Things To Do

Medinas & souks: get pleasantly lost

Tunisia's old walled cities are alive — not curated museum quarters but working medieval neighbourhoods where copper-beaters, perfumers, carpet weavers and pastry chefs still occupy the same lanes their grandfathers worked. Four of them are UNESCO sites, and you can spend a week and not be done.

UNESCO medinas

9th c.

Earliest founded (Kairouan)

Free

To wander

Half price

Reasonable bargaining target

The Tunis medina — the masterpiece

Founded in the 7th century, expanded under the Hafsids and Ottomans, listed by UNESCO since 1979. Around 700 monuments inside — mosques, madrasas, palaces, fondouks, hammams — woven through 15 km of lanes. Start at Bab el Bhar, walk west along the Souk el Attarine (perfumes), past the Zitouna Mosque (huge marble courtyard, the spiritual heart), then through the souks of fabric, copper, gold and books. Lunch in a converted dar (Dar el Jeld, El Ali, Dar Hammouda Pacha). Tea on a rooftop terrace. Allow at least a full day. Best in the early morning or after the late-afternoon shop reopening.

Sousse — the seaside medina

Smaller and more easily wandered than Tunis. Walled, UNESCO-listed, with a beautiful 9th-century ribat (fortress-monastery) you can climb for sweeping views of the medina, the sea and the city. The Great Mosque is austere and stunning. Souks for jewellery, leather and ceramics. A perfect half-day if you're staying on the central coast.

Kairouan — the holy medina

Fourth holiest city in Islam, founded in 670 AD. The Great Mosque is one of the oldest in the world, with a vast courtyard, recycled Roman columns and a 9th-century minaret you can sometimes climb (check current rules). The medina around it is whitewashed, quieter than Tunis, and home to the country's best carpet workshops. Don't leave without trying makroudh — the syrup-soaked semolina pastries Kairouan is famous for. Easy day-trip from Sousse, Hammamet or Tunis.

How to bargain (without being annoying)

Bargaining is normal and expected in souks — but it's a friendly conversation, not a battle. The opening price is usually 2–3× what the seller will accept; a fair counter is around half. Settle in the middle. It helps to: know roughly what things cost (ceramics, leather and silver are reasonably priced, but quality varies hugely); be willing to walk away (the price will follow you); and to keep it good-humoured. A coffee or mint tea offered by the seller is part of the ritual, not a contract — accept it. What's worth buying: hand-knotted Kairouan carpets, painted Sejnane pottery, copper trays, leather sandals and bags, silver Berber jewellery, harissa, olive oil, saffron, ceramic tiles.

Eating inside the medina

Best chance you'll get to eat in a 17th-century house. Tunis: Dar el Jeld (the legend), El Ali (rooftop with views over the medina), Fondouk el Attarine (modern Tunisian in a restored caravanserai), Le Café des Nattes (mint tea where Foucault and Klee sat). Sousse: Le Caleche, Restaurant Lilia. Kairouan: Restaurant Sabra. Lunch is the better meal — calmer, cheaper, often a full mezze plus mains for under 50 TND.

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Guided medina walks & day trips

Expert local guides through the UNESCO medinas of Tunis, Sousse, Sfax and Kairouan — and easy day trips to Sidi Bou Said.

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