I've heard that the culture towards women is different in India than it is here in America. Is it safe for women to travel alone there? Or, more specifically, women tourists? Do I need to always keep a travel partner with me?
From personal experience there will always be places in a country where people are more conservative or violent and you should always be wary of going to those places. Research about the city you're going to if you want to go alone, keep contact with your embassy and people close to you so they'll always know where you are and if you feel even a bit unsafe then you shouldn't go down that road even if it's the cheap option, your safety matters more.
I agree about trusting your instincts when you feel unsafe. Book some tours and stay with the group is probably the best option if you're traveling alone. At least that way you may have fellow countrymen or people who are new to the area and you won't be visiting anything alone.
A friend of mine went to India alone - single female in her mid 20's - and she said it was just fine. She's a pretty seasoned traveller and just made sure to do things like not wear anything revealing/outlandish. She said that yes, people did look at her (she's blonde and very fair skinned, so that's happened to her in a lot of countries!) but she never felt threatened or anything. Honestly, I think the biggest thing is exercising common sense. Don't wear anything flashy/expensive (fancy watches, jewelry), don't go flashing an expensive cell phone around - these are tips I would say for a lot of countries!
its really truth travels is very safe for women bt keep contact with your embassy nd people close to u so they will always know where u r travelling bt dont wear jewelery in travel
We have places here in the U.S that I wouldn't recommend a woman go to alone and I think you're going to have that everywhere. For a seasoned traveler, I would say certain parts of India would be fine. If this is your first trip outside of your comfort zone, having a companion would probably be best.
I think It's safer for women to travel with a travel buddy in general or with a group people. I think generally when a woman travels alone anywhere and not just India she becomes a target it's just human nature unfortunately there are men or groups who target women who travel alone or who are alone in general.
News truly have a way at inciting a dangerous feel to a certain place. I must admit that hearing news of females traveling alone and getting accosted is scary. And as the others pointed out, everywhere you go - whichever country you're traveling to - there is always a threat to women traveling alone. But that doesn't mean the place is necessarily dangerous. What I learned from travels is that what we normally have in our minds are totally different when we're in the place. I remember prior to a trip to Bangkok, the news in our country shows of a violent Bangkok. Our trip happened during that time when there were rallies and killings. In fact, one of my companions had a last moment hesitation because in our news feed, we could see people on the streets and coffins being shown on the news reports. Of course, it scared our families and they discouraged us. We went ahead with the trip, but we didn't see Bangkok the way it was depicted in the news.
Anywhere in Asia and Africa, Its quite unsafe at certain places. you need to take just a few cautious steps, and avoid dingy areas
