What's on in Guangzhou, China through the year

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet, Winter break (around Chinese New Year) in China

• Festival

  Spring Festival flower markets

  10–17 FebLunar New YearCrowded

  Eleven street markets across the districts sell peach branches, kumquats and narcissus in the last days before the new year, trading until the small hours of new year's eve. Walking the flower street is the local ritual, not the shopping. Source ↗

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

• Season

  Hui Nan Tian, the damp return

  15 Feb – 10 Apr · usuallyFog seasonRisk

  Warm sea air meeting surfaces still cold from winter puts a film of water on floors, walls and mirrors for days at a time. Laundry will not dry, marble lobbies turn slippery and hotels run dehumidifiers. Source ↗

Still on: Spring Festival flower markets (10–17 Feb)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Hui Nan Tian, the damp return (15 Feb – 10 Apr (usually))

Peak crowds — Qingming grave-sweeping holiday, Canton Fair, spring session

• Holiday

  Qingming grave-sweeping holiday

  3–7 Apr · usuallyNational holidayCrowdedClosures

  Three days off in early April with the whole delta on the road to the ancestral villages. The Baiyun cemeteries queue from dawn and intercity trains out of Guangzhou sell out a fortnight ahead. Source ↗

• Festival

  Canton Fair, spring session

  15 Apr – 5 MayMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  Three five-day phases of the world's largest trade fair, and the reason a hotel room in Guangzhou can cost four times its usual rate in late April. Book beds and taxis well before, or come in a different month. Source ↗

Still on: Hui Nan Tian, the damp return (15 Feb – 10 Apr (usually))

Busy — Canton Fair, spring session, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

• Nature

  Lychee season

  20 May – 20 Jul · usuallyHarvest

  The Pearl River delta is the lychee heartland and the fruit is sold by the branch on every corner from late May, cheapest at the end of June when the main varieties come in together.

• Festival

  Dragon boat month

  25 May – 25 Jun · usuallyMajor festival

  The delta villages dig their long boats out of the creek mud in early summer and spend weeks visiting each other before the race day itself. Liede, Shawan and the tributaries are where it happens, not the tourist waterfront. Source ↗

Still on: Canton Fair, spring session (15 Apr – 5 May)

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

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Lychee season (20 May – 20 Jul (usually)), Dragon boat month (25 May – 25 Jun (usually))

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

• Hazard

  Typhoon season

  1 Jul – 30 Sep · usuallyClosures

  A typhoon signal eight closes offices, schools and the ferries to Hong Kong for the day, and September is the month it is most likely. It rarely takes more than a day out of a trip. Source ↗

Still on: Lychee season (20 May – 20 Jul (usually))

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

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Typhoon season (1 Jul – 30 Sep (usually))

Busy — Mid-Autumn Festival, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Holiday

  Mid-Autumn Festival

  25 SepMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  The Cantonese call it the Mooncake Festival and mean it: boxes stacked in every bakery for a fortnight, then lanterns in the parks on the night of the full moon. It is a mainland public holiday, so trains and rooms tighten around it. Source ↗

Still on: Typhoon season (1 Jul – 30 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Canton Fair, autumn session, National Day Golden Week in China

• Festival

  Canton Fair, autumn session

  15 Oct – 4 NovMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  The second session runs the same three phases across three weeks, and does the same thing to room rates. It overlaps the best weather of the year, which is exactly the problem. Source ↗

Still on: Mid-Autumn Festival (25 Sep)

Peak crowds — Canton Fair, autumn session, International Light Festival

• Festival

  International Light Festival

  10–30 Nov · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Eleven days of installations along the new axis at Huacheng Square and Haixinsha. Free, but the island venues run on timed entry booked through a mini-programme days ahead, and the nearby metro exits queue after dark. Source ↗

Still on: Canton Fair, autumn session (15 Oct – 4 Nov)

Busy — Guangzhou Marathon, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Guangzhou Marathon

  20 DecMajor festivalCrowdedClosures

  Thirty thousand runners along the Pearl River on a Sunday in December, which closes the riverside roads and both bridges near Canton Tower for the morning. Source ↗