'Grunty weekend ahead': Cold snap brings snow, wind, rain and thunderstorms

Author: Hannah Filmer,
Publish Date: Sat, 25 Jul 2026, 9:05am

A freezing cold snap is on the cards this weekend, with sharp winds, localised downpours and scattered thunderstorms sweeping across the country.

Bitter winds are expected to see temperatures plummet into single digits, while a band of showers is making its way east.

In its latest video update, NIWA says the upper half of the North Island is expected to cop harsh winds.

“The winds, they’re going to be howling, a pretty grunty south westerly for coastal areas of Northland, Auckland and down through the Waikato and a similar story for those southerlies developing about the Wellington region.”

A strong wind watch is in place for Auckland and Great Barrier Island until 7pm, with drivers being warned that strong, sudden winds could close the Auckland Harbour Bridge intermittently today.

New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) said it expected wind gusts of up to 75-85 km/h between 4am and 11am, before ramping up to speeds of 90-100 km/h until 10pm.

“With the potential for sudden and high wind gusts, traffic control measures may be implemented on the bridge including the possibility of short closure periods,” NZTA said.

NIWA said isolated downpours could not be ruled out anywhere in the North Island or upper South Island.

Heavy rain is on the cards for central parts of the North Island including in the Tararua Range, Taihape, Taupō as well as Christchurch through Kaikōura and Marlborough.

Snow levels are expected to be just a “couple of centimetres” in Otago including on Milford Rd and Crown Range Pass and north through Lindis Pass.

Eight MetService orange road snowfall warnings are in place across the South Island, while one is in force for the North Island’s Desert Rd, with 1 to 2 centimetres possible down to around 800 metres.

Meanwhile 6-metre-high swells are forecast for the northwestern coastal areas.