nikosk

Hi there!
I'm working my plans for a month-long trip to China, during February, planning to visit areas between Shanghai and Kunming.
Detailed plans will depend on climate, also.
Searching about that, it seems to vary greatly from place to place, so it gets very confusing!
Maths exercise!
When Shanghai is freezing, other places are warm etc.
For sure, there is no way to have the best weather over all this area.
Would you expect that February could be resonably good?
Or better postpone trip for a different season?
Many thanks and happy new year!
Nikolas

qwovadis

http://www.weather2travel.com/climat...?country=china
Feb around shanghai pretty good cool crisp can get almost down
to freezing some nightsa little rain with fronts.Pretty good
time to go for me.

nikosk

Many thanks for your recomendations!
I look some weather charts and it seems that next months it gets warmer but rains seriously more. could it be better in spring besides the rain?
Also, it is strange for winter at some places south east, that it has less rain but much less sunshine hours! I admit I don't get it, must be a very strange weather pattern in this area

kmkrnn

Another site we use is Weatherbase. com. You can get the specific city you are traveling to .

nikosk

thanks-great website!
has info for so many places which others don't

michele_d

We just returned from an 11 day trip to Beijing, Yangtze river and Shanghai. Beijing had their first snowfall on the day we visited the Great Wall. We had a little drizzle and it was cold but I would do it again in a second in order to avoid the throngs of tourists during the good weather season. It's all abut what is most important to you. Do you want to roam around the sites in good weather with lots of people or go in colder weather and have the place more to yourself? Either way, China is beautiful, you will love it, and the people. Have fun!

nikosk

thanks for your encouragement!
it's great that you enjoyed winter so much!

Iowa_Redhead

nikosk,

I wouldn't hesitate to visit in winter again! Granted, I'm from an area that gets very harsh winters so I'm probably a bit more used to winter than someone from Greece would be. Winter was a fantastic time to visit China as there were never crowds of tourists.

The trick to winter, and to odd weather in general, is layers. I was in China in December 2010 and was comfortable in jeans and a light baselayer under them. UnderArmor or Cuddl Duds are popular brands in this area for things like that (google those for an idea and then find something similar online or in your area).

If I'm going to be out for long periods in the winter, I'll often wear tights, cuddle duds and jeans on bottom and cuddle duds, a light long sleeve shirt, a sweatshirt/sweater and a coat/jacket. The various layers allow me to add more layers depending on the day and planned activities. I can shed layers throughout the day as needed.

Pack light gloves, a scarf and a hat and you'll be a world ahead for staying warm and comfortable right there. I love combination coats that can be a fleece jacket, a rain jacket or combine them for a nice warm coat.

jobin

Winter clothing very cheap in China and lots of 'feather down' outer wear of good quality. But don't be too big.

ellstah

I was in Beijing in March, and it was chilly but not unbearable...just needed to layer up and wear a semi-thick jacket. It rained here and there, but it's no reason to postpone your trip, IMO. Just kind of that winter turning into spring - type of weather

michele_d

Scarves, silk long underwear and gloves made ALL the difference. I also wore boots and thick socks everyday, much warmer than tennis shoes. Just these little extra layers will keep you very comfortable.

nikosk

Well, cold seems ok to beat and then have fun!
more difficult is for rain, which can make life on the road miserable.
and short daylight hours of winter give a little hard time- you cannot beat that! only can limit the sightseeing plans to indoor places...

michele_d

Yep, you're right about the rain, but the shorter daylight hours weren't really an issue. Shanghai is beautiful at night. The Bund district with its interesting skyscrapers all lit up along the river was gorgeous. Our group roamed around a lot at night. Felt very safe. It's a different feeling after dark, the city comes alive with the lights.