The best time to elope in New Zealand depends on the scenery you’re wanting for your adventure. New Zealand offers amazing elopement seasons year round with some better for picnic and wildflower elopements and others better for snow capped mountain walks or waterfall adventures.
Side note – New Zealand’s weather is pretty changeable, we can have three seasons all within the space of half an hour so packing the right gear for any weather is recommended. Our seasons are also the opposite for American/Canadian/European seasons, meaning while America/Canada/Europe has winter, New Zealand has summer and when New Zealand has spring, America/Canada/Europe has autumn (fall).
So if you’re planning your New Zealand elopement and you’re wanting a clearer idea on what season makes most sense for your elopement, then you’re in the right place! I’ll show you what each season looks like and which months you can expect that weather in!
P.s. my favourite months for elopements in New Zealand are April (autumn) and September (spring – with dashes of snow capped mountains)!
Summer: December – February
That’s right we have Christmas in the heat of summer – perfect for a classic kiwi dinner of fish and chips on the beach! Summer is the perfect time to elope if you’re wanting an extended afternoon elopement with sunrise as early as 5:30am and sunset well after 9:30pm – that’s 16 hours of daylight for all those fun activities you have planned. The warmer months mean less chance of rain and warmer weather (although we still have the odd day of three seasons in one day).
Between the North Island and the South Island we have two different weather systems. The North Island offers tropical-like weather, warmer and a lot more humidity, while in the South Island you can expect cooler, crisp, and less humid weather.
The summer months are a lot busier out and about with people exploring New Zealand and going for hikes, but what I like about eloping in the summer months of New Zealand is the extra time we have for afternoon light and all our sunflower and wildflower fields are on display!
New Zealand has a hole in it’s ozone layer meaning that you can 100% tan a lot faster, but that also means you burn a lot faster than in other countries around the world, so always have sunscreen (suncream) on hand and remember to apply regularly.
Our typical summer temperatures can be anywhere between degree celsius 11 to 38 (51.8 to 100.4 degrees fahrenheit).
Autumn: March – May
One of my absolute favourite seasons is Autumn, the leaves start to change, the heat dies down a bit and we start to have those cooler mornings and evenings. In the North Island you can expect a little less humidity (although when I lived in the North Island my hair always disagreed with the weather and humidity haha; stories of a curly hair gal). In the South Island we can have drizzles of snow on the mountains as early as March just as the season changes which means you get the best of both worlds – snow and autumn all in one.
For this season I always recommend packing warmer clothing as the southern winds start to come through and it can definitely get chilly in the afternoons, especially if you’re in the shade.
During the autumn months our grass fields start to gain their green colours back as we head into wetter weather. This is also the season that has the least tourists as we head into the winter months (we have an influx of tourists during our winter seasons when the ski fields open up).
Our typical autumn temperatures can be anywhere between degree celsius 5 to 24 (41 to 75.2 degrees fahrenheit).
Winter: June – August
Winter wonderland in New Zealand is definitely a sight to see. From the frozen lakes and snow covered trees to fields of luscious green. This is our season for wowing the world with glaciers, snow covered mountain ranges and also the months of attracting all the skiing lovers.
Our winters here in New Zealand can range from anywhere between -10 to 19 degree celsius (14 to 66.2 degrees fahrenheit) depending on where in New Zealand you are wanting to elope in. The further north (top half of the North Island) you go the warmer the winter months are and the further south you go (the south island) the colder the winter months get.
During winter our skiing locations such as McKenzie country, Queenstown and Canterbury region are open and ready with fresh snow. This is the perfect time of the year when you want to have a helicopter ride up to Mt. Cook and elope looking over the lower mountain ranges.
Spring: September – November
Spring is definitely by far my favourite season of the year with everything coming back to life after winter. The days start and end with cool weather with the warmer weather during the day. Sunscreen (suncream) comes back out as the tanning season starts and the beach becomes a warmer spot to visit.
Most of the locals are still busy at work which means this is the perfect time of the year for travel in New Zealand. Towards the end of October the lupins start to pop up around the coastline and around the lakes in McKenzie Country (Tekapo Lupins).
During our spring in New Zealand we still have occasional snow events right up to November, and September is usually the month where we occasionally will have snow to lower ground altitudes.
Our typical spring temperatures can be anywhere between degree celsius 0 to 28 (32 to 82.4 degrees fahrenheit).
When to elope in New Zealand – Days of the week:
Phew, that was a lot of info to keep in mind, but I’m so glad you’ve made it this far! My last advice I would give you when it comes to when you should elope in New Zealand would be choosing a weekday instead of weekends. This means you have a bigger chance of it being just the two of you at your elopement locations. It’ll also be easier to get reservations for restaurants and airbnb’s. My absolute favourite times of the week to elope is Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays!
Need help choosing which month you should elope in New Zealand? Check out my How to Elope in New Zealand blog and let’s start planning!
