Best time to visit Milford Sound
Month-by-month weather averages for Milford Sound.
Milford Sound, Southland, New Zealand
°C
mm
- Average daily high and low
- Precipitation
- Good month
- Best month
- Made good or best by an event
| Month | Average daily high | Average daily low | Precipitation | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15.3 °C / 60 °F | 6.6 °C / 44 °F | 316 mm / 12.4 in | neither best nor good |
| February | 15.5 °C / 60 °F | 6.9 °C / 44 °F | 242 mm / 9.5 in | neither best nor good |
| March | 13.9 °C / 57 °F | 5.7 °C / 42 °F | 259 mm / 10.2 in | neither best nor good |
| April | 11.2 °C / 52 °F | 3.7 °C / 39 °F | 279 mm / 11 in | neither best nor good |
| May | 7.8 °C / 46 °F | 1 °C / 34 °F | 322 mm / 12.7 in | neither best nor good |
| June | 4.9 °C / 41 °F | -1.7 °C / 29 °F | 220 mm / 8.7 in | neither best nor good |
| July | 4 °C / 39 °F | -2.2 °C / 28 °F | 270 mm / 10.6 in | neither best nor good |
| August | 5.3 °C / 42 °F | -1.3 °C / 30 °F | 254 mm / 10 in | neither best nor good |
| September | 6.6 °C / 44 °F | -0.6 °C / 31 °F | 380 mm / 15 in | neither best nor good |
| October | 8.4 °C / 47 °F | 0.6 °C / 33 °F | 369 mm / 14.5 in | neither best nor good |
| November | 11.5 °C / 53 °F | 2.9 °C / 37 °F | 297 mm / 11.7 in | neither best nor good |
| December | 14 °C / 57 °F | 5.6 °C / 42 °F | 303 mm / 11.9 in | neither best nor good |
Good and best months depend on more than temperature, rain and events. How they are chosen
Each activity on this page has its own good and best months, rated on twenty years of daily weather records. Which measures count, and how much, depends on the activity: humidity for exploring outdoors, wind for the beach, hiking and skiing, snow for skiing alone. Between them, the activities are rated on:
- Daytime highs
- Night-time lows
- How warm it feels
- Humidity
- How much of the day is sunny
- Hours of daylight
- Monthly rainfall
- How many days it rains
- Days of heavy rain
- Wind
- Snowfall and days with snow
- Major events, such as festivals
The chart shows the good and best months for exploring outdoors.
The event icon marks a month that an event lifts to good or best, such as a festival or a natural spectacle. Choose “Weather only” in the toolbar to rate the months on weather alone.
Best months by activity
Exploring outdoors
Mild days and nights, mostly dry and bright. The default for 'when should I go'.
- JJanuary: neither
- FFebruary: neither
- MMarch: neither
- AApril: neither
- MMay: neither
- JJune: neither
- JJuly: neither
- AAugust: neither
- SSeptember: neither
- OOctober: neither
- NNovember: neither
- DDecember: neither
No month is good for this in Milford Sound.
Hiking and trekking
Cool enough to climb in, dry enough to enjoy, long enough days.
- JJanuary: neither
- FFebruary: neither
- MMarch: neither
- AApril: neither
- MMay: neither
- JJune: neither
- JJuly: neither
- AAugust: neither
- SSeptember: neither
- OOctober: neither
- NNovember: neither
- DDecember: neither
No month is good for this in Milford Sound.
An activity is listed only where it applies: skiing at ski destinations, beach and swimming at beach destinations. The nearest ski area is Coronet Peak, 69 km away.
Weather averages
Monthly averages over twenty years, 2006–2025. Highs, lows and precipitation are in the chart at the top.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feels like (high) | 15 °C | 15.1 °C | 12.8 °C | 9.3 °C | 5.6 °C | 2.4 °C | 1.4 °C | 2.6 °C | 4.2 °C | 6.5 °C | 10.3 °C | 13.5 °C |
| Days with heavy rain | 9.1 days | 7.1 days | 8.4 days | 9.1 days | 9.2 days | 7.3 days | 8.8 days | 7.8 days | 11.4 days | 11.4 days | 9.1 days | 9.7 days |
| Time rain usually falls | 4 pm | 12 pm | 2 pm | 3 pm | 3 pm | 6 am | 5 am | 6 am | 4 pm | 2 pm | 3 pm | 3 pm |
| Sunshine per day | 11 h | 10.4 h | 9 h | 7.5 h | 6.1 h | 5.9 h | 5.6 h | 7.2 h | 8.2 h | 9.1 h | 10.6 h | 11 h |
| Relative humidity | 84% | 84% | 87% | 89% | 92% | 93% | 92% | 91% | 90% | 88% | 85% | 84% |
Air quality
Averaged over a shorter period (2022–2025) than the twenty-year averages above, and not counted towards good or best months.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air pollution (PM2.5) 2022–2025 | 2.8 µg/m³ | 2.6 µg/m³ | 2 µg/m³ | 1.3 µg/m³ | 1.2 µg/m³ | 1.2 µg/m³ | 1.4 µg/m³ | 1.6 µg/m³ | 2.4 µg/m³ | 2.5 µg/m³ | 2.7 µg/m³ | 2.5 µg/m³ |
| Air pollution (PM2.5, daily peak) 2022–2025 | 4.7 µg/m³ | 4.7 µg/m³ | 3.9 µg/m³ | 3 µg/m³ | 2.7 µg/m³ | 2.4 µg/m³ | 3.1 µg/m³ | 3.6 µg/m³ | 5.8 µg/m³ | 5.4 µg/m³ | 5.2 µg/m³ | 4.8 µg/m³ |
- Good 15 µg/m³ or less
- Fair 15 to 25 µg/m³
- Moderate 25 to 37.5 µg/m³
- Poor 37.5 to 50 µg/m³
- Very poor 50 to 75 µg/m³
- Extremely poor over 75 µg/m³
Each figure is compared with the World Health Organization's guideline for a day's air, 15 µg/m³ or less, and with its interim targets above that. The words are ours: the WHO does not name its steps. The figures are modelled monthly averages, so single days can be well above them. The daily peak is the average of each day's highest hour, shaded on the same scale.