Located in the north middle latitude, Zhangjiajie belongs to mid-subtropical zone with humid monsoon climate. It has sufficient sunlight and heat, abundant rainfall, long frost-free period, short bitter cold period, mild spring and summer while moderately cool autumn and winter. In this territory it has average annual sunshine of 1,440 hours and average annual precipitation of 1,400 mm. The temperature tops at 37.2 degrees Celsius in summer and bottoms at minus 3 degrees Celsius in winter with average annual temperature about 16 degrees Celsius.
In a year, the coldest month in Zhangjiajie is January with the average monthly temperature between 5 and 7 degrees Celsius; the hottest month is from July to August with the average monthly temperature between 25 and 28 degrees Celsius.
Affected by factors such as topography and geomorphology, the climate in Zhangjiajie is complex and changeable. Natural disasters such as droughts and floods, strong winds and hail come relatively frequent.
☝ A visit to Tianmen Mountain in Zhangjiajie in Winter
Zhangjiajie's Spring begins late in March and ends in early May. In Spring in Zhangjiajie, lowest average temperature is 8 degrees Celsius and highest average temperature is 18 degrees Celsius with average precipitation of 423 mm. Spring is one of the best seasons to visit Zhangjiajie. To visit Zhangjiajie in Spring, you are advised to wear suits, jackets, windbreakers, thin sweaters and other warm clothes in the daytime and wear windbreakers, jackets, wool suits and even winter clothes at night time.
Summer comes to Zhangjiajie in June and goes in August. The lowest average temperature is 24 degree Celsius and the highest average temperature is 33 degree Celsius with average precipitation of 489 mm. To visit Zhangjiajie in summer, you are advised to wear cool, breathable clothes such as shirts, thin and long skirts, thin T skirts in the daytime and wear causal wears at night.
From September to November, it comes with Autumn season in Zhangjiajie. Autumn is another best season to visit Zhangjiajie. During this time, the lowest average temperature is 15 degrees Celsius and the highest average temperature is 23 degrees Celsius with average precipitation of 313 mm. To visit Zhangjiajie in Autumn, tourists are advised to wear short sleeve and long pants in daytime. In the morning and at night, the temperature is a bit low, you are advised to wear thicker clothes such as long sleeve shirts, coat, long pants.
Zhangjiajie enters winter from December to January and February of the next year. It has average temperature of 4 degrees Celsius in the day. At night, it may reach as low as minus 3 degrees. To visit Zhangjiajie during this time, you are advised to wear cold winter clothings including jackets and thick coats and wear hats and gloves when visiting the scenic areas.
The urban area of Zhangjiajie is 183 meters above sea level, and the average elevation of the scenic mountain area is 1000 meters. Due to the difference in altitude, the temperature on the mountain is generally 3-5 degrees Celsius lower than the urban area. Therefore, no matter what season to visit, it is very important to bring with an additional clothes before you go from the city to the scenic areas on the mountains.
