Lahore: how safe?

Sounds great, I'll definitely try to check it ouf if possible.. Really wish I could visit during a cooler time of year, but that's sadly not in the cards.

Can someone give a bit more details on the security situation? Saying it's safer than the NW Frontier isn't much comfort, though I gather it's still relativelty safe. Still, how much of a target are Westerners, and what will there be to worry about? I gather insurgency around mosques/government things on Friday, but how much thievery/street violence is there? I know of someone who was beaten quite badly and robbed while doing a bike trip through the safer parts of Pakistan, and have heard there are some sore feelings towards non-muslims among some parts of the country. I'm considering going alone, and want to be very clear on how much of a risk (if any) I'd be taking on a visit there, and how costly getting off in the wrong neighbourhood could be.

I'll add that I spoke with a Canadian foreign affairs worker who had just returned from the embassy in Islamabad and said they are strongly discouraging/prohibiting both women and people's families to travel to Pakistan to be with them. That's definitely not the case for those at the embassy in Delhi.

Yeah, avoid visiting the mosques and Sufi shrines on Fridays in the city, crime ratio against foreign tourists 0.

I don't see any risk, traveling to a city like Lahore, it's the city of vivacious and hospitable people.

We can't make a comparison of it with other parts of Pakistan likewise Peshawar, ever city has its own colors, culture, language, way of living and style.

The troubled parts are Swat valley and Tribal belt of Pakistan.

Ciao,

"The troubled parts are Swat valley and Tribal belt of Pakistan."

Peshawar, Kashmir, Karachi, Abbatobad, Balochistan... :.)

sandcastle44 - Travellers have been visiting Lahore for years and years and years. Many stay in the same place, the regale inn (or now the other one- lahore backpackers). This is a small very well known hostel with no security situated down a small poorly lit alley. If there were bad men in Lahore or Pakistan who wanted to harm these people they would have done so by now. There is a tiny minority of people who for a variety of reasons want to cause problems to certain Pakistani government and military institutions and certain foreign institutions ( like the embassies your friends work for). As a tourist you fall outside of this sphere and unless you get caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time then you are only going to experience the wonderful hospitality of the Pakistani people.
There may be no problems for embassy workers in Delhi but travelling in rural Bihar, West Bengal or parts of Assam can be pretty hairy for foreigners too.
Of course it is your choice and no-one on this forum can give you exact detailed security reports just their experiences and opinions. I think you should go, have fun and enjoy yourself.

number 22 - Can you tell me exactly what troubles there are in Azad Jammu and Kashmir in Pakistan or for that matter in Abbottobad (bodyguards and wives of the worlds most wanted man excepted)?

OP -- You sound worried beyond the point of reassurance, so perhaps you should strike Pakistan from your bucket list.

Western embassies and organisations working in Pakistan and in Islamabad in particular take an ultra-cautious view of security, and issue their personnel almost daily with warnings about potential dangers. They also impose restrictions on the movement of those personnel, often linked to employment contracts -- follow the rules, or else. They have to do this, as they invest a lot of their taxpayers' or donor money in bringing in specialists and resources and providing security and support for them and their family members. It costs a lot of money and paperwork to repair or replace those assets. (This is why most foreign organisations in ISB expelled the families of employees in 2008 following the Marriott bombing.) As a result, many foreign workers end up with a distorted view of the country.

But you are a tourist, and mobile. You're way off the radar. You're of no political interest to anyone as long as you stay outside of the tribal areas. You have no permanent accommodation or set route that baddies can study to prepare for an attack on you as an example to other decadent westerners. As long as you bear in mind some of the warnings offered above by posters, which are not dissimilar from warnings that are current for India, you should relax and enjoy what Pakistan has to offer. Even allowing for the incident involving your cyclist friend, violent crimes against foreigners are extremely rare.

Oh, and don't touch anything that comes from the Kabul river.

Frankly (and I'm looking nervously over my shoulder in case SC is monitoring this thread), if you arrive in Pakistan after a period in India, you may feel considerable relief. Much less harassment, zero scams, more personal space. But you will be fleeced by taxi drivers everywhere, at airports you'll find yourself paying for porters you didn't realise you had, you do need to secure valuable items in your accommodation and in crowded places, and if you don't know how to haggle successfully you'd better stay home.

Likewise if you value your trim waistline (cheers to beck).

NO pack_backer, no..

I'd follow the recommendations of JakJones about
Regale Internet Inn

Where you could meet other over-landers, from China and Taftan and they could update you about the security situation of the whole region.

Allez'y..

Lahore is safe,traveling around there is no problem at all.

number 22 - Can you tell me exactly what troubles there are in Azad Jammu and Kashmir in Pakistan or for that matter in Abbottobad (bodyguards and wives of the worlds most wanted man excepted)?

http://archives.dawn.com/archives/33825

http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=179057

http://www.pkhope.com/lashkar-e-zil-behind-azad-kashmir-suicide-hits/

Not aimed at tourists, I agree. But not a trouble free region either.

I don't think the Sri Lankan cricket team would agree! Neither would the killed and wounded on the Shia procession last September...