Our family traveled to Tunisia for two weeks over the December school holiday. We chose Tunisia for many reasons, one being that we found very affordable plane tickets. After having been to Morocco and Egypt as a family, we knew we wanted to see more of North Africa. In our experience, the area is very family-friendly, the food delicious, and overall an enjoyable destination.
After learning more about what there is to do and see in Tunisia, we booked tickets and planned an awesome two week itinerary that included seaside cities, ancient fortresses, incredibly well-preserved Roman ruins and mosaics, staying at an eco dome, an overnight trip the Sahara, touring some of the most epic Star Wars filming sites and more!
During the planning stages of our trip, we really didn’t find any blog posts about traveling in Tunisia as a family. The only ones we found were about the beaches in Djerba and Hammamet, but traveling in winter, we wanted to do everything other than going to the beach. I hope this post will help other families looking to go to Tunisia with the planning! If it does, please let me know with a comment!
Our trip to Tunisia was truly wonderful! It personally became one of my favorite places I’ve visited. To me, the people make a place, and Tunisians were just so nice. On top of that, the country was really beautiful to drive around. We saw cypress forest and mountains in the northern part of the country when driving to Dougga. The views of the Mediterranean and the white washed buildings in Sidi Bou Said were gorgeous. We spent an afternoon playing in the sand dunes in the Sahara desert waiting for the sun to set. And we spent Christmas in an eco dome inside a permaculture farm! In between most of these places we saw endless fields of olive trees. It was beautiful!
Most of the people I know who have visited Tunisia have gone to the beaches in Djerba or Hammamet. Those are supposed to be wonderful Mediterranean destinations at an affordable price, and we plan on visiting one day. But Tunisia is so much more than its beaches, and its other areas definitely deserve a visit.
Is It Safe?
This is one of the first questions people ask about Tunisia, and the answer is a resounding YES. Traveling independently as a family of four, we always felt safe everywhere we went. In fact, we felt very welcomed in Tunisia. People are nice and helpful. A couple of times when we asked for help finding a place like a coffee shop or bakery, we were not just given directions, but we were taken to the place we were looking for. Nobody ever asked anything in exchange. They simply took us there, nodded to us, and left.
We walked around towns and cities comfortably, we shopped in the evening at supermarkets and outdoor markets, we walked at night to restaurants. I once stayed alone in a parking lot with the kids and our bags waiting for my husband to go get the car. Never once did we feel unsafe.
Another concern some people have are related to the security check points scattered all around the country roads, especially in the areas close to the mountains and the Sahara desert. We drove through multiple check points and never once were we asked to stop. We slowed down while driving through check points, and were always waved through. Of course we know we enjoy privilege because of the color of our skin, but that was our experience. It definitely felt nothing like other countries we’ve driven in where the police pulls you over and then asks for money.
Language
Tunisians speak their own version of Arabic, along with French, and many of the younger generations also speak English. In our experience, French was the most helpful to know. We also had many interactions with people who spoke Spanish in the addition to the other three. In trendier areas, especially in the cities, you will find more English spoken. In general, language never felt like an obstacle during the two weeks we were in Tunisia.
Getting There and Around
We flew from Lisbon to the Tunis-Carthage airport with a stop over in Frankfurt. The route takes you on a triangle and takes longer than you’d think. But one thing about flying through Germany was reentering the European Union there, instead of facing endless lines at the Lisbon airport. We flew on Lufthansa and it was uneventful.
In Tunisia, we rented a car from One Rent Car. Instead of picking up the car at the airport, we arranged a meetup spot in Tunis to get the car later on our trip. We basically didn’t want to have a car the first couple of days while in Tunis so we wouldn’t have to worry about parking it. Overall this arrangement worked well, and we returned the car at the airport at the end of our trip.
Driving in Tunisia
Driving in Tunisia was an adventure! Joe has driven in over 30 countries and he’s experience a wide range of driving styles. In his opinion, Tunisia was definitely not one of the worse places he’s driven in, but it was certainly not for the inexperienced drivers. In addition to elements some people might not be used to, like roundabouts, traffic rules felt sometime optional (like holding your lane or stopping for pedestrians!). But the real challenge was driving through towns, where cars, people and commerce seems to interweave as cars make their way through them.
Passing can also be a lot more daring. Be prepared for vehicles to cut it very close when passing other vehicles. In some cases you might need to give them room to finish the pass. It is wild! But once we got the feel for it, it all seemed to flow in a certain way. That being said, Joe ended up most drives feeling tired because driving took his full attention!
