Luxury hotels: 5-star Tunisia

The Four Seasons Tunis (Gammarth) and the Mövenpick Hotel du Lac sit at the top of the capital's market — large rooms, big pools, full spas, sea or lagoon views, and the best restaurants in town. For something more boutique, Dar El Jeld and Dar Ben Gacem in the medina turn 18th-century houses into 8–12 room properties with pools, libraries and rooftops. In Sidi Bou Said, La Villa Bleue and Dar Said are the small luxury benchmarks: cliff-top, all white-and-blue, terraces straight out of a magazine.

In Sousse: the Mövenpick Resort & Marine Spa El Kantaoui is the local 5-star benchmark. In Mahdia: Iberostar Selection Royal El Mansour and Vincci Mahdia Palace handle the high-end, both with excellent spas. On Djerba: the legendary Hasdrubal Prestige Thalassa & Spa, the Iberostar Selection Mehari Djerba, and the new Radisson Blu Palace Djerba lead the island. All of these hit international 5-star standards — and most include thalassotherapy facilities that would be a luxury add-on elsewhere in the Med.