Погода: Pingyao, ноябрь

The Hangzhou forum treats November as two different months. Early November is the recommendation - scenery no different from October, better hotel rates, and days cool enough for biking, walking and lounging round West Lake, which regulars say is best when there are fewest people on it. Late November is when the crimson foliage peaks, running into early December, but by the end of the month the osmanthus is finished and the leaves are coming down. Posters put the range at 9 to 17C and call November one of the drier months. What they do not mention is the light: our record shows just 6.2 hours of sun a day. The rest of it: 19.3C days, 10.3C nights, 9.3 precipitation days and 64.2mm, AQI 116.

China forum threads describe April as one of the generally recommended shoulder-season months nationwide, though for northern cities like Pingyao specifically, autumn tends to get singled out as the most comfortable stretch of the year - April is milder still, with real days in the low 20s C and nights cool but well above freezing, more sweater weather than a hard chill. One thing that doesn't come up much in the forums but is worth knowing: this part of northern China can see noticeably elevated air quality readings in spring from dust and haze, so it's not always the crystal-clear blue-sky days the photos suggest.

Forum posters call autumn the most comfortable season for northern Chinese cities generally, with October and November named among the best months - one visitor's early-October trip reported great weather with only a few drizzly days and good fall color. The one scheduling wrinkle: China's National Day Golden Week (October 1-7) brings heavy domestic travel and crowds right around the same dates, so posters recommend avoiding the day or two immediately before and after that window if crowds are a concern - outside of it, October actually sees fewer visitors than the summer student/worker travel season. For Pingyao itself, posters consistently recommend staying overnight inside the walled ancient city to see its lantern-lit streets after the day-trip crowds clear out.