Chengdu Travel Guide - Chengdu Winter Weather

Chengdu Travel - Don't worry this isn't typical Chengdu winter weather - but it's close by - a winter shot in the Qincheng Mountains. To find more about the winter weather out here - read on - or just scroll through the pics.

Recently we've had a bit of a cold-spell - but today we woke up to blue skies and temperature hike. We're back to average - a nice 16C daytime high, so there's nothing to really fear with Chengdu's November weather. And even during our coldest month of January - the average day tempt lies around 9C. In the 5 years I've lived here, only once have I seen a Chengdu frost. And that snow that occasionally falls - well it never sticks, but melts away as soon as hitting the ground.
However being outdoors is one thing - going inside is another. Even at this time the nighttime temperatures fall quite a bit - dipping under the single centigrade figure to 9C. If you're indoors and don't have adequate heating - and are not wearing at least 4 layers of clothing - this can feel cold!!! For those visiting Chengdu during our colder months - then finding accommodation with good nighttime heating could be rather important if you don't like to wear their outdoor gear while being inside. All good places like Sim's Cozy Garden Hostel - will provide warm accommodation, but its always worth making sure that everything is in order before booking.

Outside Chengdu the situation may be different - here its quite possible that hotel rooms have no form of heating. If the nighttime is cold you at least need a good supply of blankets - and even better an electrically heated under-blanket - to keep you nice and warm. The higher you go the more important this becomes, since, at altitude, nighttime temperatures can be expected to sink bellow zero during the winter.

But enough of that - pictures often speak louder than words - are here are some that illustrate the winter weather of this region.


What better way of starting than picturing today's skies - patches of blue can be seen - were enjoying a November day at 16C. However as soon as the sun sets it'll get colder.


I don't actually live in Chengdu - but in the countryside about 15km outside the city. However this pic from our back balcony shows what kind of environment this area supports - lush vegetation, lots of bamboo, also some banana fronds in there. But remember that although we're bordering sub-tropical areas - our climate is temperate and the few Autumn browns that are mixed into this shot show that we also get the usual four seasons.


Here's a closer glimpse of one of local banana plants. Its warm enough for them to grow - but around here there's not the prolonged heat necessary to produce fruit.


Well its going to get colder tonight - and we want to keep warm. since our house has no central heating system we opt for electrically heated oil-filled radiators. These work pretty well - send off a nice pleasant heat - and are quiet economical compared with other systems.


We also have an air-con unit that blows hot air. It' a system like this that heats most of the hotels around here. We don't like this type of heat so much - rather dry, and it's expensive. we rarely use the air-con for heating. Some hotels will expect you to pay extra for a room with air-con heating.


Here's a more simple heating system - our collection of hot water bottles. These can be great things to warm you up - both in bed and while watching a DVD. They are dead cheap - you can find them in nearly all supermarkets - and in those hotels that constantly supply you with hot water - they're easily re-filled.
A word of warning - buy the better models - the real ultra-cheapies may quickly develop leaks!!!!


Closer to home - a pair of the wife's long-johns. This is the local way of keeping warm - I don't wear 'em - but I'm sure they're very effective!!!


Nearly forgot our fish - now they have central heating.


If you climb you can expect to find winter snow - this is around 2,000m at Qingcheng mountains. However this snow soon melted - you have to climb to around 3,000m before the snow stays put over winter.


Lots of folk find snow exciting - but this individual guarding a Qingcheng Mountain Temple doesn't seem to be enjoying it.


But luckily spring is never far around the corner - this blossom pic was taken in Chengdu Botanic Gardens during January.


And here is spring proper - Rhododendrons, at around 2,000m, flowering during April.