Tibet Weather

Tibet has held the imagination of Western spiritual seekers, adventurers and curious travellers for hundreds of years.As Tibet is located in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau and it is well known for the ‘rooftop of the world’, many travellers are concerned about the bad Tibet weather before they go. Due to Tibet is as large as double size of France, the climate in different regions of Tibet are total different . Generally speaking, the Tibet weather is not as harsh as many people imagine it to be. Most of the area of Tibet including Everest Base Camp are suitable for travel from April to the begginning of November. If you only would like to visit Lhasa city, you even can go there anytime of the year. The best time for travel Tibet is Augest and September.

If you really worry about the weather in Tibet, Sun radiation in Tibet is the most important weather factor you should prevent from. The sunlight in Lhasa is so intense that the city is named Sunlight City.Sunscreen ( UV lotion) with a high sun protection factor( SPF>30) , good quality sunglasses and a wide-brimmed hat are good means of protection. The thin air in Tibet can neither block off nor retain heat so that the temperature extremes can be met in daytime and the same night respectively in Tibet.However, it is not impossible to visit the holy snow land. May, June and September are the high tour seasons in east Tibet.Most annual rainfall comes in the rainy season that starts from June to September. Usually it rains at night in Lhasa, Shigatse and Chamdo area.The rainfall may block roads and make travel difficult but the scenery at the time will be the best.

Below we list the specific weather condition in most of the popular tour regions for your reference:

1.Lhasa-Shigatse-Lhatse-Tingri-Nyalan:
Along the Friendship highway is basically in good conditions year around. But from December to February, the thawed road could make some trouble.

2.Mt. Everest Area:
Early May and early October are the best time to visit Mt. Everest. Due to the clear weather, you have great chance to see Mt. Everest’s true face (if you are lucky). From December to February, you’d better not to go to this area because it is too cold to visit.

3.Ali (Mt.Kailash):
Even without climate restrictions, this area is already inhospitable. Big rain and snow could make the journey worse. However, for those determined tourists, the appropriate time is May, June, July, September and October.

4.Eastern Tibet:
Don’t go to this area in July or August (the rainy season) because the rain could ruin the road, and make terrible landslides. In winter, the road could be frozen.

5.Northern Tibet:
With the average altitude of 4,500m, this area offers very limited time for tourists. Summer (July to August) is the prime time to enjoy the great plain in northern Tibet.

Average Temperature in Lhasa of a year

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Max	‘C	6.8	9.2	12	13.7	19.7	22.5	21.7	20.7	19.6	16.4	11.6	7.7
	‘F	54	59.9	64.9	70.9	77	82	81	77.9	75	70.9	61.9	57
Min	‘C	-10.2	-6.9	-3.2	0.9	5.1	9.2	9.9	9.4	7.6	1.4	-5	-9.1
	‘F	6	11.1	17.1	24.1	31.1	39.9	43	41.9	39	23	15.1	8.06

Average Temperature in different regions of Tibet

Place	Yearly ['C / 'F]	January ['C / 'F]	February ['C / 'F]
Lhasa	7.5 / 45.5	-2.2 / 28.04	15.1 / 59.18
Nagqu	-1.9 / 28.58	-13.9 / 7	8.9 / 48.02
Qamdo	7.6 / 45.68	-2.5 / 27.5	16.3 / 61.34
Damshung	1.3 / 34.34	-9.9 / 14.18	10.8 / 51.44
Pome	8.5 / 47.3	-0.2 / 31.64	16.5 / 61.7
Amdo	-3.0 / 26.6	-15 / 5	7.9 / 46.22
Nyingchi	8.6 / 47.48	-0.2 / 31.64	15.6 / 60.08
Tsedang	8.3 / 46.94	-0.7 / 30.74	15.5 / 59.9
Xigatse	6.3 / 43.34	-3.8 / 25.16	14.2 / 57.56
Gyangtse	4.7 / 40.46	-5.1 / 22.82	12.8 / 55.04
Tingri	0.7 / 33.26	-11.3 / 11.66	10.9 / 51.62
Zayui	-11.8 / 10.76	-4.0 / 24.8	18.6 / 65.48

---------------------------------------------------------------
Author: Amoytrip---Free China Travel Guide--Tibet Weather
Free Inquiry: ryan@amoytrip.com