Why did you go to Tunisia?

I actually wanted to go to Italy, but when I went to apply for leave my manager said, “Hoylen, that’s not very adventurous for you.” The last time I asked for one week’s vacation, he innocently asked where I was going, and he was surprised when I said “Norway”. I live in Australia. So he was a bit under-whelmed this time when I said “Italy”. So I decided to go somewhere else that was near Italy that I haven’t been to before.

Tunisia is just on the other side of the Mediterranean Sea from Italy, in the middle of North Africa, between Algeria and Lybia.

Also, I also remembered that they filmed Star Wars in Tunisia.

Which Star Wars movies were filmed there?

The original one that was released in 1977, Episode IV: A new Hope. The scenes from Tatooine, the desert planet where Luke Skywalker grew up, were filmed there.

Also many scenes from Episode I: The Phantom Menace were also filmed there. Again, the desert landscape and local architecture was used as the backdrop for Tatooine.

It also appears a few times in the other Star Wars movies too.
However, other movies have been filmed there as well: Indiana Jones—Raiders of the Lost Ark, Monthy Python and the Life of Brian, and the English Patient.

Why should someone go to Tunisia?

Most tourists go to Tunisia for the resorts and beaches. I suppose it is an inexpensive destination for Europeans to catch some sun. The side of Tunisia they probably see is one of charter flights, package resorts, and souvenir shops. However, Tunisia is much richer than that.

I would say go for the culture, history, and landscape.

Tunisia was at the center of the Phoenician (or Punic) empire. In their day, they ruled the Mediterranean with their powerful navy and trade connections. Carthage was their capital. We’ve all heard the history of Hannibal, crossing the alps from Spain with elephants to attack the Roman empire, well this is where it started… and finished. They eventually lost the Punic War. Carthage was flattened it became a part of the Roman Empire.

So you have this incredibly rich history from two ancient world powers. There are lots of historical things to see; many wonderfully preserved by the dry desert conditions—not to mention preserved because they are off the beaten track for most tourists. There’s also the local culture of the Berbers, the indigenous people of North Africa. Today, the country has a strong Arabic influence, as well as a French influence from when they were there.

It’s an interesting experience. I would be walking down the tree lined boulevard lined with street cafes, people speaking French and carrying long baguettes around—was I in Paris? At other times, when walking through crowded markets and twisted little streets (all different), I felt like I stepped back in time and was somewhere in the middle-east. It was lots of fun.

The landscape: the Sahara Desert in the south, huge salt lakes in the west, dry rocky mountains, and beaches (if that’s the sort of thing you are after).

It is a very dry country. But it was known as the “breadbasket of Rome” because of the crops they grew. So they either make very good use of the little rain they do get, or there are must be much more lush countryside in the northern parts of Tunisia where I didn’t get to.

As soon as you leave the cities, you see people tending herds of goats and sheep, farms of olives trees and pistachio trees, etc. It takes you back to a simpler, more civilized age.

And I’m sure some people go there to visit the movie locations too. The English Patient fans etc.

What were the highlights of your trip?

That’s a difficult question to answer, because nearly everything was a highlight. Here are some examples:

Walking through the ruins of an ancient Berber hilltop village was very enjoyable. Imagine exploring a huge ancient town built on top of a hill and the surrounding ridges. You’ve driven through miles of dry desert landscape to get there. It’s made of rock and stone, so the walls are still there and you can see the staggering size of the place all around you. When you get to the top, the view is spectacular: the village all around you and far below you, rocky desert mountains and dry valleys as far as the eye can see. And when you sit down for a rest, the abandoned ruins are eerily quiet, with only the sound of the warm dry desert winds gently blowing through them—because you are the only person exploring the ruins that day. You feel like the first person who’s been there in hundreds of years, and maybe you are.

Visiting the Ksour—the ancient Berber fortified granaries in the south of the country. The Romans didn’t get too far south, so a lot of the traditional Berber architecture still exists there. They are scattered all over the place, but there are many around a town called Tatouine. It might sound like a place that is furthest from the center of the universe, but it is actually a good central town to be based for exploring the south. A ksar is a large courtyard with, what looks like mud cement, granaries around the outside facing in. Some are small, some are large. Some are rectangular, some are irregular. Some are single story high, some are multi-story masterpieces. Some are abandoned ruins, some are still used by locals, and some have been restored and turned into hotels for tourists. They have a smooth flowing shape; igloo like, but not spherical. I’ll provide some photos… but if you’ve seen Star Wars you’ll instantly recognise some of them!

