I am trying to decide between visiting China between December 15 2010 and January 15 2011, or, January 15 2011 - February 15 2011.

The attraction of coming in December is Harbin Ice Festival and the cold, snowy north, whilst he attraction of coming in January is that I would be there for Chinese New Year.

If I come in January-February during Chinese New Year period, I'm lead to believe that accommodation may be difficult to obtain and expensive. This is a put-off, since I may be traveling alone and vulnerable to being charged foreigner prices.

But I'm curious as to what I can expect price-wise and availability-wise if I come in the December-January period - will things be just as expensive and hard to obtain then?

Regards


Yadang