6 Questions to Know if Solo-Female Travel in Pakistan is Right for You

Are you a Solo-Female Traveler who wants to visit Pakistan? This incredible country is sure to inspire your adventure-seeking wanderlust, but first there’s 6 questions to answer to know if solo-female travel in Pakistan is right for you.

Solo-female travel in Pakistan is increasing fast. Women are flying from around the globe to visit this unique country.

On my recent trip to Pakistan, I met quite a few solo-female travelers. My interactions with these women have inspired me to write these 6 questions to answer to know if Pakistan is right for you, right now.

My mood in Pakistan was ecstatic.

I loved every minute of my journey! A few women I met, however, were not so happy…

In the first minute of meeting one solo-female traveler, she told me Pakistan would be great if it wasn’t for all the Pakistanis!!

I was absolutely jaw-dropped… I had been telling everyone the exact opposite.

My favorite part of Pakistan is Pakistani people!

This whole interaction got me thinking about what the expectations were for this woman… Presumably, she’s not alone, many women may be feeling similar. This is the last thing I’d hope anyone thinks when they’re visiting Pakistan. It’s truly a remarkable country with lovely people, live-changing scenery, rich cultural heritage, and an exotic, flavorful culinary culture.

In the not-so-distant past, Pakistan was on the list of countries not to visit. My biggest fear is that Pakistan falls back into this tourism downfall. I worry we’re one bad tourist experience away from this proverbial doom.

That’s why I’ve written these 6 questions. Although Pakistan is amazing, in the echo chamber of social media influencers, you hear nothing but the country praised, and I feel like this is not telling the whole story. Pakistan is an amazing country, yes, but like every country, it has flaws.

Pakistan is hard, and you might not be ready for it.

I say that because at a certain point in my life, I wasn’t ready for it.

The online community likes to graze over the fact that a lot of travel experience is needed to feel comfortable in Pakistan. It is an absolutely life-changing country, with inspiring, generous people and pristine, wild scenery; Visiting Pakistan is a transformative experience. But, if this was one of the first few countries I traveled to, honestly, I think I would have a panic attack.

It’s a little embarrassing to admit. I could say I’m the most courageous badass female adventurer ever, but I want to keep it real. We’re all human.

Pakistan is challenging, but it is worth it

I don’t want to put you off Pakistan entirely because it is a country that should be added to every bucket-list. But I do want to educate you on what to expect, so you can make an informed decision on if solo-female travel in Pakistan is right for you, right now.

6 Questions to Answer to Know if Solo-Female Travel in Pakistan is Right for You

1. Will I be comfortable with lack of infrastructure?

Navigating through Pakistan is no easy feat. The government is full of corruption.

This makes everything more difficult, especially for the local people.

The traffic is pure insanity. Road rules and road signs are almost non-existent. Driving your own car will take skill and mental strength to stay at peace.

Police and other government faculties are often crowded and overworked, this can be a headache when trying to get anything official done.

2. Will I be comfortable in a male dominated society?

Pakistan’s culture changes every region you visit.

In cities like Islamabad and Lahore, women are walking around in the streets, wearing jeans and driving cars. Even in some villages like Hunza, women are running businesses and leading society.

In many other villages, however, you won’t see women at all.

This diversity makes traveling to Pakistan interesting. But despite the few safe havens, you will be entering into a male-dominated society.

In most villages, women are inside. I’ve gone days without seeing women. So you will have to be comfortable interacting with men, being stared at by men, and being treated like a delicate flower.

I saw another travel blogger put it perfectly: both men, and women, believe women are delicate flowers that should be protected and respected by men.

It’s the culture, who are we to judge? But this isn’t the mentality we western women are used to.

That being said, this mindset does have some perks. Men will often help you and look out for you. No one will let you be harassed in the streets. You will be able to find more people willing to host you. Although Pakistani hospitality is incredible and most likely you’ll get more offers for room and board than you have in your life. And generally, people will be more trusting of you, and more likely to give you special treatment.

3. Am I happy to dress modestly?

Although modesty may sound boring, Pakistani fashion is anything but-it’s full of life and color. Modest doesn’t mean dull!

The fashion can be quite exciting and fun to pick out a new wardrobe!

You should know, dressing modestly is a must in Pakistan. Never wear shorts or short skirts. This is quite offensive to their culture and religion.

Be prepared to cover your neck, shoulders, arms and legs in Pakistan. You don’t have to cover your head, but I recommend keeping a scarf(dupata) on you at all times if you’re in a conservative area and want to avoid some stares, or if you’re planning on visiting religious sites.

Some foreigners don’t feel like it’s anyone’s right to tell them how to dress, thinking that the culture should catch up to their societal standards. So if that sounds like you, Pakistan may not be right for you.

