Cold temperatures are expected to linger as the snow disappears

A cold front, which closed several roads around the South Island, is moving north, lowering snow to 600 metres over the bottom half of the North Island.

MetService is forecasting more settled, but icy weather before the weekend.

Queenstown is expected to plummet to minus five tomorrow, which would be its coldest temperature this year, but well off its all-time low of negative 12.2 in 1995.

Masterton could be the North Island's chilliest town, set to drop to minus three on Saturday.