches the East Coast as a hot wind, often of tempestuous strength