8 Tips for Visiting Beijing in Smog

Beijing has been in the armageddon struggling with air pollution for years with a host of smog clearing programs on the way. But this doesn't have immediate impact or completely eradicate smog overnight .

Beijing's smog is the result of multiple factors like vehicle emission, coal-powered industry, dust from construction sites,  all contributes to the smog which is accelerated by lack of wind and other human activities.

Your Beijing tour,  planned weeks, or even months ago, can't promise you blue sky days when you actually land in Beijing. Like weather, it is hard to exactly predict smog in advance. Smog level goes up and down. You can't tell what it'll be like from one day to the next.

When you hit smog or bad air pollution in Beijing, how can you survive the airpocalypse and go on with your trip? Scared?  A day or two of bad air won't have any lasting impact on you.  There are over 20 million people here. Come and have fun in Beijing!

Here are a few of my tips for traveling through the smog and air pollution you may unluckily encounter.

The World Health Organization considers 25 micrograms (PM2.5 Index) per cubic metre to be a safe level. Basically, if Beijing PM2.5 levels average around an index of 100, it is considered "unhealthy".

Before flying for Beijing or going out of your Beijing lodging hotel, check out the local PM2.5 index.

Being in a car with windows closed protects you to some extent from the bad air pollution outside.

There are a range of indoor activities in Beijing like visiting museums, shopping in hermetically-sealed malls, or just staycation in your cozy hotel for bonding time with your family and friends.

Tip: Hassle-free Beijing Guided Tours

If you don’t want to go the do-it-yourself route and prefer the hassle-free escorted tours,  here are some options for Beijing guided tours:

Further Readings

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