If you’re planning a trip to China, or are already here studying, sightseeing, or trying to learn Mandarin online with your online Chinese teacher, there’s one tiny but mighty thing you might not have prepared for: mosquitoes. They don’t care about your travel plans or your perfectly scheduled dumpling tour. They show up quietly, usually around sunset, and if you’re not ready for them, they’ll leave you scratching your way through your otherwise magical summer in Shanghai or Beijing.
These little buzzers are seasonal visitors, not year-round residents. In most parts of China, including the big cities like Shanghai and Beijing, mosquitoes start appearing in late spring (around May) and stick around until early autumn (September or October). In Shanghai, with its subtropical climate, summer brings high humidity and frequent rain, creating perfect breeding conditions. Beijing’s dryer, but summer thunderstorms fill gutters and puddles just long enough for mosquitoes to throw a pool party.
Are they dangerous? In most urban areas of China—especially in the north and eastern cities—mosquitoes are more annoying than dangerous. Dengue fever outbreaks are extremely rare in these regions, and malaria is not a concern in modern-day China. That said, no one enjoys itchy bites, especially when you’re trying to sleep with the window cracked open to catch a breeze. You’ll often find tiny electric mosquito zappers in homes and hotels, or plug-in repellents sold at supermarkets and convenience stores. Citronella sprays, repellents like DEET or Picaridin, and even mosquito nets are all popular methods of prevention. Locals will sometimes put mosquito coils burning under the table during outdoor dinners, a trick worth stealing if you’re planning a barbecue.
If you’re out and about and want to avoid becoming a snack, wear light-colored, loose clothing, especially in the evenings. Mosquitoes love ankles, wrists, and the back of your knees. Public parks and water-heavy areas like the Shanghai Botanical Garden or Beijing’s Houhai lake area are some of the worst zones during summer dusk hours. That said, you’ll also spot locals slapping themselves every few seconds while eating street skewers – so you won’t be alone.
Language learners in China often find themselves picking up bite-sized vocabulary like “蚊子” (wénzi, mosquito), “咬我了” (yǎo wǒ le, it bit me), and “太痒了” (tài yǎng le, it’s so itchy!). It’s these small, everyday moments that make Mandarin come alive, when it’s not just classroom grammar, but part of your lived experience. That’s something GoEast Mandarin, one of several language schools in Shanghai, taps into. There are lessons in connection to the real-life situation of students, there may just be interesting content on mosquitos.
So, should mosquitoes ruin your China experience? Definitely not. They’re just part of the summer package, like sticky nights, cold watermelon, and old uncles playing cards under the streetlights. Come prepared with a little repellent and a sense of humor. After all, nothing bonds people faster than the shared annoyance of an invisible enemy with wings.
And hey, next time one bites you, at least you can curse it out in Mandarin. That’s progress.