Tunisia’s white sand beaches, Mediterranean sunshine and modern hotels annually attract around 260,000 British tourists – mainly couples and families – with an equal split between winter and summer months. Its most popular resorts, Hammamet, Port El Kantaoui, Sousse and Monastir, are spread along its east coast and offer a good range of water sports. Those who tire of the beach can sign up for an excursion to the many Roman sites in the interior of the country or an expedition to the Sahara in the south. Shopping is also an option – most Britons enjoy getting down to the business of haggling in the souks for carpets, pottery, leather goods and jewellery.
Hammamet
This is Tunisia’s best-known resort. Its modern, hotel complexes offer 40,000 beds, giving it the most brochure pages among UK operators and attracting the bulk of British tourists.
Hammamet’s hotels are mostly low-rise buildings, the resort has wide white sand beaches and those keen to get off the tourist circuit could hire a car and head north up the coast to Korba and Menzel Temime. Hammamet’s restored fortress (Kasbah) gives great views of the area. Other attractions include the Citrus Golf complex and Yasmine golf club – a championship course. Possible excursions include a tour of the Cap Bon region, taking in the pottery town of Nabeul and the Roman quarry of El Haouaria. Also on offer are day trips to the capital Tunis, the Sahara Desert and the Roman amphitheatre of El Djem. For eating out, Les Trois Moutons and Chez Achour are excellent fish restaurants. For nightlife, Hammamet has seven discos. The resort is brochured by Cadogan, Wigmore, Panorama, Airtours, JMC, Club Med, First Choice, Cosmos, Thomson and Prestige Holidays. Charters fly into Monastir (transfer time 1hr 30mins), scheduled services into Tunis(1hr).
Port El Kantaoui
This is a modern resort built in traditional, white-washed Arabic-style architecture.
Port El Kantaoui has a long strip of white sand beach which stretches all the way to the next resort south, Sousse, while the centrepiece of the town is a 340-berth yachting marina with shops, cafes and a nightclub. The marina is also the place to book trips along the coastline and sign up for a range of water sports. If clients want to venture to a less-crowded beach, Hergla, to the north, offers a series of secluded rocky coves. Other attractions include the El Kantaoui golf course, which has two 18-hole courses. Two-day safaris to the dunes of the Sahara, the Roman colosseum at El Djem and the vast salt lake of Chott El Jerid are also an option.
For eating out in Port El Kantaoui, the best restaurants are La Daurade and Le Mediterranee.
The resort is brochured by Panorama, Wigmore, Airtours, Cadogan, JMC, Cosmos, Thomson and First Choice. The transfer time from Tunis is around 2hrs 45mins from Monastir.
Sousse
The city’s white sand beach stretches north all the way to the next resort, Port El Kantaoui and offers a range of water sports.
Sousse is Tunisia’s third largest city after Tunis and Sfax, it is a university town and an important centre for textiles and olive oil production. As it is a working town rather than a purpose-built resort, it gives a more authentic taste of the country. While the downtown area is modern, the historic old town has a ninth-century mosque and monastery and several museums where visitors can learn about the Tunisian way of life.
The town’s Sunday open-air market is ideal for souvenir shopping and just outside the city are the Roman catacombs which are worth a visit. Less than an hour from Sousse is the city of Kairouan, Tunisia’s oldest Arab city and Islam’s fourth holy centre.
Eating out is an option – local restaurants worth trying include L’Escargot and Le Lido. The city also has several nightclubs including the Marakana and the Caraibe casino. Sousse is brochured by Wigmore, Panorama, Cadogan, Airtours, JMC, Cosmos and First Choice.
Travel is by charter flight to Monastir with a 30mins transfer, or scheduled services into Tunis plus a 2hr transfer time.