What's on in Dali (Erhai), China through the year

Busy — Winter break (around Chinese New Year) in China, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Spring Festival

  15–23 FebLunar New YearCrowdedBook early

  Dali is where a large part of urban China goes for the holiday week. The old town is shoulder to shoulder, guesthouse rates triple, and the road round the lake becomes one slow queue. Source ↗

Still on: The Xiaguan wind (1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Peak crowds — Spring Festival, Winter break (around Chinese New Year) in China

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Spring Festival (15–23 Feb), The Xiaguan wind (1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Spring Festival (15–23 Feb), The Xiaguan wind (1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather

• Festival

  Third Month Fair

  1–7 MayMajor festivalCrowded

  The Bai fair below Cangshan, opening on the fifteenth of the third lunar month and running about a week: horse trading, medicine stalls, wrestling and racing. It lands in April some years and May others. Source ↗

Still on: The Xiaguan wind (1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually))

Busy — Third Month Fair, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in May.

Still on: Third Month Fair (1–7 May)

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Season

  Yunnan rainy season

  1 Jun – 30 Sep · usuallyMonsoon

  Most of the year's rain arrives in these four months, usually as a heavy late-afternoon build over Cangshan rather than all-day drizzle. Mornings are often clear enough to walk the Jade Belt path.

Busy — Summer break in China, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Torch Festival

  15 Jul – 20 Aug · usuallyMajor festival

  Bai and Yi villages around Erhai raise a pine torch in the square on the twenty-fourth of the sixth lunar month and carry smaller ones through the fields after dark. Usually late July or August. Source ↗

Still on: Yunnan rainy season (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Summer break in China, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Yunnan rainy season (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually)), Torch Festival (15 Jul – 20 Aug (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Yunnan rainy season (1 Jun – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — National Day Golden Week, National Day Golden Week in China

• Holiday

  National Day Golden Week

  1–7 OctCrowdedBook early

  The one week to avoid outright. Cangshan's cable cars queue for hours, the lake road is gridlocked, and rooms in the old town are booked and repriced weeks ahead. Source ↗

Shoulder season — an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in November.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Season

  The Xiaguan wind

  1 Dec – 15 Apr · usuallyWind seasonRisk

  One of Dali's four old set pieces, and the least romantic: the gap at Xiaguan funnels a hard, dry wind up the lake through winter and spring. Boat trips on Erhai get cancelled on the worst days. Source ↗