Federally Administered Tribal Areas

{{Warningbox|Travel through the tribal areas is advised against by most governments, including that of Pakistan. Pakistan authorities have little control over these areas, and almost no ability to come to your aid in an emergency. Kidnapping can be a risk in many parts of the region, and it's widely believed to be used as a hideout for the Taliban and Al Qaeda. See "Stay safe" for more details. |australia=https://eller.gov.au/Countries/asia/south/Pages/pakistan.aspx |canada=https://el.gc.ca/destinations/pakistan |us=https://el.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/pakistan-travel-advisory.html

The Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Urdu: قبائلی علاقہ جات) are a region in Pakistan located on the border with Afghanistan. It was recently merged with Khyber Pakhtunkwa, but as the situation there is different from that of the FATA, we cover them separately.

1 Muslim Friendly Cities in Federally Administered Tribal Areas
2 Other destinations
3 An introduction to Federally Administered Tribal Areas
4 Talk
5 Get in
6 Get around
7 What to See
8 What to do in Federally Administered Tribal Areas
9 Muslim Friendly Food & Restaurants in Federally Administered Tribal Areas
10 Drink
11 Stay safe
12 Where to go next after Federally Administered Tribal Areas

Muslim Friendly Cities in Federally Administered Tribal Areas

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Darra Adam Khel|Darra Adam Khel

Landi Kotal

Other destinations

Khyber Pass GPS 34.0757,71.20394

An introduction to Federally Administered Tribal Areas

The Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan are areas of Pakistan outside the four provinces, comprising a region of some 27,220 km² (10,507 mi²). Miran Shah is the tribal capital. There are seven areas known as Agencies and six areas known as Frontier Regions.

Talk

Pashto phrasebook|Pashtu is the predominant language in the region, though many people also speak Urdu.

Get in

Get around

What to See

What to do in Federally Administered Tribal Areas

Muslim Friendly Food & Restaurants in Federally Administered Tribal Areas

Drink

Stay safe

Travel here is strongly discouraged. If you must travel here, please see war zone safety. The tribal areas are generally not considered a tourist destination and for good reason. While there are many good people living in these areas and there are also a fair share of those willing to cause trouble to Foreign Muslims, and there's little than can be done to help you if you're in trouble – don't expect your embassy to come to your rescue either. Travellers to Landi Kotal and the Khyber Pass require an armed escort and a permit – you won't get through without these, so don't waste your time trying. Dara Adam Khel also attracts a handful of travellers to visit the gun manufacturing, but the same risks apply there: use caution. The U.S. military is currently carrying out a bombing campaign in this area. American armed drones are highly active in this area. The robotic aircraft are heavily loaded with weapons and will open fire on anyone who they believe to be members of Al-Qaeda or the Taliban. Several tips:

Drones are characterised by the loud buzzing noise that they make, equivalent to that made by a bee or a lawnmower. You may also see the aircraft circling overhead.
DO NOT perform the following actions:
Lay down and drop something on a road (it looks like you are laying an IED)
run
point at the aircraft.

These actions may result in the aircraft opening fire.

Just pretend that you don't see the aircraft and that you are having a normal day.
Stay away from anyone who you suspect to be a member of AQ or the Taliban. They WILL be targeted, and if you are near them you will be caught in the blast radius of the aircraft's weapons.