Gisborne weather by month & the best time to visit
🇳🇿 New Zealand · seaside town · oceanic / maritime climate
The best time to visit Gisborne is November — its sunniest month (Sunshine Score 80/100), with January and February close behind. Gisborne averages about 2,202 hours of sunshine a year. Daytime highs around 20°C / 68°F and roughly 62 mm of rain in November.
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- Sun hours / year
- 2,202
- Sunniest month
- November
- Peak score
- 80/100
- Rain / year
- 1,070 mm
- Midday UV at peak
- 9 (very high)
- Sea at warmest
- 21°C / 70°F
- Population
- 38k
- Elevation
- Sea level
When is the best time to visit Gisborne?
For sunshine, the best time to visit Gisborne is November, then January and February. The dullest month is July (28/100, 135 mm of rain). The full month-by-month picture is in the table below.
How sunny is Gisborne?
Gisborne gets a moderate 2,202 hours of sunshine a year. 52 Sunshine Score points separate November (80) from July (28), so the month you pick matters. It ranks #18 of 26 destinations in New Zealand for annual sunshine, below the national median of 2,342 hours. The year's 1,070 mm of rain spreads fairly evenly across the months, with no pronounced dry season.
Sunshine Score by month
| Month | Score | Day high | Night low | Rain | UV | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 79 | 25° / 77°F | 16° / 61°F | 70 mm | 9 | 21° / 70°F |
| February | 79 | 24° / 75°F | 16° / 61°F | 67 mm | 8 | 20° / 68°F |
| March | 76 | 22° / 72°F | 15° / 59°F | 87 mm | 6 | 20° / 68°F |
| April | 69 | 19° / 66°F | 12° / 54°F | 87 mm | 4 | 18° / 64°F |
| May | 56 | 17° / 63°F | 10° / 50°F | 90 mm | 2 | 16° / 61°F |
| June | 35 | 14° / 57°F | 8° / 46°F | 117 mm | 1 | 15° / 59°F |
| July | 28 | 13° / 55°F | 7° / 45°F | 135 mm | 1 | 13° / 55°F |
| August | 36 | 14° / 57°F | 7° / 45°F | 106 mm | 2 | 13° / 55°F |
| September | 50 | 16° / 61°F | 8° / 46°F | 89 mm | 4 | 14° / 57°F |
| October | 63 | 18° / 64°F | 10° / 50°F | 85 mm | 5 | 15° / 59°F |
| November | 80 | 20° / 68°F | 12° / 54°F | 62 mm | 7 | 17° / 63°F |
| December | 78 | 22° / 72°F | 14° / 57°F | 75 mm | 8 | 20° / 68°F |
Sea temperature in Gisborne by month
The sea off Gisborne is warmest in January at around 21°C / 70°F, and coolest in July at 13°C / 55°F. The water sits at a comfortable 21°C or warmer roughly 1 month a year. Month-by-month sea-surface temperatures are in the Sea column of the table above.
See Gisborne on the interactive sunshine globe →
Nearby places for sunshine
- Napier New Zealand · 131 km · best in Feb · 2,256 h sun/yr
- Tauranga New Zealand · 191 km · best in Jan · 2,513 h sun/yr
- Palmerston North New Zealand · 274 km · best in Jan · 2,196 h sun/yr
- New Plymouth New Zealand · 331 km · best in Jan · 2,321 h sun/yr
- Auckland New Zealand · 335 km · best in Jan · 2,479 h sun/yr
- Wellington New Zealand · 401 km · best in Feb · 2,510 h sun/yr
Nearest destinations
- Whakatāne New Zealand · 124 km · 2,513 h sun/yr · best in Nov
- Rotorua New Zealand · 157 km · 2,193 h sun/yr · best in Jan
- Taupo New Zealand · 165 km · 2,194 h sun/yr · best in Feb
- Hamilton (New Zealand) New Zealand · 247 km · 2,216 h sun/yr · best in Nov
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