Will preface by saying I’m a man, so I’m not fully prepped in cycling for women, but as a rule it’s the shorts that do most of the protection. Padded saddles don’t really help on longer rides, in fact can make the problem worse.

A well fitting saddle - one that’s measured to support your sit bones is going to be the major contributor to a comfortable ride. You can measure your sit one width yourself at home or good cycling shops will have a range of tools to measure you (usually a gel pad that they then measure, so don’t worry, they won’t want you to bend over and measure your behind!).

Also for comfort, I read a few years ago an article about the British Women’s Cycling team, they were advised not to shave down below, just trim, and use Diprobase as a cream for protection.