Best Time to Visit Hangzhou

Autumn and spring: the best of Hangzhou

October is your best bet, and November is nearly as good. Both months are dry by Hangzhou standards, with mild afternoons and cool evenings. A walk around West Lake feels easy. You can cross Su Causeway, a long tree-lined path over the water, without sweating through your shirt. October is also osmanthus season, when the sweet scent of the small orange flowers drifts through Manjuelong village and the lakeside parks.

April is the other good pick. It's warm, green and still comfortable, though it rains on about twelve days. March and May are fair, just damper and greyer. Tea fans should aim for April, when the first Longjing (Dragon Well) tea is picked in the hills near the lake. Visit the tea villages around Meijiawu for a cup.

Summer: hot, wet and sticky

June to August is the hardest stretch. June is the wettest month, with rain on 18 days and little sun. This is the plum rain season, when drizzle can hang around for days. July and August are hotter and just as muggy, with lows of 25°C, so nights give you no relief. Midday at Lingyin Temple or the Leifeng Pagoda can feel heavy.

If you come anyway, go to the lake early or after dinner. Save museum time, like the China National Silk Museum, for the middle of the day. Summer is school holiday time, so expect families around the lake. In August the lotus flowers at Quyuan Garden are worth a look.

Winter and the crowds

December is dry and fairly bright, but January and February are cold, damp and grey. There's no central heating in many older buildings, so rooms can feel chilly. Still, winter has real charm. Mist over the lake and quiet paths suit you if you hate crowds. Plum blossom at Lingfeng, north-west of the lake, usually appears in late winter.

The busiest times are the Golden Week holiday in early October and the Lunar New Year break. Golden Week crowds are heavy at West Lake. If you can, go in late October or November, when you still get the good weather without the biggest queues. Hotels also fill up around the Qiantang River tidal bore, a huge surge best seen near Haining around the mid-autumn full moon.