When to visit China? We judge a season not by the weather but by access — the doors that open for a few weeks only. Four seasonal escapes below — each private, each openly priced.
Jiangnan · 5 Days · Mar–Apr — First-picked Longjing at Meijiawu, West Lake in spring rain, a private boat up to the tea fields.
Yunnan · 6 Days · Jun–Aug — The 3,000-metre summer: Songtsam lodges, alpine meadows, a monastery library above the clouds.
Beijing · 5 Days · Sep–Nov — The Wall in its best coat, golden ginkgo in the Forbidden City's courts, a duck feast after the day-trippers leave.
Harbin · 5 Days · Dec–Feb — The Ice Festival before the gates open, Siberian tigers at feeding hour, a hotpot that thaws you whole.
A named tailor replies within 12 hours. Your first proposal within 24.