Speaking of Star Wars, every location was a wonderful experience (even if it wasn’t for the Star Wars experience). The amazing thing was that most of these places was just like it was when they filmed it—over thirty years ago, when the filmed the first movie in 1976. The other amazing thing was that there was almost no exploitation of the fact: no admission fees and no one trying to sell you tacky Star Wars souvenirs. It was a very authentic experience… if you can call visiting a movie location for a planet far far away authentic. Some examples are:

Sleeping in the Hotel Sidi Driss. An underground hotel made up of several large connected holes in the ground and with the rooms cut out of the sides of the holes. Obviously, this is the interior of the Lars Homestead where Luke Skywalker lived with his aunt and uncle. You’d almost expect to hear Aunt Beru call out, “Luke, Luke”. Except when you look about ground you find yourself in the town of Matmata, in the hill country with many other underground homes around you and new above ground structures as well. In the morning, I awoke to find the entire town covered with a thick moist fog—certainly a few parsecs away from the moisture farm setting of Tatooine.

The outside shots of the Lars Homestead were filmed several hundreds of kilometres away. Such is the magic of cinema. To get there, you drive across a totally flat, featureless, dry salt lake. There were no roads. That was an adventure in itself. Then out in the middle of nowhere you come across an igloo and a few artificial craters. This is the exterior location for the Lars Homestead: the original was destroyed, but it was rebuilt for filming the prequels. It certainly felt like another world: no twin sunsets, but the totally flat and featureless salt lake spread out as far as the eye could see (in one direction at least).

Visiting Mos Espa, an entire set built in the middle of the desert for the filming of Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Getting there was an adventure in itself (as you can read on my Web site), although if you don’t want to drive through the desert the local tours from Tozeur will take you there. It’s like visiting a movie backlot: except this one was really used in a movie and you can wander all over it. Again, between small tour groups, you’ve got the place to yourself—there’s no one there telling you to “keep your hands in the car and no flash photography”.
Star Wars canyon. Taking a few hours walk through a spectacular dry desert canyon. Fascinating rock formations. Again, you’ve got the place to yourself. It’s almost untouched and you feel like you’re the first person whose been there—except for this sense that you’ve seen this place before, perhaps in a movie somewhere!

What should you see?

The roman colosseum at El Jem, about 200km south of Tunis. Supposedly the third largest in the world. It is quite well preserved. Many tour groups go there, but the place is almost empty compared to the one in Rome. The best thing about El Jem is that you can really explore all over it to get a much better understanding of it. You can walk into the arena, climb down into the cells underneath the arena where the prisoners or animals were kept, walk around nearly all the many concentric passages around the arena where the spectators would have gone, and climb up into the different levels of seating. If you visit one colosseum, this is the one. I spent about three hours there. If I had longer, there is also a museum in the town. Other than shops, there’s not much else to do in El Jem. There are no hotels there, so you have to work out your transportation in and out. I took the train.
The Bardo Museum in Tunis. It’s full of amazing artefacts. Lots of large and beautiful Roman mosaics. There are statues, and other things to see. There are displays of other cultures, such as Arabic and Tunisia things, besides just the Roman artefacts. And the building it is in was formerly a palace: richly ornate carvings and unbelievably detailed rooms. The place is definitely worth visiting. You can catch the local tram out there. I spent about three hours there.

What do the guidebooks recommend that you think are a waste of time?

I wouldn’t call it a waste of time, but I think the medinas are overrated. A medina is the old city shopping area. Twisty narrow streets and buildings inside the walled city. The one in Tunis is a World Heritage site.

However, unless you are interested in shopping or like exploring them, they are only worth a cursory walk through. They mostly cater for locals, so there are not many shops selling stuff to tourists (which is a good thing). It’s no where as spectacular as the covered markets in Istanbul, but it has its own charms. The shop keepers are not pushy at all, which is good.

You can probably enjoyably pick up some interesting souvenirs there. However, I’m a guy and a light traveller craves not these things, so I think they are a bit overrated.

What do the guidebooks / tourists miss?

As I said before, I think your average sun seeking tourist probably stays at a beach resort and misses out on nearly everything. Some of them might take day trips inland, but that is probably about it.

If there is one thing the guidebooks got slightly wrong was the impression of how difficult it was to visit. Reading the guidebook, I got the impression that it was going to be very difficult to get around and there was going to be cultural problems being a solo traveller. However, my experience was the opposite: it was very easy getting around and I had no problems whatsoever travelling solo.
The language barrier wasn’t a problem. Most people spoke Arabic or French, but I got by with English and the basic yes/no/thank-you in French.

