On the roof of a four-storey carpet shop in Tunis, the pale afternoon sun is sinking behind the jumble of sand-coloured houses. Huge kilim and margoum rugs hang between stone arches, and two small cats tumble and play at my feet, the ground beneath us covered in hundreds of intricate tiles.
“This is the best view in the old town, you just have to know where to find it,” says my local guide, Fathi. From here, on the large terrace of Palais d'Orient, you can see right across the medina, from the white domed mausoleums to the towering minaret of Zitouna mosque, the oldest in the city. Soon, the call to prayer rings out, ushering in dusk.
Back down the tiled steps, through rooms piled high with handwoven rugs, and I'm back in the heart of Tunis medina. This ancient maze of labyrinthine streets and alleyways is packed with souks selling everything from leather bags and shoes to lanterns, jewellery and perfume. The air buzzes with the chatter of market vendors and artisans hard at work, as locals flit down the narrow cobbled streets and between the marble columns housing local hammams, mosques and madrasas (schools for the study of Islam).
It reminds me of the joyous mayhem of Marrakech and Fez, but the difference here is the lack of other tourists. I'm used to jostling for space with visitors in other souks, lining up to haggle for brightly-coloured pottery and Berber rugs, or for a spot in the rooftop café to order a mint tea. But there are no crowds here, unless you count the bustle of local vendors, and certainly no queues. Although it's been continuously developed over the centuries – after being founded around 698 AD, the medina as we know it today was formed under the Hafsid rule of the 13th to 16th centuries – this feels like an untouched part of the North African puzzle, a welcome contrast to its popular neighbour.
“Only 8 or 9% of our visitors are British,” explains Mehdi Belkhodja, manager at The Residence Tunis, my base for this trip and the city's grand dame hotel. “A majority are of course French – around 40% – and the rest are mostly other Europeans.”
Medhi tells me that he's expecting the number of British tourists to soar. Unsurprising, considering the 33% increase in visitors to Tunisia in 2023, up from 6.3 million in 2022 to 8.8 million. The tourist office is hopeful 2024 numbers could surpass the pre-pandemic record of 9.4 million in 2019.
Tunisia feels off the beaten track for now, but visitors are returning – and who can blame them? Just under a three-hour flight from London, this tiny country packs just as much of a punch as its continental cousins Morocco and Egypt, with white-sand beaches and year-round sun, a storied history, world-famous cultural sites and a cuisine that fuses African, European and Arabic flavours and will leave you salivating on reading every menu.
At least, that was my reaction every time I sat down for a meal in Tunis. My first and most memorable was at El Dar, The Residence's traditional Tunisian restaurant distinctively decorated with green, red and white striped pillars. Order plenty of dishes to share – bowls of fresh, zingy salads with harissa, lemon, tomatoes and grilled octopus; couscous loaded with spices, toasted nuts and roasted veg; plates piled high with bkaïla (a Tunisian Jewish dish of beans and spinach, ideal for submerging with chunks of warm, just-baked bread).
Elsewhere in dining options at The Residence – this is a resort, after all – there's Li Bai (Tunis's first, but now not only, Chinese restaurant); a bar and lounge for light bites and drinks; poolside restaurant Zembra who do a delicious mechouia salad (grilled veg, tomatoes, peppers, onions and capers topped with tuna and soft-boiled egg, ideally washed down with a local Celtia beer); and Mediterranean-Tunisian L'Olivier, where a vast buffet breakfast is served (the mtagbas – crêpe-like pastries hand-rolled in L'Olivier's courtyard and stuffed with shakshouka or Nutella – are a must).
If you want to try your hand at preparing authentic Tunisian food, the hotel runs cooking classes using ingredients picked from their jasmine-scented herb and vegetable garden.
_L.jpg)
The Residence's 161 rooms and suites are colour-drenched in calm, natural shades of white, sand, and terracotta, and each has a balcony with views of either the garden or the sea. Though the suites are unsurprisingly the more luxurious and spacious option – 336 is the resort's best and has attracted a brigade of royalty and megastars over the years – my room was difficult to fault. Quiet moments were spent with a peppermint tea on the balcony, relaxing with a book or taking in the view over the enormous lagoon pool, surrounded by a scattering of sun loungers and palm trees, to the private stretch of honeyed beach and the Mediterranean sea beyond.
Elsewhere in my quest for relaxation was a visit (or two) to the hotel's vast 3,500 sqm Roman-inspired thalasso spa, where an aqua-blue seawater pool is encircled by a terracotta cupola and overlooks the garden. The 18 treatment rooms offer a range of treatments, including traditional exfoliating hammams, mud or seaweed wraps, aromatherapy massages and Clarins facials.
_L.jpg)
_L.jpg)
When I wasn't unwinding at the spa or enjoying Tunisia's culinary joys, it was time to explore more of the capital. No trip here is complete without a visit to the ancient ruins of Carthage, a UNESCO site and one of the country's main tourist attractions. Once a powerful maritime trading hub and one of the most affluent cities of the ancient world, Carthage existed for more than 500 years before its destruction during the Punic wars when it was sieged by the Romans in 146 BC.
Fathi explains that the best time to visit Carthage is early morning on a weekday, with the biggest crowds forming in the late morning on weekends. But as we climb up Byrsa Hill to what was once a Phoenician walled citadel at the heart of Carthage at around 10am on a Saturday, the crowds aren't too heavy – another reminder of Tunis's off-the-beaten-track charm. From this vantage point, you can see over the Hannibal-era ruins to the Gulf of Tunis and its Punic Ports, where the sea stretches to the Atlas mountains.
A short drive away are the ruins of the second-century Antonine baths, one of the largest ancient bath complexes ever built. It's easy to while away the time here, exploring the remains of bath rooms, villas and statues, imagining the buzz of activity that would've occurred in this staggeringly vast compound. Fathi tells me the baths extended over 300 metres in size and stood at around 40 metres high, the equivalent to a 13 storey building (a testament to the Romans' architectural expertise).
Elsewhere on my Tunisian itinerary was a trip to the fascinating – and equally tourist-free – Bardo museum, housed in a 19th century beylic palace with stunningly beautiful mosaics and stucco ceilings; and a glorious afternoon spent ambling through Sidi Bou Said. This postcard-pretty coastal town is a wash of bright white houses with cobalt doors and shutters – you'd be forgiven for mistaking it for a Cycladic island – with bougainvillea-lined cobbled streets dotted with cafés, art galleries and souvenir shops.
Here, I picked up a painting from a small shop tucked down a quiet side street, packed with intricate pottery, rugs and art. As I went to leave, the owner called for me to come back inside. He asked me to hold out my hand, before pressing a small ceramic turtle into my palm as a gift. “For luck,” he smiled.
Rates at The Residence Tunis start from 197€ (approx. £170) on a B&B basis.
