Road Travel › Drive weather

Auckland to Wellington drive weather

641 km (398 miles), about 7 hours of driving via SH1. The high point is SH1 northeast of Ohakune at 1,079 m (3,539 ft), about 3 h 48 min in.

Distance
641 km
Drive time
~7 hours
High point
1,079 m
Country
NZ

Next 7 departures

Leaving Auckland at 7 AM each day · Updated · Forecast: MET Norway

  1. SunOct 4

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 2–12°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTRain11°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTPartly sunny9°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTMostly sunny9°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTPartly sunny8°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTCloudy2°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTCloudy11°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTPartly sunny12°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTPartly sunny10°C
  2. MonOct 5

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 8–13°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTSunny9°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTSunny8°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTSunny9°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTSunny8°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTSunny8°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTSunny13°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTSunny12°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTMostly sunny12°C
  3. TueOct 6

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 7–14°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTSunny10°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTMostly sunny8°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTPartly sunny9°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTCloudy10°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTCloudy7°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTMostly sunny14°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTLight rain12°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTPartly sunny13°C
  4. WedOct 7

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 9–16°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTCloudy10°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTPartly sunny10°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTCloudy12°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTCloudy12°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTCloudy9°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTCloudy16°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTCloudy14°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTPartly sunny14°C
  5. ThuOct 8

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 8–15°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTCloudy10°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTCloudy10°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTCloudy12°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTCloudy12°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTCloudy8°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTLight rain15°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTCloudy12°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTRain11°C
  6. FriOct 9

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 9–16°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTPartly sunny11°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTPartly sunny13°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTPartly sunny13°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTPartly sunny12°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTCloudy9°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTMostly sunny14°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTCloudy16°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTCloudy12°C
  7. SatOct 10

    ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 10–17°C along the way.

    Along the way
    Checkpoint · arrivalWeather · temperature
    Auckland7 AM NZDTLight rain showers14°C
    Hamilton8:15 AM NZDTSunny11°C
    Whakamaru9:30 AM NZDTPartly sunny11°C
    Pūkawa Bay10:15 AM NZDTCloudy12°C
    SH1 northeast of Ohakune10:45 AM NZDTMostly sunny10°C
    Bulls12:15 PM NZDTMostly sunny17°C
    Paraparaumu1:15 PM NZDTSunny15°C
    Wellington2 PM NZDTSunny14°C

The worst conditions expected at any checkpoint, timed to when you would reach it driving without stops. Levels use Road Travel’s driving-risk scale.

The route, stop by stop

Checkpoints in order, with driving time from Auckland (no stops) and elevation. The forecast above is timed to these.

SH1 northeast of Ohakune · 1,079 m 0 km 640 km
Elevation along the route (Terrain Tiles, sampled every 8 km).
  1. Auckland, NZStart 20 melevation
  2. Hamilton, NZKm 121 · 1 h 15 min 44 melevation
  3. Whakamaru, NZKm 230 · 2 h 23 min 236 melevation
  4. Pūkawa Bay, NZKm 306 · 3 h 11 min 380 melevation
  5. SH1 northeast of Ohakune, NZKm 359 · 3 h 48 min 1,079 melevation
  6. Bulls, NZKm 491 · 5 h 13 min 51 melevation
  7. Paraparaumu, NZKm 587 · 6 h 21 min 20 melevation
  8. Wellington, NZKm 641 · 6 h 55 min 7 melevation

Typical weather by month

Average daily highs and lows, and days with 2.5 cm (an inch) or more of snow, at Auckland, Paraparaumu and Wellington.

MonthAuckland
7 m
Paraparaumu
7 m
Wellington
12 m
High / low °CHigh / low °CHigh / low °C
Jan24° / 16°21° / 13°22° / 14°
Feb25° / 16°22° / 13°22° / 14°
Mar23° / 14°20° / 11°20° / 13°
Apr21° / 12°18° / 9°18° / 11°
May18° / 10°16° / 8°16° / 10°
Jun16° / 8°14° / 6°13° / 7°
Jul15° / 7°13° / 4°13° / 6°
Aug15° / 8°13° / 5°13° / 7°
Sep17° / 9°15° / 7°15° / 8°
Oct18° / 10°16° / 9°16° / 9°
Nov20° / 12°18° / 10°18° / 11°
Dec22° / 14°20° / 12°20° / 13°

1991–2020 averages computed from NOAA NCEI daily station records (GHCN-Daily): AUCKLAND AERO AWS, NZ (NZM00093110, 7 m); PARAPARAUMU AWS, NZ (NZ000093417, 7 m); WELLINGTON AERO AWS, NZ (NZM00093439, 12 m). Snow days are days with at least 2.5 cm (1 inch) of new snow. “—” means the station does not publish that normal.

Road conditions

Closures and chain rules change by the hour, so we link to the official reports for New Zealand rather than repeat them.

Check the official forecast from MetService and each road report before you leave.

Get alerts timed to where you’ll be when you get there

Road Travel plans the drive from Auckland to Wellington with the forecast at every stretch for the hour you’ll reach it, then warns you about weather ahead while you drive.

Questions about this drive

How long is the drive from Auckland to Wellington?

641 km (398 miles), about 7 hours of driving without stops, by way of SH1. Fuel, food and rest stops add to that.

What is the highest point on the drive?

SH1 northeast of Ohakune, at 1,079 m (3,539 ft). It comes at km 359, about 3 h 48 min of driving after you leave Auckland.

How cold is Wellington in July?

Wellington averages a high of 13°C and a low of 6°C in July (1991–2020 averages).