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Photo by CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Best time to visit Lijiang
China · East Asia
All twelve months scored on daily temperature, rainfall, humidity and holiday crowding.
The year in Lijiang
Tap a month for its page
- JanJLijiang in January: good
- FebFLijiang in February: sweet spot
- MarMLijiang in March: sweet spot
- AprALijiang in April: sweet spot
- MayMLijiang in May: good
- JunJLijiang in June: avoid
- JulJLijiang in July: avoid
- AugALijiang in August: avoid
- SepSLijiang in September: avoid
- OctOLijiang in October: ok
- NovNLijiang in November: sweet spot
- DecDLijiang in December: good
- Sweet spot
- Good
- OK
- Avoid
- Busy
Plan this trip
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Where to stay
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Travel insurance
Check whether your bank card or home insurance already covers this trip.
If the trip needs a visa, the travel agent or visa centre usually sells the cover it asks for.
Mobile data (eSIM)
Your own plan's EU roaming may already cover this.
Renting a pocket Wi-Fi is the other common way to stay connected.
These are sites people in book with. Each opens in a new tab, on the site's own pages.
Month by month
No fare history for this route yet, so this ranking is climate and crowds only — the price column will fill in as the scanner collects.
| Month | Max °C | Rain days | Humidity | Sun h/day | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 14° | 2d | 57% | 9.8h | good | 14C max, 2 rainy days |
| Feb | 15° | 3d | 54% | 10.3h | sweet spot | 15C max, 3 rainy days |
| Mar | 18° | 5d | 55% | 10.6h | sweet spot | 18C max, 5 rainy days |
| Apr | 21° | 4d | 56% | 11.1h | sweet spot | 21C max, 4 rainy days |
| May | 23° | 10d | 64% | 10.8h | good | 23C max, 10 rainy days |
| Jun | 24° | 20d | 78% | 10.1h | avoid | monsoon: 20 rainy days, 244mm |
| Jul | 23° | 23d | 85% | 9.0h | avoid | monsoon: 23 rainy days, 290mm |
| Aug | 22° | 21d | 85% | 9.4h | avoid | monsoon: 21 rainy days, 259mm |
| Sep | 21° | 22d | 86% | 9.4h | avoid | monsoon: 22 rainy days, 239mm |
| Oct | 19° | 15d | 82% | 9.2h | ok | 19C max, 15 rainy days |
| Nov | 17° | 3d | 68% | 9.6h | sweet spot | 17C max, 3 rainy days |
| Dec | 15° | 1d | 60% | 9.8h | good | 15C max, 1 rainy day |
Rain days are the days with at least 1 mm of rain, as a weather station counts them.
Weather read at the old town, 23 km from the airport (LJG): ten years of ERA5 and ERA5-Land reanalysis, through Open-Meteo's open data.
A busy month is a crowded one, not a bad one — usually it is crowded because the weather is good. It is flagged rather than scored down, and crowds alone never make a month “avoid”: that is reserved for weather worth skipping.
How busy it gets
Then and now
Lijiang's December days now average 14.7°C, 2.7°C warmer than in 1981–1990. 10 of 12 months are clearly warmer.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981–90 | 11.7° | 13.4° | 16.6° | 19.2° | 22.9° | 22.2° | 21.7° | 21.7° | 19.5° | 17.8° | 15.0° | 12.0° |
| 2017–26 | 13.7° | 15.1° | 18.2° | 20.9° | 22.9° | 23.8° | 22.8° | 22.4° | 21.3° | 18.9° | 16.5° | 14.7° |
| Change | +2.0° | +1.7° | +1.7° | +1.8° | +0.0° | +1.6° | +1.1° | +0.7° | +1.9° | +1.1° | +1.6° | +2.7° |
The average daily high, month by month, for the nearest ERA5 grid cell. Bold is a clear change; grey is within the ordinary spread between years. Every destination, ranked.
Getting there
How far Lijiang is, and what it costs, depends on where you set off from — the months above do not.
- from Kolkata
- from Bangkok
- from Hong Kong
- from Ho Chi Minh City
- from Taipei
- from Delhi
- from Hyderabad
- from Manila
Open in Rome2rio for every way from to Lijiang, flying or not.
Before you go
Type A and C and I plugs at 220 V. Drives on the right. The currency is the Renminbi. No UK Foreign Office advice against travel. Global Affairs Canada: Exercise a high degree of caution (with regional advisories). US State Department: Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution. Everything for China: cost of living, languages, emergency numbers and health.
Being there
On arrival
- Paying — Most payments are made by phone with Alipay or WeChat Pay: link a Visa, Mastercard or other foreign card to either app, then scan the shop's QR code. Many hotels and larger shops take foreign cards, but many places do not, so carry some yuan in case the apps fail you.
- UPI, for visitors from India — Not accepted for paying here; bring a card that works abroad.
- Tipping — Not expected in most restaurants and hotels, or in taxis; bars and cafeterias in hotels, and some other restaurants and bars, may add a 10-15% service charge.
Getting around Lijiang
- Apps — Rides: DiDi, Amap. Maps: Amap, Baidu Maps, Apple Maps. Messages: WeChat. Google and WhatsApp are blocked in mainland China, as are Facebook, YouTube and X; WeChat, Alipay and DiDi all work in English.
