The South Island's West Coast is set to be lashed by rain this Christmas....for the rest of the country it's a mixed bag

For the main centres, Auckland could see a few showers, Wellington's in for warm windy weather and Christchurch is heading into a hot cloudy day.

MetService has issued 24-hour heavy rain watches for the ranges of the Buller and Grey District, beginning early tomorrow morning..

Meteorologist Dan Corrigan says the Southern Alps are in for downpours.

He says there's a heavy rain watch for the headwaters of Canterbury rivers along the spine of the Southern Alps.