Christmas Day has the potential to be wet and windy for many parts of the country, with the South Island looking the best.
NIWA principal scientist Chris Brandolino told TVNZ's Breakfast Northland could be in for the worst of it with heavy rain and gusty winds.
"Whenever we have a low coming down from the north, it's a bit of a signal for some rainfall, potentially heavy rainfall," Brandolino said.
Those planning on camping or tramping were also urged to check the forecast, with Christmas Eve looking bad in Northland, and Christmas Day in Auckland and Bay of Plenty also looking poor.
There was good news further south though, with Christchurch and Canterbury in particular looking nice.
Brandolino added, as we were still five days out from the big day, the forecast wasn't set in stone.
Brandolino says the good news is that the bad weather should depart for the second half of next week.
Check the forecast in your region on the 1 NEWS NOW weather page
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