On the bright side, gas was very inexpensive, and the roads were in really good shape everywhere we went!
We recommend downloading a map of Tunisia on Google Maps to make sure you can access routes even in remote areas. Here’s a map of our route:
Itinerary
Here’s our itinerary for our 2 weeks in Tunisia. This is a driving itinerary that takes you on a loop around the country. Our main focus was visiting historic sites like Fortresses and Roman Ruins, as well as natural wonders like the Sahara Desert. I have created individual posts for each of the places we visited, so just follow the links to learn more about what we did in each of them:
Days 1-3: Tunis
We arrived in Tunisia late at night, so we headed straight to our Dar. The next day we explored the Medina, and on our last full day we went on a day trip to the ancient Roman city of Dougga. Read more about our time in Tunis here.
Day 4-7: Sousse
We drove 2 hours from Tunis to Sousse, and spent the rest of the day exploring the Medina de Sousse, the Ribat and the Archeological Museum. We used Sousse as a home-base to explore the cities of Monastir and Kairouan. Read more about our time in Sousse here.
Day 7-9: Tatooine
On Day 7 we drove from Sousse to Tatooine with a stop an hour into the drive to see the Roman amphitheater at El Djem. In Tatooine we spent 2 nights at an eco dome inside a permaculture farm, and spent an entire day exploring the ancient Ksars and Amazigh villages. Read more about our time in Tatooine here.
Day 9-10: Douz
On the morning of day 9, we drove almost 3 hours from Tatooine to Douz. On the way we stopped in the town of MatMata to see the troglodyte house which was used as the interior of the Lars homestead in Star Wars. Our stay in Douz also coincided with the 57th Annual International Sahara Festival, so we went to check it out.
Day 10-11: Overnight in the Sahara
The next morning (Day 10) we met with the guide who would lead us into the Sahara desert on camelback for our overnight experience. Read more about our time in Douz and our overnight trip to the Sahara desert here.
Day 11-13: Tozeur
On day 11 we rode camels through the desert back to Douz. In Douz, we got on our car and drove 2 hours to Tozeur. On the way to Tozeur we stopped at the salt flat on Chott el Djerid. In Tozeur we spent the afternoon exploring the beautiful and unique Medina. The next day we went on an all-day Star Wars tour with Galaxy Tours. Read more about our time in Tozeur here.
Day 13-16: La Marsa
We left Tozeur on day 13 and drove to La Marsa. La Marsa was the last stop on our trip. The drive from Tozeur to La Marsa was definitely the longest drive of our entire roadtrip. Driving time was about six and a half hours. On the way, we stopped in Kairouan for lunch at the same spot we ate the first time we were there.
We spent our days in La Marsa exploring the Archeological Site of Carthage, admiring the impressive collection of Roman mosaics at the Bardo Museum, and enjoying the picture-perfect seaside town of Sidi Bou Said. On day 16, we flew back home. You can read more about our time in La Marsa here.
Tunisian Food
Tunisian food is delicious! Its cuisine has an excellent selection of fresh ingredients. Most produce is seasonal. We saw lots of farmer markets and stands when driving around the country, and there was an abundance of beautiful-looking produce in them. Portion sizes are big in Tunisia, so make sure you order accordingly. Usually, three plates were more than enough food to feed our family of four.
Harissa
Harissa is a thick spicy paste used to flavor dishes, and given as a dip at restaurants before the food arrives. Harissa is also what gives the couscous dishes its red coloring and spicy flavor. Sometimes is served purely as a paste and you can add some olive oil to dilute it a bit. We all loved that every meal we had in Tunisia included a plate of Harissa, some olives, and bread to start. With kids, having a little appetizer like this is always nice!
Starters
Chorba is a hearty soup with a tomato and oil base. It usually includes a grain base like wheat or bulgur, and sometimes even meat.
Brik is another popular starter. It is a deep-fried pastry containing egg and usually tuna, but can also be filled with cheese, potatoes and parsley. Briks come in many sizes, and sometimes they can be big enough to be your entire meal!
Tunisian salads are particularly varied and fresh. We usually got one with every meal. The one we saw most often included in the menu was salad tunisienne, which is similar to Niçoise salad with tomatoes, onions green peppers, sometimes cucumbers and tuna and egg garnish.
Mains
Couscous is found in almost every menu. The Tunisian couscous has a tomato sauce and is usually a bit spicy because of harissa. It is usually served with some vegetables, and you can also chose to add a type of meat to it.
