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Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Feel free to reference individual cities in your comparisons...
Yes I know both are very diverse...despite being modest in land area, they are both chains of long, thin islands that cover an impressive range of latitude (in Japan from about 32'N to 45'N, in New Zealand from 34'S to 46'S), in fact at very similar latitudes.
Both have a myriad of climates - wet, dry, warm, cold. The similarities are there: both have a mountainous spine, and vary from sub-tropical in the far south/north, to cool temperate almost sub-arctic in the far south. The west coasts and mountainous areas of each tend to be wetter. NZ has both wetter and drier climates (Japan has no equivalent to NZ's semi-arid zone).
...but there are generalities...
NZ has a more moderate seasonal range from summer to winter. Snow is rare on the coast except in the south of the South Island, and many stations have record lows barely colder than freezing. In Japan everywhere has decently cool or cold winters, with Hokkaido and northern and western Honshu experiencing heavy snow down to sea-level.
NZ is generally sunnier, except for some highland areas in the North Island, and the southern half of the South Island. Dunedin has sunshine figures comparable to Kanazawa.
NZ's weather seems more cyclical and dominated by frequent changes in weather, alternation between cyclones and anti-cyclones, while Japan is dominated by more stable systems (Siberian high/Aleut low in winter, monsoonal low in summer, varying interactions in autumn and spring).
Both include temperate climates, but Japan's is more of the continental type, while NZ's is more maritime/oceanic marine/mild to cool temperate.
Japan's summers tend to be hot and humid, while New Zealand's summers are comparably anemic. Wellington has some pretty shocking January highs. Even far southern Shikoku, at it's latitude, has some coral reefs I believe. Swimming would be far more pleasant in the waters off Japan.
I'd say NZ would be the more comfortable to live in, but Japan would be more interesting. Japan has more big cities that experience typhoons, blizzards (often in the same city), impressive warm season thunderstorms and on the west coast, winter storms. The only really weather phenomenon NZ has are the winter storms. Occasional big thunderstorms occur in the South Island in summer, but thunderdays are well below that experienced in Japan.
Overall I would have to go with Japan – more precisely southern Japan.
Once you get far enough south, stations like Osaka are fairly mild in the winter months (Jan mean temp 40 F/6 C)...and the summers are much warmer than just about anywhere in New Zealand I would guess. I think a place like Osaka would be close to 10 F warmer in the summer months than a station like Auckland or Wellington. If sun hrs where higher in southern Japan it would be even nicer, though sun hrs in both counties are low compared to other parts of the world it seems.
Also, I like the occasional brush with the tropical cyclones that southern Japan gets, it adds to weather drama it seems.
NZ hands down. Japan has some truly horrendous climates like Sapporo and Asahikawa that NZ doesn't have. Winters are much milder for the latitude especially in the temperate areas which is very important for me.
Japan, for the variety and snow. New Zealand isn't all too different from here and I don't really appreciate that!
I take issue with that! All of NZ is much sunnier than your locale, by up to 1100+ hours.
Both countries are so variable that a blanket comparison is pointless in my view. But from a general standpoint Japan's extremes and cloudy humidity have no appeal at all to me. As for Osaka, with all that sticky summer heat combined with less sun and more rain than Wellington - let alone some other NZ towns - you're welcome to it.
It's also an interesting coincidence that Japan and New Zealand happen to not only span almost the same latitudes from the equator, but I've noticed the actual shape of the country looks vaguely alike too (though your impression might vary). Geographically, they are also on the ring of fire and prone to earthquakes.
It's kind of ironic that New Zealand would be sunnier and it's got "cloud" in the nickname for its land, while Japan is cloudier and has "sun" in its land's nickname...lol.
When it comes to climate, I'd prefer most of the Koppen Cfa-category, or more southerly climates in Japan for a consistent summer season, for although it often has cooler winter climates than NZ, it gets more reliable heat. However, if it was northern Japan where it would be freezing for a few months and close to the continental climates I'm familiar with, I'd take NZ's climates over it. The climates I'd like best in either country would be those that maximize consistent summer warmth as well as length of summer, with mild winter also being somewhat important.
In short, if I were to pick based on liking any particular climate type in the country, I'd like the warmer parts of either country and go with Japan's warmer parts for reliable summer heat. While if I were to pick based on overall climates of the countries as a whole, it would be more close/a toss up. In the poll, I picked Japan.
Japan's climate has much more seasonal variety which gives it the edge over NZ. Major population centres in NZ don't see much snow in winter or heat in the summer, too temperate, its comfortable but a bit samey.
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