When to Come
From ChinaTravelGuide
China is the 3rd or 4th largest country in the world (virtually the same size as United States), and the climate is very much different between different regions. When to visit really depends on the places you will visit and also your own preference.
[edit] Four distinct seasons
Generally, the most comfortable season to visit China is early fall (September to early October. But try to avoid the two golden weeks, running from May 1st to May 7th and October 1st to October 7th). Spring is the second most sought-after season with the average temperatures roughly the same as in fall (about 50-72°F). During fall and spring period, temperatures are mild throughout China (about 50-72°F) with a limited amount of rain.
Summer (from June to the end of August) is usually extremely hot with temperatures well above 72°F, especially in the famous 'four furnaces' (四大火炉) of China: Wuhan (武汉), Tianjin (天津), Chongqing (重庆) and Nanchang (南昌). Summer is also the rainy season, so remember to bring umbrellas, raincoats, etc. But higher altitude areas like Tibet (西藏) and Qinghai (青海) should be visited during summer, from June to September.
Winter is generally long and incredibly cold especially in the north.
However, off-season travel can offer its rewards. It's much less crowded, and many hotels offer substantial discounts. Plus, there are many charming scenery throughout China during off-seasons. For example the Harbin Winter Ice Lantern Festival is quite charming.
Before deciding when to take a tour, it is a good idea to carefully check the weather conditions of each city on the itinerary.
[edit] Best time to visit China for different cities
- Beijing (北京): Fall. Locals describe this short season as Tiangao Qishuang () - literally ‘the sky is high and the air is fresh’ - with clear skies and breezy days. Not surprisingly, it's also crowded with all the meetings and travelers, but generally less crowded than spring season. Beijing's spring is dusty and windy, and winter is long and cold, but the ice lantern shows and skiing still attract many tourists. Beijing's summer is hot, but short-lived with plenty of rainfall.
- Shenyang (沈阳), Harbin (哈尔滨) (Northeast China (东北)): Fall. Similar to Beijing, summer is hot and dry, and winter is long and very cold.
- Shanghai (上海): Spring. Shanghai's May and June are in the high 90's with matching humidity.
- Hong Kong (香港), Guangzhou (广州): Winter for Spring Festival. Summer is hot and humid with frequent rain.
- Xi'an (西安): late spring and early summer. Late winter and early spring bring regular dust storms and haze.
- Guilin (桂林), Lijiang (丽江): October or September. The weather is good with blue skies and a bit of rainfall so the pollution won't be too much a problem. June is the irrigation month for terrace. In November the weather can sometimes be cool as winter nears.
- Xinjiang (新疆) (Urumqi (乌鲁木齐), Kashgar (喀什)): dramatic daily temperature swings. Summer can get very hot during the day, but temperature drops quickly at night. Similarly, winter temperatures go up during the day but plummet at night.
- Tibet (西藏) (Lhasa (拉萨), Shigatse (日喀则)): also huge temperature changes between day and night. When the sun shines, temperatures reach the mid-80s in the summer and the mid-60s in the winter. When it rains or snows, temperatures cool off significantly. Summer showers are common but mainly occur at night. There is minimal rain in the winter.
