Cities with the Best Air Quality in China
Ok so maybe you can’t just pick up and leave Shanghai because of bad air quality, but you can always dream right? Just in case you’re totally fed up with this city’s occasional high AQI and need a breather, here are five cities in China with excellent air quality.
Sanya
Photo source: Flickr user Vivian
Resting on the southern tip of Hainan Island, Sanya (often referred to as 'China's Florida') regularly tops the list of best air quality of any city in China. Aside from amazing air quality, you can also escape Shanghai’s gray days by going there. Sanya has over 300 ‘sunny’ days every year, and the annual average temp is 25.8 °C (78.4 °F).
Guilin
Photo source: Flickr user Jonny Chen
Guilin, located in northern Guangxi, is another city that often finds itself on the top of China’s air quality measurement lists. The AQI on most days is below 50, and often even below 20. Guilin isn’t famous for its AQI though, it’s become a booming tourist attraction due to the stunning geography, dotted with limestone karst hills and beautiful rice terraces.
Kunming
Photo source: Flickr user Christian Trabold
Kunming is the wondrous capital of, and largest city in, Yunnan Province. The city is often referred to as the "City of Eternal Spring" due to its lovely climate, one of the mildest in China. The perfect weather has led to year round flower blossoms, which is why the city has developed into the largest flower export base in Asia. The PM2.5 levels of Kunming are almost always below 50.
Xiamen
Photo source: Flickr user xiquinhosilva
Down in southeastern Fujian you can find Xiamen, a booming port city just across from Taiwan. Xiamen is another city that consistently has PM2.5 below 50, probably due to its marine climate and mild temperatures (although it does get quite hot and humid during summer).
Lhasa
Photo source: Flickr user kangxi504
In this particular case, the fresh air may come at the price of a little altitude sickness. At 3,490 metres, this capital city of Tibet is the 7th highest city in the world. That high altitude is no doubt one of the reasons the PM2.5 level is almost always below 20, it’s also why the city is breathtakingly gorgeous.
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