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Climate · Arthur's Pass

Arthur's Pass in December

Mild and wet, as the days hold steady.

Typical weather, averaged over 30 years

December in Arthur's Pass is mild: highs near 65°F, lows near 46°F. Rain falls on about four days a week, and daylight holds at about 15 hours 19 minutes.December in Arthur's Pass is mild: highs near 18°C, lows near 8°C. Rain falls on about four days a week, and daylight holds at about 15 hours 19 minutes.

High
65°F18°Caverage
Low
46°F8°Caverage
Wet days
4a week · 59% of days
Daylight
15h 19mon average

Is December a good time to visit Arthur's Pass?

December sits outside Arthur's Pass's best months, which run from February. Expect mild days and rain on about four days a week.

How we judge it: every month is scored on how close its typical high comes to the range from 70°F to 80°F, how mild its nights are, and how rarely it rains. The best months are the run of months that scores best.How we judge it: every month is scored on how close its typical high comes to the range from 21°C to 27°C, how mild its nights are, and how rarely it rains. The best months are the run of months that scores best.

How December sits in the year

week by week

Temperature

Highs near 65°F in December, against 43°F to 69°F through the year.Highs near 18°C in December, against 6°C to 21°C through the year.

Chance of a wet day

59% of days in December, against 42% to 61% through the year.

Cloud cover

62% cover in December, against 55% to 67% through the year.

Daylight

15h 19m in December, against 9h 03m to 15h 19m through the year.

Week by week, lightly smoothed, with December shaded. The olive line marks the best months. Hover or tap a week for its figures.

Either side

  1. November60°16°low 41°low 5°4 wet days a weekRain on about four days a week.
  2. December65°18°low 46°low 8°4 wet days a weekRain on about four days a week.
  3. January68°20°low 48°low 9°4 wet days a weekRain on about four days a week.

Where Arthur's Pass sits, in December

Pacific/Auckland
this place
typical high in December 40°F4°C95°F35°C
Sunrise, mid-December
5:48 AMsets 9:08 PM
Above the sea
650 mupland
Latitude
43.1°Ssouthern hemisphere
Nearest of ours
Omarama219 km south-west

The land around Arthur's Pass, shaded by its typical high in December, the planning map's own layer. Hover the map for the figure at that spot; tap it on a phone. Clock times are local, for the 15th.

Elsewhere in New Zealand in December

high · low · wet days
See December on the planning mapThe whole year in Arthur's Pass

Typical weather, averaged over 30 years (1995–2024), from the 11 km grid square nearest Arthur's Pass. Temperatures are adjusted against 66 weather stations: daytime highs read about 3.1°F cold in the source data and are raised to match, and both highs and lows are adjusted for the town's height (650 m) against the climate model's (917 m).Temperatures are adjusted against 66 weather stations: daytime highs read about 1.7°C cold in the source data and are raised to match, and both highs and lows are adjusted for the town's height (650 m) against the climate model's (917 m). Daylight is calculated from latitude. Charts are lightly smoothed week to week; the figures in the table are not. Source: Copernicus ERA5-Land reanalysis; cloud cover from NASA's MERRA-2 reanalysis, on a coarser grid of about 50 km. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026; neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use of it. These are averages, not a forecast.

Daylight is calculated from latitude. Charts are lightly smoothed week to week; the figures in the table are not.

Source: Copernicus ERA5-Land reanalysis; cloud cover from NASA's MERRA-2 reanalysis, on a coarser grid of about 50 km. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026; neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use of it. These are averages, not a forecast.