air conditioning in Beijing

WE will be in BJ and Shanghai from Oct 14-23 with a Chamber of Commerce group through CITSLINC. I have read many books and websites in preparation for this trip and somewhere I remember seeing that the air conditioning in public buildings and hotels was shut off from Oct 1 until sometime in the spring every year. Can you tell me if I can expect air conditioning in 4 and 5 star hotels during this time? or should I plan to take a fan???