Best Time to Visit Chongqing

Spring: the sweet spot

March is our top pick. Days reach about 20°C, nights are cool, and the city's steep streets are easy to walk. It rains on 11 days, but mostly in light spells. Sun is scarce all year, so expect a soft grey sky rather than blue.

April and May warm up fast. It's still pleasant for a ride on the Yangtze River cruise boats or a wander around Ciqikou, the old riverside town. But the rain gets heavier, with May's 17 wet days making it a Fair month. Pack a small umbrella for the hills and stairs of Yuzhong, the central peninsula.

Summer: hot, wet and sticky

Chongqing is one of China's "furnace cities", and June to September are all rated Poor. July and August are the hottest, both with highs of 33°C and lows of 24°C. Nights barely cool down. June is the wettest month, with 196 mm, and July is close behind.

Is that a dealbreaker? Not if you plan around it. Do your sightseeing in the evening, when Hongyadong's lit-up cliffside towers and the riverfront come alive. Spend hot afternoons in a hotpot restaurant with air conditioning, or in a cool cave-like air-raid shelter turned teahouse. Chinese school holidays run through July and August, so the Three Gorges cruises and family spots like the Dazu Rock Carvings get busier then.

Autumn: the second chance

November is our other top month. Highs of 18°C and lows of 10°C feel crisp, and it rains on only 9 days. It's a good time for a hotpot dinner, which tastes better when the air has a chill. October is Fair, with damp, grey days, and September still feels like summer.

Winter: cool, damp and quiet

December and January are mild by northern Chinese standards, but they feel colder than the numbers suggest. Humidity is high and sun is at its lowest, with about 1.4 hours a day in December. Without central heating in many older buildings, evenings can feel chilly indoors. On the plus side, crowds are thin. Hotpot is also at its best now.

Chinese New Year falls in late January or February, and it's the busiest travel time of the year. Many local shops close for a few days, and trains fill up. Early October's Golden Week holiday is another crowded stretch, so don't count on October being calm.