Check here what is blocked: http://www.blockedinchina.net/?siteurl=facebook.com

Thank you that site is most helpful. Apparently Yahoo, Bing, Chrome are still available for westerners. Where as FB, Twitter, Instagram, Snap Chat, Gmail, Google. is BLOCKED.

WeChat is BIG in China - will need to have family and friends communicate through WeChat.

You can also use whatever you want if you have a VPN.

I use Chrome and sometimes Safari here - both work well as browsers as long as you don't use Google as a search engine. I have my device set to use Bing as a default. Baidu is the main Chinese browser, if you are interested.

For email, I have had no issues with my Outlook or Yahoo accounts. Others I know use AOL and Hotmail.

I also second a recommendation for WeChat if you are staying for an extended period of time. You can text, voice call, or video call any other WeChat user using the app (my struggle has been getting friends/family to use WeChat outside of China). Skype and Google Hangouts require a VPN - or at least they have for me. I also have Apple devices, so I can use iMessage and Facetime without a VPN.

Skype works fine for me (you need to instal it before you arrive in China) and Whatsap is another option.

I have an unlocked android. I simply want to take pictures and post to FB or some other app so that friends family can see them while we are there. Not dead-set on FB though. Any suggestions and do I need a VPN or simply a sim card w/ a plan by china mobile or unicom??

Skype and Whatsapp works good. No need for wechat if you only communicate with folks back home.

For FB you need VPN. Nothing to do with Android. I do think Flickr works in China. They probably have a free try out scheme you can use during the holiday. Other alternative might be OneDrive from Microsoft or Dropbox

hello!

Services provided by Microsoft can be used normally, such as IE, skype, outlook etc.

any more questions? ^-^

Dropbox does not work in China.