The grey conditions seen this morning are expected to clear and make way for beautiful sunshine as areas of high pressure dominate the weather for most of New Zealand.

The weather systems are expected to continue to bring plenty of dry and sunny weather to the Bay, with a high of 26 degrees on the cards for the region today.

The MetService is predicting the next five days to be fine in the Bay of Plenty.

Tomorrow looks virtually the same, with the MetService forecasting a fine day with light winds and sea breezes.

MetService Meteorologist John Law says some of the warmest spots are likely to be in the Mackenzie country and Central Otago, where the mercury is heading for 30C once again.

'For the North Island, today is shaping up to be a warm and dry day with temperatures expected in the mid to high twenties across much of the island.”

Sunday sees a slight change in the weather as a weak front pushes northwards across the South Island.

'The large blocking high we have had over us this week has been keeping any frontal activity to the south of the country, but over the weekend it finally progresses a touch further north,” says John.

'Although this is likely to bring some cloudier skies and wetter weather, the majority of the activity is likely to be west of the Southern Alps and little useful rain makes it across into those eastern areas that need it the most.” John says the outlook for the rest of January does bring some hope for those wanting rain, with another frontal system heading our way later next week.