As you probably know, China severely limits access to a number of Western internet sites and apps, including news organisations (NYT, BBC, etc) as well as sites and aps from Google (including Google Maps, Google Translate and YouTube) and Meta (Facebook, Instagram, Whatsapp) as well as X/Twitter, Wikipedia and a bunch of other sites.

Collectively, these restrictions are referred to as The Great Firewall of China.

For foreign visitors, this poses numerous problems. Many sites have Chinese equivalents, but these may only be available in Chinese or contain very limited information.

At the same time, smartphones are now completely embedded in day-to-day life and it’s become very hard to function in China without a smartphone with internet access. Restaurants may only have menus accessible by scanning a QR code, payments are done using apps, tickets booked with WeChat, taxis booked with your phone, and live translation apps are hugely convenient if you don’t speak Mandarin.

Foreign visitors have a few options. I will try to summarize them in this post. Keep in mind that all this info is correct as of April ’24 but China is always changing. Things evolve quickly.

It’s worth noting that in general, if you are roaming, meaning you use a foreign instead of a Chinese SIM card, you are generally not bound by the restrictions of the Great Firewall. The restrictions will still apply if you connect your phone, tablet or laptop to a local wifi network.

I want to flag that, AFAIK, none of the solutions discussed below (VPN, using eSIMs or foreign SIM cards) are illegal. You won’t be breaking the law and should not expect any trouble of you choose to do so. (Of course, I would still advise to avoid discussing sensitive topics online as it could lead to questions)

--- VPNs ---

It used to be that people would be advised to use a VPN and download and install it before travelling to China. Unfortunately, the last few years have seen a cat-and-mouse game with regulators blocking access as VPN operators try to find new ways around it.

This means that often VPNs don’t work reliably. If you still want to use a VPN, it’s probably best to use a small provider rather than a well-known one like ExpressVPN or Astrill, and definitely install it before you arrive in China.

But in general, because VPNs have become so unpredictable, I recommend a different solution, see below.

--- SIM cards for mobile phones ---

There a basically 4 solutions as far as SIM cards are concerned.

1.Roaming using your home SIM card.

If your provider supports access in China, this is the easiest solution. Nothing to buy, no SIM card to swap. As you are roaming, you should have full access to Western sites and apps without needing a VPN. You will also keep your number so people can reach you.

The downside is that your provider may charge a very hefty fee for this. My home provider charges €60 for 0.5GB of data… However, I know some corporate mobile phone plans don’t charge extra for international roaming- in which case this is the easiest solution. Be sure to check. For most people I expect this will be a costly solution.

2.Buy a local Chinese SIM card.

This will give you a local Chinese number and data at an affordable price. Prices are low- for 100 RMB you should get a SIM card and 10GB of data or more.

The downside is that you will be fully restricted to the Chinese internet. No Google, Facebook, etc.

This option is a good one if you need a local number (e.g. to open a bank account or something). As a foreign visitor, I find I can call most people using WeChat so I don’t need to make telephony voice calls and hence, I have never felt the need for a local number.

3. eSIM

I think this is currently the best option. If your phone is capable of using eSIM, then I strongly recommend you pursue this option. You will have to check if your phone has this capability; e.g. for Apple, it’s iPhone 11 and later.

With an eSIM you use an app or website to buy a virtual SIM card. This is basically a piece of software installed on your phone. There are numerous providers- Holafly, Nomad, Airolo are the three I have experience with.

Because eSIMs are foreign sim cards, they will give you FULL access to the internet. No VPN is needed! This makes it a very convenient option. AFAIK eSIMs for China only provide data- but your home number remains active for calls if people need to call you (at a cost).

The fact that you can buy and install the eSIM beforehand and that you will have full internet access makes it in my view currently the best option available. Prices start at just a few $ for 1GB. I prefer Holafly’s unlimited data plan, 1 week for €27.

4. a Hong Kong SIM

This is an unusual solution which works well if you can’t use an eSIM and it’s too expensive to use your home SIM card.

It is possible to buy a data-only SIM card registered in Hong Kong that provides data in China (and may not work in HK). The advantage is that this is a foreign card (HK is not subject (yet) to Chinese internet restrictions and hence, it offers full access to Western sites and apps.

This card can be bought in Hong Kong from China Mobile, but I have also purchased it at the Shanghai airport, after clearing Immigration, but before leaving the secure Arrivals area. In HK, the price was HK$110 for 5G of data. Similar options are available online and you could order them before you leave.

These are the four main options. My personal preference is the eSIM, for the reasons stated above. It does everything I need, can be arranged beforehand, requires no VPN, and with a large (or unlimited) data plan I do not need to worry about running up unexpected costs. I can also use Google Maps, check the news and use WhatsApp to stay in touch with friends and family at home.

If you are faced with having to use the Chinese version of the internet, there are a few things you can do.

Some apps have an offline mode. For example, Google Translate allows you to download a Chinese dictionary for offline use.

There are also alternatives that do work in China: for navigation these are Maps.me and Apple Maps, for translations the app simply called ‘Translate’. Bing works for search (but may be heavily restricted in terms of search results.

It is of course also possible, and perhaps healthy, to take a break from social media and the news, but if that’s not right for you, I hope this post gave you a clear overview of the options available.

Happy Travels!!

H_B