Kabul Bank Also has a branch of Western Union.
Standard Chartered Bank (Street 10, Wazir Akbar Khan; 9am-6pm) Issues dollars and afghanis.
Dangers & annoyances
Security in Kabul is now handled primarily by the Afghan police and army – the ISAF military patrols that were such a common sight until recently have largely taken a back seat. Although the situation can change incredibly quickly, Kabul is generally a calm city, with the greatest risk to personal safety being the insane traffic.
It’s essential to keep in touch with the news, and to talk to locals and other foreigners to gauge the popular mood, as well as getting security briefings where possible. That said, the riots that shook Kabul in 2006 took almost everyone by surprise. At such times, visibly Western buildings or interests can be targets.
There have been several incidents of street crime against foreigners, mainly bag-snatching. A vehicular version of this has been the ‘broken car’ ruse – your vehicle is flagged down by a local claiming his car has broken and needs assistance. When your attention is drawn, his accomplices rob your vehicle. We recommend keeping all doors locked when driving in Kabul.
We don’t recommend walking in Kabul after dark. Aside from the crime risk, there are very few streetlights, so broken pavements present a genuine accident risk. Many international organizations maintain curfews for their staff.
There have been kidnapping attempts (successful and unsuccessful) against foreigners by criminal gangs. For more on kidnapping, and other security concerns.
One environmental hazard you’ll quickly become aware of is the terrible quality of Kabul’s air, thick with pollution from the traffic, thousands of generators and the endless dust.
Anyone staying in the city for any length of time is liable to pick up the ‘Kabul cough’ – seeking fresh air outside the city is the best remedy. In winter and spring, the dust can quickly turn streets into mud slicks.
Getting there & away
Kabul is the main gateway to Afghanistan, and has the country’s only international airport .
Ariana has daily connections to Herat (3200Afg, one hour), as well as three times a week to Mazar-e Sharif (2500Afg, 30 minutes), Faizabad (2500Afg, one hour) and Kandahar (2200Afg, 30 minutes). In theory there are also flights on at least a weekly basis to Shiberghan, Kunduz and Maimana, but Ariana couldn’t vouch for these when asked.
Kam Air flies daily to Herat (3250Afg, one hour), and Mazar-e Sharif (2500Afg, 30 minutes). Services to Kandahar and Faizabad were being mooted as we went to press. As with all domestic flights in Afghanistan, schedules can be extremely flexible.
Getting around
While Taliban-era Kabul was largely a city of bicycles, traffic jams are an unwelcome side effect of progress. Getting around can be a nightmare at any time of day, with frequent road closures for unexpected security measures. Travel between Shahr-e Nau, Wazir Akbar Khan and the airport can be notably tiresome due to the large numbers of concrete roadblocks outside embassies that turn the roads into obstacle courses.
Car
A couple of companies offer secure radio-controlled taxi services in Kabul, aimed at the expat community. Both operate 24-hour services, and also rent cars and 4WDs with drivers for short and long-term hire.