The Great Firewall is a paper tiger ......but it costs.

We had heard all sorts of things about the Great Firewall of China, so Kin Mun duly arranged VPNs before leaving Australia.. 

But they didn't work either.

We stumbled on the solution - use our Telstra Global Roaming and you can access anything on your mobile, just like back in Aus.  Use your phone data to set up a hotspot, and you can link your laptop and your internet is just like home.

Our friends had an Optus account, and could do the same thing - for fewer  $$ than Telstra.

No doubt a concession for foreign visitors with an Aus account. But there is a cost in using Global Roaming.  The free hotel wifi was behind the Firewall.  You aren't actually told a site is blocked - just that  nothing happens.