Hi, first I want to say that I have read a huge amount of posts on the subject but the more I read the harder it is for me to decide on the best option. 3 of us are traveling to China for 3 weeks and we are looking for the best option. Reading on reddit you find different answers to the best option: eSims, VPNs, local sims. The idea is to buy a local sim at least at the airport to use wechat. Then we would like to be able to use the mobile for instagram, whatsapp, etc. so we have looked at VPNs like letsVPN, Astrill among others. We have also looked at the Nomad eSim option to be able to use the internet without problems. But which one do I choose?
Is it a good idea to get a VPN and then buy 3 local sims? Or is it better to activate the VPN before arriving in China?
I used mullvad vpn. Everything except TikTok worked. Mobile i chatted with someone in China at Nihao mobile. Bought a sim from them. They shipped it to my hotel. Once at the hotel I put in the simcatd. Did the register and the morning after I could surf as usual.
They have a before 18.00 register thing. If after 18 it will be activated the next day.
This worked for me. I could record tintoks anyway. Just not publish them. (Or tag location…)
Im travelling around China at the moment. This is what i use
VPN- LetsVPN and Mullvard(as backup). Both are great. Mainly use LetsVPN and I can access to Instagram, google etc and even tiktok no problem at all. Whatsapp video call too.
eSIM- Nomad. Excellent. Turned on once landed at PEK. Able to access google etc right away.
Local sim- China unicom. Picked up at the airport. And yes, it’s a bit steep but i dont have to run like a headless chicken to look for a mobile store in the city. Stress free. Having a local number, makes my trip much easier especially ordering food from table, online shopping, buying a ticket for attractions on wechat. I dont speak mandarin but i can do these things on my own. Everything asks for a mobile number.
I use this combination and so far, i have no problem.
At hotel - vpn + wifi. Or local sim + vpn. Whichever faster.
esim- when i want to save data on china number. So far, i haven’t been used that much.
Video call on WhatsApp- esim or local sim/wifi + vpn. Both Tip top quality.
Hope this helps and Ask me away. I know the feeling of uncertainty and i was in your position a few weeks ago. Now, enjoying my trip in China without feeling lost connection with my family back home and outer world.
I would setup both WeChat and VPN (unless you chose eSIM) before arriving. Also setup alipay and add your credit cards to both. You can use alipay for public transportation.
Unless you have a clear reason to use local SIM cards it’s not worth it, imo.
If you are only visiting I would, personally, skip vpn and the local sim and just go with esim. If you want to reduce costs you can also just get a single esim and share it using wifi hotspot on one phone.
I personally would prefer local sim and VPN, as it gives much more data to use relatively cheap (hotspot again). I got 30 GB for 300 Yuan in the airport. With VPN you can use also local wifi. But with local sim if you hotspot internet to laptop, you will need VPN there as well if you need to access something to do with google))).
I installed let’s VPN beforehand and paid for 1 week already in China.
I used 3HK eSIM , 30GB for 199 hkd. Works great and it’s fast since the sim tunnel just goes to hk instead of americas or Europe for other eSIM companies.
If it helps, I’m going to China next week and did similar (confusing) readings. I ended up on Mullvad and LetsVPN, I’ll use both. I’ll also be buying a simcard but it’s not necessarily needed
Get a SIM card from outside of China. All your favorite webpages and apps will still be accessible in China using a Sim card purchased outside of China. I used one purchased and set up in Hong Kong.
About VPN, another Redditor, who said he works in IT, said you don’t need a separate VPN. Your Sim card will do that for you. Websites of banks and financial institutions are fully encrypted and secure.
You can either get an eSIM from nomad which will bypass all the firewall (not no number to setup WeChat)
Or you can buy a local SIM card and get Let’s VPN. (Buy Indian version as it’s cheaper). I got both and they both worked flawlessly. Except the fact that the phone battery drains a lot of you keep the VPN active all the time.
I was in China just two weeks ago. I can recommend that you download nomad ans buying a package for 30 days esim. No need to have a VPN like Astrill, because too expensive. You just can download the Nomad ESim before you travel, I made this around 5 days before, when I arrived on the airport it already function automatically. I bought 30 GB Package for around 30 USD and it functionned anywhere. It was just like when I was at home in Switzerland, I could use WhatsApp and other social Media my private EMail and my Business EMail and my dual Sim I could also use. And it is so easy to install, if you install a VPN it is much more complicated.
I can only recommend. We traveled through China around 25 days …
Thanks for all this real-world info, here’s a question: Most current phones use an eSIM and have done away with physical SIM cards. Did you bring a burner/old phone to specifically use the local sim? I have an iPhone 14 with no physical sim tray and an old inactive iPhone 12 w/ a Sim slot. Would it be smart to bring the iphone 12 to use with a local sim provider & Chinese number?
Do you think the combo of VPN + local sim is enough? And How do I do it? I activate the VPN before arriving china and then change the sim (my phone can only have one) Thanks!!
Shadowrocket is the way to go. It’s the only VPN service that has delivered consistently. Don’t trust the big western ones, they’ve all been blocked or are about to be.
Hi, is it mandatory to have a Chinese SIM? Could I activate it on two different phones with a single SIM card or would I need one for each? Thanks for your help