Shakshuka (sometimes called Ojja), which is a stew with eggs, tomatoes, peppers, garlic and onions. It is served with bread on the side to use as a way to eat the shakshuka. It is usually spicy, but that didn’t stop our kids from loving this dish!
In general, most menus include a variety of grilled meats served with French fries and a salad.
Not Tunisian food, but to our delight, Lebanese food restaurants were basically everywhere we went in Tunisia, so we took advantage of it!
Fast Food
Fast food in Tunisia means sandwiches and wraps that share many common ingredients like harissa, egg, tuna and salad. A popular one is Makloub, a thicker, heartier open sandwich that uses pizza dough and often adds cheese. Fast food restaurants offer a great way to get a good (still healthy) meal for a very affordable price.
Desserts
There is no shortage of sweet treats in Tunisia! Every region we visited seemed to have their own traditional sweet treat. Most the traditional sweets were of the sticky, honey-based variety, but we also saw fruit tarts all over Tunis (topped with dates!).
Drinks
The national drink of Tunisia is tea. Coffee is also widely drunk, generally served as a tall and very strong espresso.
Bread
Tunisian bread is a daily staple and comes in several traditional forms that reflect the country’s Mediterranean and North African heritage. The most common is khobz, a round, crusty flatbread baked in ovens and used to scoop up salads, stews, and sauces, while tabouna is a rustic semolina bread traditionally baked in clay ovens with a smoky flavor. The bread our children are eating on this photo was baked in the dirt with coals and it was delicious!
You’ll also find kesra (a dense semolina flatbread) and mlawi (thin, layered pan-fried bread), especially popular for breakfast or street food sandwiches.
Street Treats
One of the many things I loved about Tunisia is that you are never too far from food! It is very easy to find snacks in most places, making it a great place to travel to with kids because they are always hungry. Our kids enjoyed all kinds of treats while traveling Tunisia, including caramel apples, popcorn, Turkish delights, nougat, and more!
Fruits
Dates are the most popular fruit, whith the best being deglet nour, that you find in dessert oases like Tozeur. We were lucky to be in Tozeur towards the end of the date harvest, and dates were really everywhere! We ended up bringing 3kg of dates back home (check your country for restrictions), and paid under 7USD for all of them!
December is also orange season, with translated into fresh squeezed orange juice everywhere for a very affordable price!
Cost
When the idea of Tunisia first came up, I reached out to a tour operator to see how much it would cost hire a driver in Tunisia. This was before we seriously contemplated the option of driving ourselves. They quoted me about 8.000 Euros for 2 weeks per person, not including plane tickets. Traveling independently, driving our own vehicle, staying in Airbnbs and Booking.com apartments, eating at restaurants we chose (with the help of TripAdvisor), and arranging our own day trips and sightseeing we spent less for the four of us than what the tour operator quoted for one.
In average, meals for our family of four cost between 36-54 DT (12-18USD )on the lower end (but still delicious), and 150-240 DT (50-80USD) when going big at a nice restaurant. I think our most expensive meal was a delicious seafood feast in Sousse that included multiple courses, a bottle of wine and dessert for about 300DT (100USD). This was our all-out Christmas dinner!
Like I said before, gasoline/petrol was inexpensive. The cost was about a half of what it costs in Portugal, making it super affordable to travel by car in the area.
Smoking and Drinking Alcohol
Smoking is alive and well in Tunisia. There is definitely more smoking in Tunisia than there is in Portugal, with the biggest difference being that in Tunisia there is still indoor smoking at bars, cafes, and restaurants. We were super surprised when the hostess at a restaurant asked us whether we wanted the smoking or non-smoking section at a restaurant! When booking lodging, make sure you double check whether the place allows smoking or not to avoid arriving to an apartment that smells strongly like smoke (I’m speaking from experience!).
Alcohol is not readily available in Tunisia. In fact, you will not see it listed on restaurant menus as alcohol is not allowed in Islam. However, if you really want to get a bottle of wine or a beer, you can look for the closest Carrefour that has a wine cave and go there. We visited one at the Carrefour at the mall in Sousse to buy a bottle of champagne to ring in the New Year and it was as easy as can be.
Final Thoughts
Tunisia was a beautiful country to drive around. People were absolutely wonderful. I can picture them putting their hands to their hearts when trying to convey love, appreciation or happiness. I thought Tunisia was going to be like a less touristy Morocco, but it was so much more than that!
To read more about other places to visit in Tunisia, visit this page. For all of our other travels, go here.
