These are the best places to travel this summer

Must-see attractions in Tunisia

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    Bir Barouta

    Tunisia

    Here a blinkered camel walks in a circle, drawing water from a 17th-century holy well that legend says is connected to the Zamzam spring in Mecca. It's…

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    Musée Dar Jellouli

    Tunisia

    The wealthy merchant family that commissioned this 17th-century courtyard house in the medina didn't stint when it came to the decorative detailing, and…

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    Souq El Berka

    Tunis

    Barrel-vaulted Souq El Berka dates from Ottoman times: this was the slave souq where prisoners of Muslim corsairs were sold from a wooden block. Later,…

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    Montazah Beach

    Northern Tunisia

    This beach begins at the marina and stretches eastward around the bay, past the big hotels of the Zone Touristique. The further from the marina you go the…

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    Ras Rajel War Cemetery

    Northern Tunisia

    This neatly tended cemetery contains the graves of 500 Allied soldiers who died in the winter of 1942 following the Axis landings in Tunisia. Sixty of the…

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    Great Mosque

    Tunisia

    Built in the 9th century, this Aghlabid building is a severe, fortress-like structure whose facade is only enlivened by graceful horseshoe arches at the…

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    Place du Caire

    Tunisia

    Outdoor cafes shaded by trees and vines offer the perfect places to relax and contemplate the ornate arched doorway and octagonal minaret of the Mosque of…

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    Madrasa Slimania

    Tunis

    Ali Pasha, ruler of Tunisia from 1735 to 1756, commissioned this religious building as a memorial to his murdered son Suleiman. Entered from the street…

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    Marabout of Sidi Merzoug

    Southern Tunisia

    Just outside Nefta, you'll find this shrine to Sidi Merzoug, an important Sufi saint. The followers of Sidi Merzoug, known colloquially as the Black…

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    Plage Menzel Temime

    Cap Bon

    Off the beaten track for most travellers but lurking in plain sight, the town beach in Menzel Temime stretches for several kilometres. This slice of…

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    Great Mosque

    Northern Tunisia

    The Great Mosque has a square minaret with terracotta tiles on the sides and candy-striped Moorish arches up top. About 150m northwest is the fish-scale…

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    Kalat El Koubba

    Sousse

    The rooms surrounding the courtyard of this funduq (caravanserai) contain naff mannequin displays of day-to-day life under the Ottomans. The building is…

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    Les Aiguilles

    Northern Tunisia

    Across from Tabarka's old harbour bay (Ancien Port) from the peninsula, Les Aiguilles (pronounced layz ai-gwee) are a grouping of spiky pinnacles of rock…

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    Ksar Ouled Debbab

    Southern Tunisia

    This huge ksar (traditional fortified granary) sits on a low hill just east of the modern village of Debbab. It was occupied until several years ago, and…

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    Statue of Habib Bourguiba

    Northern Tunisia

    This fine statue of Tunisia's first president in reflective pose commemorates the exile of Habib Bourguiba to Tabarka by the French in the early 1950s…

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    Roman Pools

    Southern Tunisia

    The Romans pools are Gafsa’s main attraction, and it’s a pleasant spot although you’ve seen all there is to see after a few minutes. Apart from the…

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    Ruined Amphitheatre

    Tunisia

    The El Jem Amphitheatre was not the first such structure to be built at Thysdrus. Opposite the Archaeological Museum and across the railway line to the…

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    Madrasa Palmier

    Tunis

    Named after the palm tree in the courtyard, this Ottoman Quranic school was constructed in 1714 on the site of a funduq (caravanserai or travellers’ inn)…

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    Borj Ghazi Mustapha

    Djerba

    Built in the 13th-century by the Aragonese, this fort was captured by the Ottomans in 1560 and has been allowed to slowly crumble in recent times – be…

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    Fishing Port & Marina

    Djerba

    Houmt Souk’s busy little fishing port is at the northern end of Ave Habib Bourguiba, about a 25-minute walk from town. Early mornings are the busiest and…

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    Kasbah Mosque

    Tunis

    This mosque dates from the early 13th century. Its minaret has a lozenge design that pays tribute to Moroccan Almohad style and was hugely influential,…

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    Borj El Kebir

    Tunisia

    This large fortress stands on the highest point of the peninsula, rising above Mahdia's medina with a brooding and unadorned severity. It was built in the…

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    Waterfalls

    Southern Tunisia

    The 8m-high waterfall below old Tamerza is popular with local day-trippers. In happier, wetter times, the falls made a pool large enough to swim in – a…

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    Great Mosque

    Tunisia

    Mahdia's fortress-like Great Mosque is a modern replica of the Fatimid original built by Obeid Allah in AD 921, which was destroyed when retreating…

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    Raqqada Islamic Art Museum

    Tunisia

    This museum occupies a former presidential palace at Raqqada, 9km south of Kairouan; a taxi from the town centre will charge around 12DT for a return trip…

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    ONAT Museum

    Tunisia

    This museum in the Office National de L'Artisanat headquarters houses a collection of rugs. This is the organisation that accredits all carpets sold in…

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    Souq El Trouk

    Tunis

    Souq El Attarine leads into the Souq El Trouk (the Turkish Souq), traditionally the tailors’ souq, and still selling some outfits among the souvenirs. It…

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    Petit Paris

    Cap Bon

    Around the coast from Plage de la Mansoura, Petit Paris is a smaller beach but still clean and loved by locals. A number of restaurants vie for space a…

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    Institut Française de Tunisie

    Tunis

    Housed in a building elegantly revamped by Richter+Partner with Karim Jeddi-Gonzales, the Institut Française hosts a rich program of cultural activities…

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    Dar El Bey

    Tunis

    This palace dating from the late 17th to early 18th centuries was the Husseinite rulers’ city pad, but the beys preferred the Bardo, so it was used as an…

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    Zaouia of Sidi Ben Arous

    Tunis

    This 16th-century mausoleum was built on the site of a funduq (caravanserai or travellers' inn), in which the 13th-century mystic and professor once lived…

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    Galerie A.Gorgi

    Sidi Bou Saïd

    This highly regarded gallery showcases the work of contemporary Tunisian artists in individual and group shows; the latter are usually thematic in…

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    Hamouda Pacha Mosque

    Tunis

    Harmoniously designed and richly decorated, this 17th-century mosque reflects the prosperity of that period. Its witch’s-hat minaret is octagonal, which…

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    Costume Museum

    Tunisia

    Desperately in need of a refresh, this small museum offers dusty, ill-lit exhibits of traditional costumes, with a focus on female attire. The wedding…

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    Musée de Sbeïtla

    Tunisia

    The museum across the road from Sufetula has a small collection of mosaics, sculptures, stelae and other artefacts that have been found on the site and…

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    Abdelliya Palace

    Tunis

    Inland from Marsa plage (beach), this palace was constructed in 1500 and now functions as a cultural centre where occasional performances and arts events…

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    Zaouia Zakkak

    Sousse

    The splendid octagonal stone minaret belongs to the 17th-century Zaouia Zakkak, the medina’s leading example of Ottoman architecture. Its blue-green stone…

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    Former French Consulate

    Tunisia

    A good example of colonial-era architecture, this building dates from the late 19th century and initially functioned as the French consulate. It now…

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