Asia is the most popular long-haul travel region for Kiwis, covering everything from Japan city breaks to Bali holidays, OE stopovers in Singapore, and backpacker circuits through Southeast Asia.
A HelloRoam Asia regional eSIM keeps you connected across 48 countries without buying a new SIM at each stop.
East Asia (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong) has some of the world's fastest and densest mobile networks. Japan's NTT Docomo has near-universal 5G in populated areas. South Korea's SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus have the highest 5G penetration globally.
These are genuinely the best mobile networks Kiwis will encounter anywhere.
Southeast Asia (Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar) is the most popular multi-country travel corridor for NZ backpackers. Coverage quality varies widely. Singapore has near-perfect 4G and 5G.
Thailand's AIS and Vietnam's Viettel cover popular tourist routes well. Indonesia is excellent in Bali and Java but very limited on outer islands.
South Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives) has varied coverage. India's Jio, Airtel, and Vi have expanded 4G and 5G in cities but rural mountain states have gaps. Nepal's Kathmandu has reasonable 4G but Himalayan trekking trails have no mobile signal beyond the first few kilometres.
Sri Lanka's main tourist areas are well-covered.
Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan) has functional urban 4G in capitals but very limited coverage in the vast rural steppes and mountain ranges that draw adventure travellers.