I'm no feminist, but...

But?

I'm tired of reading those terse, nervous paragraphs in guidebooks warning me not to go anywhere alone and to resist male advances with a firm "No, thank you".

I have to agree. While there are some excellent sites for women travelling with children (such as babygoes2.com) - and, of course, Dea Birkett every week in these pages - women travelling further afield than a spa without a man could be forgiven for thinking they were living in the 50s.

Don't misunderstand me: I know there are plenty of places I shouldn't go, and I know it's foolish to wander around wearing very little outside Western enclaves. Still, I'd like some advice on places to eat, friendly cafés, travelling on trains and discouraging muggers.

Then you should certainly visit Journeywoman.com. First impressions of the site can be misleading: it sounds a bit like a cross between Cosmo in her radical era and Nancy Sinatra. But perserverance pays off. There is much experience and advice here, from the pedestrian (what to do when you climb 4,000 steps to an Indian temple and find a sign saying "No Periodical Women") to the bizarre (fending off a South African baboon).

And despite all this, it doesn't preach?

No. Indeed, radical feminists may be disappointed to learn that there is a section on spas. This is feminist travel in the manner of Naomi Wolf rather than Andrea Dworkin.