Abstract:

This study analyzed the spatio-temporal distribution pattern of the holiday climate comfort days in China from 1990 to 2019 in terms of annual, seasonal, monthly, and typical holiday periods using Holiday Climate Index (HCI), which incorporated five meteorological elements, temperature, precipitation, relative humidity, wind speed, and sunshine hours. The results show that the average annual number of comfortable days for holiday climates in China is 134.3, with the highest occurrence in autumn and the lowest in winter. The monthly and daily distribution of comfortable days exhibits a bimodal curve pattern, with secondary and primary peaks observed in early May to mid-June and early September to mid-October, respectively. The spatial distribution of holiday climate comfortable days is uneven; Yunnan and southern Sichuan exceed 200 days, while the majority of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and northern Northeast China have fewer than 100 days. Yunnan, Xinjiang, Guangdong, Shanxi, and He'nan are the top five provinces (autonomous regions) with the highest annual comfortable days for holiday climate, and Yunnan has the most with 207.7 days. The spring, autumn, and winter seasons in Yunnan rank among the top five for holiday climate comfortable days nationwide. May, September, and October show the broadest range of comfortable holiday climate. During the "May Day" and "National Day" holidays, the probability of comfortable weather exceeds 50% in most regions of China. However, during the "New Year's Day" holiday, the probability of comfortable weather exceeds 50% only occurred in South China and Yunnan.

Key words: Holiday Climate Index (HCI), Holiday climate comfortable days, Climatic characteristics