{"id":9357,"date":"2017-10-31T16:17:58","date_gmt":"2017-10-31T15:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tourradar.com\/days-to-come\/?p=9357"},"modified":"2019-04-11T13:06:05","modified_gmt":"2019-04-11T12:06:05","slug":"how-to-access-the-internet-in-beijing-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tourradar.com\/days-to-come\/how-to-access-the-internet-in-beijing-china\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Access the Internet in Beijing, China"},"content":{"rendered":"

So, you\u2019re planning on going to China, are you?<\/span><\/p>\n

Let’s get a few surprises out of the way: First, carry toilet paper and stomach medicine with you <\/span>always<\/span><\/i>; Second, pre-install the offline-functional language app \u201cPleco\u201d and the \u201cmandarin\u201d language pack in the google translate app. Which leads into the third: say goodbye to anything and everything Google and high-quality that Western internet provides you.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Travel to: <\/em>China <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n

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No longer will you be able to search on Google, crawl YouTube, navigate with Google Maps, or update your Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, Tumblr, and plenty of other apps that at least pretend to retain a user\u2019s privacy. They even recently blocked WhatsApp, though not Yahoo or Skype (yet).\u00a0<\/span>So how do you access the internet in Beijing, China?<\/p>\n

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Travel to: <\/em>Yangtze river <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n

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First and foremost, the fact that you\u2019re reading this before you go is a great move. The reason being: <\/span><\/p>\n

Will you need to bring a VPN?<\/h2>\n
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Beijing, China<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A good VPN is your first and almost only line of defense\u00a0against online censorship. The best ones are blocked from within China, so you\u2019ll be in a tough spot if you forgot to install them on your laptop <\/strong><\/span>and<\/i><\/strong> phone before you arrive<\/strong>. I consider the best two to be Astrill<\/a>\u00a0and ExpressVPN<\/a>. Suppose something goes wrong and you can\u2019t access either of these sites from behind the wall: Astrill has a site that is somehow still accessible in China: www.Astrill4u.com<\/a>. It\u2019s been a personal lifesaver a couple times so be sure to bookmark it!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rumor has it that the government has tasked all internet service and cellular providers with banning all illegal VPN usage by January 2018, but has also stated that companies can register and will be able to use VPNs. Translation: it\u2019ll still be possible to use VPNs, since companies will find a way, but the cat-and-mouse game will continue between geeks and governments. It\u2019s been tried before, and it didn\u2019t take. Although they have shown the short-term ability to take down the VPNs during big government meetings, they always return eventually.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSuppose they succeed in blocking VPNs, what then?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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See Also: <\/em>Every Food Lover\u2019s Guide to Ordering Dim Sum in China<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n

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Well, there is the humorously named \u201cshadow socks\u201d step in which is an open-source proxy project. In other words, it\u2019s created as a hobby for free, and can be edited by whoever wants to try. In fact, it was created with the sole purpose of getting around the Chinese firewall, which is primarily where this is used. I view it as a sort of advanced VPN that takes more effort in the setup. As it takes more work to set up, it\u2019s not likely to be a good option for someone travelling, but if you\u2019re going to be staying a while, here is a guide<\/a> to setting them up<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Note: I have not attempted this before. The final option for long-term stays would be to buy a VPN router, which can be found on Astrill\u2019s website.<\/span><\/p>\n

Consider that a lot of Websites we regularly use in the West aren’t accessible in China. These include Facebook, YouTube, Google (including Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps etc.), as well as the popular photo sharing app Instagram. While China has its own similar social platforms called Weibo or Youku, which are great to practice Chinese and make local friends when living in China. However, you can still access Facebook and Co. with a “Virtual Private Network”, or VPN. This is a program you can simply download on your computer or smartphone and surf like at home. The program changes your IP address or location pretending to be somewhere outside of China. This way, you can access all the sites just like back home. It is best to download a VPN before leaving for China since it might be more difficult to find them once there. I highly recommend Onavo\u2006Protect, which you can simply download on the App Store for phones and at www.onavo.com for laptops. – Linda, Linda Goes East<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Can buying SIM cards from other countries get you online?<\/h2>\n
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Guy on phone<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A friend of mine was using a card from the states (T-mobile) which had international coverage and worked just fine in China. Slower, perhaps, but the same access to sites. Alternatively, I\u2019ve heard that people buy SIMs from Hong Kong or Taiwan<\/a>, which will also sidestep the firewall. A friend told me that his plan was to buy a foreign SIM, plug it into a special router that allows SIMs to act as a hotspot, and use that as his primary internet provider. The current catch: from within China, we only seem to have the option of ordering 7-day cards, and they can only be ordered online.<\/span><\/p>\n

Are internet cafes an option?<\/h2>\n

\u201cWhat about internet caf\u00e9s?\u201d you may wonder aloud.<\/span><\/p>\n

Forget them if your goal is to be able to google and of course, don’t expect . Instead, their reputation is for being geeky, smoke-filled ramen dens packed with gaming addicts. If that doesn’t dissuade you, you\u2019ll likely need to check out a few before landing on a good one. Signs that you’ve found a decent one are: comfortable lighting, clean, and the machines aren\u2019t broken. <\/span><\/p>\n

In general, they aren\u2019t expensive, only costing $5-10 USD per hour. In most cases, you will be required to present your passport to use their services but the rules are often loosely enforced so if you land on the right internet cafe you might not need yours. You can mostly game on them, usually with the game client Steam. <\/em>Keep in mind that rhere\u00a0probably won\u2019t be VPNs on the machines that you can use. <\/span><\/p>\n

Can you access wifi at chain cafes and public hotspots?<\/h2>\n
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Internet cafe in Beijing, China<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In my experience, public wifi is never functional. As for caf\u00e9s, they usually require you to have a cellphone number to text you a confirmation code for logging in, which you probably won\u2019t have if you’re only passing through. To avoid this, your best bet will be to find non-chain caf\u00e9s. The small ones almost always just have a simple password posted somewhere.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHow do I find those?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you need to download a new map app if you’re an Android user?<\/h2>\n

Well, Apple Maps works in China without problems, so that\u2019s not an issue. The main problems arise for Android users because as I mentioned, Google Maps won’t be accessible. To combat this you’ll want to download \u201cAmap\u201d for Android, which is easy to find on the Chinese app store, but otherwise, you\u2019ll have to download and install an APK for it. <\/span><\/p>\n

Here<\/span><\/a> is a website that you can find APKs, and <\/span>here<\/span><\/a> is a guide on how to install them. The app is written in Chinese, but at least you\u2019ll be able to see where you are and search some English names. If you want a map written in English, I\u2019d suggest using the Chinese-Uber app \u201cDidi\u201d, as they recently released their English version which can also find you taxis paid by the meter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another note for android users: it may consistently tell you that you don\u2019t have internet access, even though the network is fully functional. I\u2019ve read that it\u2019s because they ping Google to test access, which is blocked. Catch-22. Be sure to check your phone models before your visit to Beijing at <\/span>willmyphonework.net<\/span><\/a>, which is primarily used for checking cell carriers, but will give you an idea of which phones are most functional abroad. Apple tends to work better here.<\/span><\/p>\n

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See Also: <\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n

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Once you are connected, you generally won\u2019t have much to worry about, but remember to avoid topics such as:<\/span><\/p>\n