MetService has forecast a humid week ahead for much of the country, as warm, humid air is "dragged" across the country from warm waters to the north.
The forecaster said this morning kicked off the warm temperatures — Napier, Mahia and Tolaga Bay recorded temperatures above 20C at 7am.
MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris said Auckland Airport's station recorded a low of just 18.6C overnight and the humidity is set to linger in the lead up to Christmas.
"Duvets being kicked off the bed were probably a common occurrence last night, especially for Aucklanders... The cause of the potential discomfort is an area of warm, humid air being dragged across Aotearoa New Zealand from the warm waters to our north," he said.
His advice: Get the fans out and know the heat may be playing a part "in your sweaty end-of-year stress".
Ferris said Wednesday will see the heat move south and east of the South Island, where Alexandra is picked to be the country's "hotspot" with a forecast high of 32C.
Christchurch is forecast to make 30C on both Wednesday and Thursday.
"Even though the temperature looks to drop off overnight, we're approaching the summer solstice, so the nights are very short which reduces the body's ability to recover from the heat. Something to be wary of as we head through this week as we may issue heat alerts in the coming days," Ferris said.
He suggested conditions around the country are "generally settled" this week, however there is a low pressure system which passes to the south midweek bringing some rain and wind to the deep south on Wednesday and Thursday.
Currently available information supports an influx of further humid air from the northwest this weekend. This air does bring the chance of rain alongside the sticky conditions and this risk extends into next week.
"You'll need to keep a close eye on the Christmas Day forecasts towards the end of this week as there is still plenty of time for the forecast to switch between the naughty and nice list," Ferris said.
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