# VPN

> A VPN (virtual private network) is a service that encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through a remote server, masking your activity and location.

Source: https://viasimo.com/glossary/vpn/
Also known as: virtual private network

---
A VPN (virtual private network) is a service that encrypts your internet traffic and routes it through a remote server, masking your activity and location. Websites see the server's location instead of yours, and networks in between cannot read what you send.

For travellers, a VPN earns its place in three situations. The first is security on shared networks: airport, hotel and café Wi-Fi are convenient but untrusted, and an encrypted tunnel stops anyone on the same network snooping on your logins and payments. The second is continuity: banking apps and streaming services sometimes block or flag logins from unfamiliar countries, and connecting through a server at home keeps them working as usual. The third is restricted internet: in [China](/destinations/china/), many Western apps and sites are blocked on local networks, and travellers have long used VPNs to reach them.

An eSIM-specific detail is worth knowing here. Because travel eSIMs typically operate as international roaming products, their traffic often exits to the internet through servers outside the country you are visiting; in practice this means blocked services frequently work on a roaming eSIM in China without any VPN. A VPN still adds encryption and certainty, and our [China internet access guide](/magazine/china-travel-guide-internet-access/) covers the details; rules on VPN use vary by country, so check the current position before you travel.

The main confusion: a VPN is not an internet connection. It runs on top of whatever connection you already have, whether Wi-Fi or an [eSIM](/glossary/esim/) data plan, and it slightly increases data usage and latency because everything takes a detour through the VPN server. A VPN with no underlying signal does nothing.

Concrete example: a remote worker in a Lisbon café joins the free Wi-Fi, switches on their VPN, and works on company systems knowing the traffic is unreadable to anyone else on the network.

For the broader picture, see [eSIM security benefits for travel](/magazine/esim-security-benefits-travel/) and our [remote work abroad internet guide](/magazine/remote-work-abroad-internet-guide/).