Tunisia

Health & safety

Dangers & annoyances

Tunisia is a generally safe place to travel around, and aside from the 2002 suicide bomber attack, violence of this sort is extremely rare. Most travellers complain about sexual harassment and carpet touts, and you’re well advised to keep an eye on your bag in crowded medinas.

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While you're there

Women travellers

Prior to marriage, Tunisian men have little opportunity to hang out with women, and the expense of getting married means that, for many, this mixing of the sexes is being delayed still further. Foreign women exist outside the social structure, and are seen as an entirely separate and enticing species. Sexual harassment is par for the course, and the tidal waves of testosterone that you encounter in some places can be quite intimidating. Harassment usually takes the form of being stared at, subjected to slimy chat-up strategies and very occasional physical harassment – though this is not half as likely as in Egypt. You can try a few strategies to reduce your hassle quota: the first is by modest dressing. In remote areas, a headscarf can be useful to indicate modesty. Probably the best policy is to ignore sexist remarks and sound effects – sunglasses are a good way of avoiding eye contact. It’s advisable to sit next to other women on buses and louages, sit in the back seat of taxis, and avoid staying in cheap medina hotels. If someone does touch you, ‘Harem alek’ (Arabic for ‘Shame on you’) is a useful phrase.

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