People were friendly, and I found it seemed to be one of the safer countries I’ve visited. Except maybe when I was driving: the traffic in the cities can be quite chaotic with many mopeds weaving around you. The open roads didn’t have much traffic and were good to drive.

Where should you stay?

Somewhere nice.

One of the disappointing things I found was that the hotel quality was quite variable. It is an inexpensive place to visit, so I recommend going for something a bit nicer than what you think you might want.

It all depends on what style of travelling you want to do. I booked my first night in Tunis using a reputable international Web site which I have used successfully many times before. Although the hotel was clean and serviceable, it was nothing like what you would expect with a similar star rating elsewhere. So just beware that your quality rating and expectation might not translate well. It is very variable.

While I was there I stayed at a range of hotels. I stayed in hotels for less than $10 a night. They were, well, worth $10 a night. I also paid about $30 for a luxurious three room hotel room with ocean views on one side and city views on the other (well, it was the quiet season when I was there). I paid more for less, and less for more—so the quality is quite variable.

Having said that, I would recommend the Hotel Sangho in Tatouine. It is touristy—the place has a pool and a gift shop—but the individual bungalows are modern and tastefully decorated. It was certainly a nice place to unwind after the $10 a night hotel! I paid about $65 a night there.

Driving around Tozeur, there is a “tourist ghetto” just outside town with international hotels charging many hundreds of dollars a night. I guess there is something for everyone in Tunisia.

What should you eat?

Lots of Couscous.

The briq. It is done in many ways and shapes, but it is essentially an egg (and maybe some meat, potato, or other ingredients) wrapped in a thin pastry and deep fried, so that outside is a lovely golden crisp pastry and inside the egg yolk is still runny. It is delicious, and as the guide book was correct when it said they were “extremely addictive.”

How do you get around?

Louages, or shared taxis that go between towns. You’ve probably come across these in other countries, but in Tunisia they are very well organised and (I suspect) regulated by the government. There are dedicated places in each town to catch them. You simply go there, buy a ticket to your destination from the ticket window, find a car going there, hop in, wait until it fills up with other passengers, and then you go. It was so easy.

It was great for the “make it up as you go along” style travel I was doing. No booking required. You normally don’t have to wait very long. You don’t even need to know the language, all you have to do is be able to say your destination. And it is so cheap. I remember one long trip, which took 4-5 hours only costing about $15.

I also took the train. More predictable, but harder to use because there are not many inter-city services running each day, so you need a bit of better planning.

I also rented a car in one place to get to some of the filming locations (which weren’t covered by public transport). I think if I were ever to go back, I would rent a car more. However, the louages were fine for getting between towns.

What side trips would you recommend?

If you are in Tunis—which you probably will be since that is the capital and the main airport—a side trip to Carthage is probably worth doing.

It is now an upmarket residential suburb of Tunis. You take the light rail out there. There are quite a few sights there, but they are scattered all over the place (remember it was the center of its empire in its day) so be prepared to do a lot of walking.

The sights aren’t that spectacular (after all, the Romans did flatten the place) so it more a low-key quiet place to visit. Still, the history makes it worth visiting: even if there is not much to see.
If you pick only two sites to see, go to the top of the hill where there is a church, museum, and great views. Also, go to the ancient port. It is now a circular inlet in the middle of an affluent suburb. However, it was once the trading hub of the Mediterranean and the center of Carthage’s naval power. There is a tiny museum there and some excavations. However, find out about the history of Hannibal and Carthage before you go to make it more worthwhile.

What would you like to have known beforehand?

Getting past immigration. You get your entry visa when you arrive at Tunis international airport. You can only pay for the visa with Tunisian Dinars. However, you can’t get any dinars outside Tunisia: it is illegal to import or export it. So how do you get your visa? Well, what you do is hand over your passport, then walk through the security gates into Tunisia without a passport; into the arrivals area where there are ATMs to withdraw some money. Then you walk back the wrong way through the arrivals security gates; pay for your visa, collect your passport and then go through the security gates again.

It’s all a bit unnerving if you don’t know the procedure, especially arriving on a midnight flight. The guide books mention it, but I didn’t read that section until afterwards.

Did you end up going to Italy?

Yes. I was planning to take a ferry from Tunis to Italy, and was going to book it from Tunis a day or two before sailing.

However, the sailing schedule didn’t match up, I didn’t have time for the 24 hour trip, and passage (with a cabin) was nearly as expensive as flying. So I ended up flying to Rome instead.
Hannibal went to Italy with elephants, but I took a jumbo jet instead!