China > China, weather in August: Climate and travel budget

This huge country experiences a great variety of climates, from tropical to temperate which make China a multi-faceted country.

The North

Manchuria and the North East side of China like Shenyang and Peking experience extremely cold winters lasting practically half of the year, from October to April. Temperatures can reach –33°C in the North whereas temperatures in the South, during winter, are around -15°C.

The rest of the year is milder with warm temperatures but there is a monsoon period which can make the climate unpleasantly hot and wet with high rainfall from June to August.

In the mountainous areas the harshness of the winter is compensated by the cool of the summer when, due to latitude, the temperatures are lower than in the other parts of the area.

Autumn, as with the majority of the Asiatic countries, is the best time to go. The months of May and June are also very pleasant as an alternative.

The Centre and the South

If the North of China experiences dry summers and cold winters, a large part of China lives according to the rhythm of the monsoon climate with a wet summer and a cold winter.

This generic leaning towards a monsoon climate linked to a certain similarity in climatic conditions, except in the North of China, should not blind one to the fact that within this vast country there are many regional differences in climate and weather, between the north and the south, ranging between areas that are semi-desert, desert and mountainous.

Central and Southern China benefit from a more tropical and subtropical climate without a really cold winter, even though it can be a little colder in the centre such as Shanghais where minus temperatures are often reached.

In the centre, from June to September, the monsoon is in full swing with abundant rain and a humidity that is so high that it can sometimes be hard to bear. May and October are the most favourable months.

In the South, Hong-Kong in particular, these climatic irritations are accentuated; the strong rains of the monsoon from May to August associated with a stifling atmosphere during this period know their apotheosis with the arrival of devastating typhoons during September. Therefore, a visit between November and December is preferable.