Internet in China for travellers: eSIM, the firewall, and what still won't open

On a Chinese SIM or on hotel Wi-Fi, Google, Gmail, WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube and most Western news sites do not open. Visitors get around that in one of two ways: a VPN, which has to be installed and working before arrival, or a roaming line, which needs no setup at all. This guide is about the second, and about the things it does not fix.

Why a roaming eSIM is outside the firewall

The filtering is applied to traffic that enters the internet from mainland networks. A roaming eSIM uses those networks only for the radio link. The data is carried back to the operator that issued the eSIM and reaches the internet there, in another country.

As this is written, in October 2026, our China plan connects through China Unicom and China Telecom and comes out in Singapore. The supplier has moved the exit before, so check the China page, which always shows the current one.

There is no app to install and nothing to configure. It covers the whole phone, and a laptop too if you share the connection from the phone.

What opens

Everything that opens at home: Google search and Gmail, Google Maps, WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram, YouTube, Western news sites and your bank's app.

What still won't open

Anything on Wi-Fi. The moment the phone joins a hotel or café network, it is on a mainland connection again and the same sites stop loading. If something suddenly will not open, look at the Wi-Fi icon first. Turn Wi-Fi off, or run the laptop from the phone's hotspot.

Services that do not serve the exit country. Some companies choose where they operate. ChatGPT and Claude, for example, are not offered in Hong Kong, so an eSIM that comes out there is refused by them for a reason that has nothing to do with China. Through Singapore they work as usual.

Anything that needs a Chinese phone number. The eSIM carries data only. Many public Wi-Fi portals and some local apps confirm a sign-up by texting a code to a mainland number, and that code has nowhere to arrive.

Some mainland content. Websites see you in the exit country, not in China. A few Chinese video and music services show a smaller catalogue to visitors from abroad, and streaming services you use at home will show the exit country's catalogue.

A reliable Google Maps. It loads, but on the mainland its map is offset and thin. Use Apple Maps on an iPhone, or Amap (Gaode), which has an English interface.

One more thing to expect: traffic takes the long way round, so mainland websites can feel a little slower than they would on a local SIM.

Paying

Almost everything in China is paid for by phone. Alipay and WeChat Pay both accept a foreign Visa or Mastercard now. Set them up before you fly, while your bank's confirmation SMS can still reach you at home.

A local SIM or an eSIM

	Local SIM	Roaming eSIM
To get one	Passport, at an operator's shop	Bought online, installed from a QR code
Blocked sites	Still blocked, a VPN is needed	Open
Chinese phone number	Yes	No, data only
Hong Kong and Macao	Roaming, at extra cost	Included in the same plan

On a short trip the eSIM alone is enough. On a stay of months, when a bank or a landlord will ask for a Chinese number, many people keep both: the local SIM for the number and the eSIM for the open internet. Most phones that take an eSIM run two lines at once.

Which plan

One plan covers mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao, so a trip across all three needs one eSIM.

• Fixed packages run from 1 GB for 7 days to 50 GB for 180 days. More data can be added to the same eSIM later, with no new QR code.
• Daily Unlimited gives a full-speed allowance every day, from 500 MB to 10 GB depending on the pass. After that the speed drops until the next day, and the line is never cut off. A pass is bought for a set number of days and cannot be extended.

Messengers and maps are light. Video, calls and a laptop on the hotspot are what use data up.

Before you fly

1. Check that your phone takes an eSIM and is not locked to a carrier. The compatible phones page lists the models.
2. Install the eSIM at home, over Wi-Fi. You can buy up to 180 days ahead, and for most plans the days start counting on the first connection in China, not at checkout.
3. Set up Alipay or WeChat Pay with your card.
4. Install Amap, or check that Apple Maps is on your phone.
5. Save your hotel's address in Chinese characters to show a driver.
6. When you land, turn on data roaming for the esimker line. It finds the network by itself.