After a very mild July and August a cold wintery blast pushing northwards across the country is set to remind people winter has not yet relinquished its grasp on the country.

The MetService says a cold front moving quickly across the South Island today and into the North Island tomorrow is set to bring colder temperatures and snowfalls.

Tauranga temperatures are expected to remain around 15 degrees during the day and around five degrees during night time this week.

'The Canterbury High Country looks set to see the most snowfall over the next 24 hours or so and the MetService severe weather team have issues a warning for snowfall above 400m,” says meteorologist John Law.

'Although the heaviest snowfall is expected in inland parts of Canterbury, modest amounts of snow are forecast down to 200 or 300 metres in Canterbury and Marlborough.”

For the North Island, the return of cold air means snow levels low enough to cause possible disruption on the Desert Road and the Naiper-Taupo Road tomorrow.

John says the coldest conditions will stay away from Northland and Auckland, but there will still be some unsettled weather to watch out for in those places.

'Showers pushing across the north of the country Thursday evening are likely to be accompanied by squally southerly winds and even some rumbles of thunder.

'Daytime temperatures in Auckland on Thursday are still expected to reach the mid-teens, but taking into account those strengthening winds it will feel much colder than we have been in recent weeks.”