Exclusive: Jess Davis had been travelling Taliban-controlled Afghanistan for two weeks when her mum rang from Melbourne to call her out in a lie.

"I had lied and told them I flew elsewhere," she told 9news.com.au.

Davis had good reason to bend the truth – and her family had good reason to worry.

She's among a growing number of Western tourists choosing to visit the Central Asian nation despite the threat of terrorist attacks, kidnappings and arbitrary detention.

Australia has it on a "do not travel" list and the Smartraveller website warns "no location in Afghanistan can be considered safe".

There are no Australian officials or consular support in Afghanistan, and airports, flights and telecommunications can be disrupted without notice.

Despite this, tourism to Afghanistan is o

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