4. Will I freak out if people stare?

Oooh, and people will stare. It can be a really comical, fun experience to be a celebrity for a time. Expect to take a lot of pictures, and make a lot of mouth drops, you might even get asked for a few interviews like I did.

The staring is harmless.

People are curious about you and not used to seeing foreigners around, especially in the villages outside of the big cities.

Take it as an opportunity to be an ambassador for your country and make some new friends.

Locals will likely invite you for some chai or biscuits. This can be a great opportunity to learn more about the local culture and immerse yourself in a new environment.

But if this is your first rodeo out of your comfort zone, it can feel a bit intimidating. Trying to navigate a new country, not feeling confident about where you are or what you’re doing, AND all eyes are on you! If you feel like this might intimidate or aggravate you, maybe save Pakistan for later.

5. Am I comfortable seeing extreme poverty?

For my first international trip outside the USA, I went to Turkey. I remember seeing the child beggars on the streets in Taksim square and even being harassed by a group of young children in Besiktas. The guilt racked my brain. I had never seen that level of poverty before, and I couldn’t understand my privilege.

I felt responsible in some way.

It took me a long time to be able to navigate my feelings around extreme levels of poverty. I understood that holding onto those feelings of guilt allowed people (usually not the needy ones at all!) to manipulate me in a hustle thats as old as time, foreign guilt. Being naive about my American privilege got me into a lot of stupid situations, where often a friend(not really) with a worse passport than me tried to make me pay for something. Even though I never came from money and didn’t have any money to give, I still became roped into trying to play hero. A situation you can find yourself in if you’re an altruist, are too trusting, and harsh truth somewhat of a sucker.

Now, Pakistan is not like Turkey. The poverty is much worse.

Beggars are not stupid. They know you feel bad seeing them and they are not afraid to use that to their advantage.

That being said, if you have money to give, please do! These people could use your help and are clearly more disadvantaged than anyone in the west.

But, if you don’t have any money or haven’t seen this level of poverty are you going to be too struck with guilt to feel comfortable to fend off beggars daily?

I want to highlight that this is beggars only. The majority of people in Pakistan will never ask money from you. In fact, you’ll have a hard time trying to pay for anything!

But beggars are everywhere, especially in the big cities, and they hustle everyone-local people the most. So you’ll want to prepare yourself for seeing all kinds of people on the street: young, old, women, men, children, babies, transgender, and disabled people.

6. Will you feel comfortable with armed security

Once you get out of the big cities of Karachi/Lahore/Islamabad, you will often be mandated by law to have a member of the Pakistani police follow you at all times within the region you’re visiting.

When entering into a new municipality, oftentimes you’ll encounter a checkpost where they will check your passport and visa. If you are foreign, and not on a tour, someone will be assigned to escort you throughout the city.

This is for your protection. Pakistan wants to protect tourists in sensitive regions where there may be extremists who want to use you as a political pawn, in a trade, and hopefully not worse. Kidnappings nowadays are rare, but that doesn’t mean it can’t still happen.

Areas that are actually dangerous are off-limits for tourists, but the Pakistani government goes the extra mile to ensure its guests safety.

Having an armed guard around you at all times can make you feel safe. They’re usually friendly, and only really there to give the Pakistani government some peace of mind that no foreigners will be hurt and their global image tarnished.

I’ve never had a bad experience, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. Most foreigners I ran into in Pakistan absolutely hated this system, but I never heard of any harassment from the people I met.

You have to ask yourself if you’re going to feel comfortable having a man follow you around, or will you pick a fight at every check post you reach?

Pakistan is a raw, wild adventure. It takes you back to the time before instagram photos and resort towns, when the world was just, free.

I know I may have brought up a lot of negatives about traveling to Pakistan, but Pakistan is like any other country: It has flaws.

No country is perfect and I only feel a responsibility to combat a bit of the Pakistan Positivity Misinformation that’s been floating around on youtube and with social media influencers.

Pakistan is definitely not what the media portrays it to be. However, that doesn’t mean we should all bury our heads in the sand and pretend Pakistan is perfect.

If you asked yourself these 6 questions and thought “maybe Pakistan isn’t for me”, I challenge you to change it to “Pakistan isn’t for me, right now“.

If you love travel, adventure, and connecting with incredible people you will fall in love with Pakistan. Just make sure you do some other traveling first.

If Pakistan was the first country I came to all alone as a solo-female, I would’ve been culture shoooook.

If you’ve read through 6 questions to answer to know if solo-female travel in Pakistan is right for you then check out my guide on how to plan a trip to Pakistan in 2023!

Be smart, and travel responsibly.

Let me know in the comments below how you felt about these 6 questions to answer to know if solo-female travel in Pakistan is right for you!