Because of its size, China has great climatic diversity.
In the north around Beijing, summer is from May to August. During these months
it can get very hot and humid with temperatures rising to 30 or 35 degrees
Celsius but the average temperature is generally cooler. Winter in the north is
from December to March can be extremely harsh and cold with chilly temperatures
often below zero degrees celsius. Some snowfall and frost during mid winter is
not uncommon. Spring and autumn have warm days and cold nights with average
temperatures 20 to 30 degrees celsius.
In the south, summer is from April to September and is generally wet, hot and
humid except in mountainous areas in Yunnan. Winter in the south from January
to March is short and chilly and can get down to 0 to 5 degrees celsius at
night but is generally milder than the north. Spring and autumn has pleasant
temperatures around 20 to 25 degrees, but can be wet.
Central China around Shanghai, Nanjing & sections of the Yangtze,
experience brief cold winters where temperatures can slip below zero. Summer
between April and October is long, hot and humid.
The northwest part of China around Turpan along the Silk Road is characterised
by bitter cold winters (November to March) and intense dry hot summers (July to
August).
The high altitude areas of Zhongdian (North West Yunnan), Xiahe and Langmusi
(Gansu province), and Jiuzhaigou (Sichuan province) have much cooler climates
and are more likely to experience sudden changes in weather. It is possible for
these mountainous areas to have freezing temperatures even during the spring
and summer periods.
As Tibet is at an average altitude of 4000m, year-round temperatures are quite
cool. The weather is very changeable and it is not uncommon to experience four
seasons in one day. Highs in the summer (June to August) reach 20 or 21 degrees
celsius and the winter months can see the temperatures plummeting below -10c
with fierce winds.
In general the best time to visit China is during spring and autumn, when
temperatures are less extreme. Tibet and the mountainous areas of western China
are most comfortable in summer and late spring/early autumn. Note however that
pleasant climates will usually also be accompanied by more crowds of tourists.
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