Renowned Travel Writer Isobel Shaw Passes Away at 83

News Desk

GENEVA: Isobel Shaw, an influential Irish-born travel writer who played a pivotal role in promoting Pakistan through her guidebooks, passed away on November 11 at her home in St-Cergue, Switzerland. She was 83 years old.

Shaw first arrived in Pakistan in 1978 when her husband, Robert Shaw, was appointed as the Ford Foundation’s representative in Islamabad. During her three-year stay, she immersed herself in the local culture, learning Urdu and co-authoring ‘A Traveller’s Guide to Pakistan’ with Hilary Adamson, published in 1981.

This guidebook was among the first modern publications to showcase the country to international visitors.

Her subsequent works, including the ‘Pakistan Handbook’ in 1989, which was shortlisted for the Thomas Cook Travel and Guide Book Awards, and the illustrated guide that saw five editions, established her as a leading authority on travel in Pakistan.

Collaborating with her son, Ben Shaw, she also produced the ‘Pakistan Trekking Guide’ in 1993 and a trekking guide to the Karakoram and Hindu Kush in 2013, further solidifying her reputation among fellow writers as the premier guidebook author on Pakistan.

In the 1990s, Shaw served as a tourism consultant for the Pakistani government and delivered a keynote address at the Pakistan Tourism Convention in Karachi in 1993.

Following the devastating earthquake in 2005, she actively participated in fundraising efforts for orthopedic care, demonstrating her commitment to the welfare of the region.