Walking is the only option in the old town, while taxis are often the easiest way around the rest of town, meter starts from ¥9 (as of Mar 2019). Make sure you have the exact location info or address for the cab driver. More on Wikivoyage
From the Wikivoyage article on Lijiang, written by travellers and licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Help
- Emergency — police 110 · ambulance 120 · fire 119. Traffic police are on 122.
TravelCharika is not an emergency service: we cannot call for help or send anyone. Numbers can change; if one fails, ask someone local or your hotel.
Your embassy — : how to reach your embassy or consulate abroad. A guess from your city, : a city is not a passport.
Put together by hand from the sources listed, checked 7 October 2026. Apps, cards and rules change, so check before you rely on one.
Sources (27)
- gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/china/getting-help
- gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/china/safety-and-security
- travel.gc.ca/destinations/china
- auswaertiges-amt.de/de/service/laender/china-node/chinasicherheit-200466
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-PaymentsInShanghai/20260920/f22b7e0f606c407e9da9d26b089eac48.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-PaymentMethods/20240313/6f4e58272f1a4cea9aec59c518915bdf.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-UsefulApps/20231214/3cac2d8cc7f847da92a72252bae06705.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-Latest-WhatsNew/20250627/d8f21f2e7d3b45a5b03757e35039b806.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-Latest-WhatsNew/20250614/a5c7bac93f024324ace770d3275d28b6.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-CIIE2025Service-Transport/20251017/c6c5ca124ee74e92a37244280c0983b9.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-Latest-WhatsNew/20240417/0444aa1c2f114f7eb66a0341b603bbbc.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-Latest-WhatsNew/20250711/8f2fcf3c6b624a56a6b2c0d8152ea2f2.html
- english.shanghai.gov.cn/en-FAQs-LivinginShanghai/20231214/6e73c9e64a174827beeb9b588af1255d.html
- english.beijing.gov.cn/latest/specials/essentialtipsfornewarrivals/transportation/202408/t20240830_3785706.html
- english.beijing.gov.cn/latest/news/202506/t20250616_4114250.html
- english.beijing.gov.cn/contactus/faqs/list/202602/t20260209_4502729.html
- english.beijing.gov.cn/livinginbeijing/transportation/beijingsubway/202409/t20240914_3891497.html
- english.beijing.gov.cn/consuminginbeijing/news/202410/t20241016_3921355.html
- english.visitbeijing.com.cn/article/47ONhboe35K
- apps.apple.com/us/app/didi-china-ride-hailing/id554499054
- apps.apple.com/us/app/amap-global/id461703208
- en.prnasia.com/releases/apac/tencent-announces-2026-second-quarter-results-543788.shtml
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WeChat
- en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/China
- apple.com/ios/feature-availability
- pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2286608
- rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/AnnualReport/PDFs/09PAYMENT290526C6588B796E664822A2BD0DEB6452CAD4.PDF
Lijiang in pictures
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CEphoto, Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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ShuQizhe, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
What Lijiang is like
Lijiang (丽江; Lìjiāng) is a small city in Yunnan Province, China; it was once the capital of a small kingdom. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a busy tourist town. More on Wikivoyage
- Worth seeing
- Old Town of Lijiang (丽江古城, 大研古城 Dayan Ancient Town), Gucheng District (古城区). Open 24 hours. More on Wikivoyage
- Worth doing
- Naxi Concert Hall (纳西古乐会), Mishi Lane, Xinyi Street, Gucheng District (古城区新义街密士巷86号). Enjoy the traditional Naxi music Culture Show performed by the Naxi Orchestra, which includes some 70-90 year old men. More on Wikivoyage
- Getting in
- Most guest houses in the traditional architectural style are in the old town. As taxis are not allowed to enter the old town, they have to stop at the gates. More on Wikivoyage
- Staying safe
- The smaller streets in the old town are reported not to be safe at night. Do not walk alone. More on Wikivoyage
From the Wikivoyage article on Lijiang, written by travellers and licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the full article has far more. The numbers above are measured; this is experience.
Around Lijiang
Also in China
- Beijing best Apr, May, Jun
- Chengdu best Apr, May, Jun
- Chongqing best Mar, Apr, Jun
- Dali best Mar, May, Jun
- Dalian best Apr, Jun, Jul
- Guilin and Yangshuo best Oct, Nov, Dec
- Hangzhou best Mar, Apr, May
- Harbin best Apr, May, Jun
- Kashgar best Mar, Apr, Jun
- Kunming best Feb, Mar, Apr
- Lhasa best Apr, Jun, Oct
- Luoyang best Mar, Apr, May
- Nanjing best Mar, Apr, May
- Qingdao best Apr, Jun, Aug
- Quanzhou best Jan, Feb, Nov
- Sanya best Jan, Mar, Apr
- Shanghai best Mar, Jun, Nov
- Shangri-La best Jun, Sep, Nov
- Suzhou best Mar, May, Sep
- Xi'an best Mar, May, Jun
- Xiamen best Sep, Oct, Nov
Nearby
Kind of place
Lijiang is in China, East Asia. Distances are great-circle, so a short one can still be a long way round.
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