Less than ten hours to go can't wait kids are getting exicited Can't get them to bed Anyone else holidaying in the next few weeks have a brill time

Have a lovely time Haddy and don't forget to tell us about it when you get back.

Will do aslemma and thanks And will let you know how the second visit went

Tunisia, July 2008.

It was the first time my wife and I went on beach holidays together (we get married just two years ago). Choosing between Europe and Africa, spending a month in the internet reading reviews we stoped our choice on Tunisia - to my mind is the best country from price and quality view.

Looking at packaged holidays we couldn't find the hotel we like. So we booked separately - the charter flight from Bristol and hotel. Samira Club, the one we staid for 7 days, is not very popular between English people, but is very popular for Easter Europeans, including Germans. We've met a lot of Polish, Russian and German guys there (I'm Ukrainian myself).

Hotel is very good. It was 2 stars, after complete renovation a year and a half ago it became 3 stars. The owner, Mr Fourati, also owns Sinbad Hotel (5 stars). Samira is the name of his daughter, who now lives in Sweden. On your arrival be sure that you will be given a room in Samira Club Hotel, not the one next - Samira Garden (which has room standard lower than 1 star). That's what we got at the beginning, but after a night in that crematorium we "talked" to manager, who said sorry, gave us a good room and also full board (we bought half board) for the rest of the week as compensation.

There are great beaches, no rain from May till October, a lot of things to do and see - trip on the Pirates Boat, parachute flying, diving, quad bikes desert tour, trip to Sahara, to the capital Tunis, camel riding.

We've done only trip to Tunis and quad bikes in the desert.

How we went to Tunis"¦

There is two ways to see the capital - take a tour from travel agency or go on your own. We've chosen the second variant because it's cheaper (tour operators charge 70dinars/about £30 per person) and more independent. There is Louage Minibuses goes from Hammamet to Tunis every 10 min and cost 3.5din one way (£1 is about 2.2dinars). Coming to Hammamet we met, by very good luck a taxi driver, who agreed to show us the whole city just for 60 dinars in total (from both of us). His name is Wahid, he speak French, German, Italian and English. He showed us a lot of photos, which people send him after the trip with a lot of good words on the back of them. So we decided to go with him and I have to tell you were really satisfied with the trip at the end. Firstly, it's just two people (can be 4) in the car, so if you tired you don't wait for 30 other people and just get into the car and go. You tell him where you want to go (some people are more interested in shops than in old architecture), or if you trust him he'll show you everything giving you the time to walk around and see the place yourself. We went first to Carthage as it's better to go there early in the morning, while its just +28-30 outside, by 12.00pm it's +45 there (the bus goes there just at about 12.00pm)), then the main mosque in Tunis (the bus doesn't go there), then Sidi Bu Said - blue and white town and at the end old medina. It took us about 4.5 hours to see everything, and we spend in total just 80 dinars for both.

If you're going to Tunisia and would like to see Tunis you can call Wahid beforehand and he'll meet you whenever you tell him (you can say that John has given you his number). He's a very good man about 45 year's old, very careful driver, polite and intelligent person. Don't know about his past, but I'm sure he wasn't working as a taxi driver all his life. His number in Tunis is (+216)98904443.

At the end I have to say that Tunisia is a great country, with nice kind open hearted people, just need to catch their wave and follow it. Smile to them and you'll get a smile back"¦

PS And 7 days is not enough"¦need at least 14.

rnd3000 - that's very interesting. Can you tell us about the quad bike trip, as we are interested in doing one when we go to Hammamet next month.

What a lovely report John (md3000). I'm so pleased you and your wife enjoyed it so much - be careful or you may become as addicted as some others are on here. I couldn't agree more about the advantages of organising your own trips, mainly for the reasons you state, such as being able to go at your own pace rather than being tied to a timetable.

I've finally booked my hotel for September (the flight with BA was booked weeks ago) and will be staying at the Royal Beach, Sousse from 27th to 11th October. If anyone else is out there at that time get in touch and perhaps we can meet up. Now I'm hoping for some really good weather, though preferably not as hot as it is at present!!

mehmeh1

There are many companies in Hammamet doing the The Quad bikes trip. You'll find posters with ads about it in every hotel or in front of the supermarkets (I know one in Yasmine Hammamet on the corner opposite the post office). The cost is 50din per person for 2.5hours trip. You choose between 125cc and 250cc. I had 250 and it was too powerful for this kind of trip. They give you about 10-15 min at the beginning to warm up and then a column of 8-10 people drives around little villages and desert. You'll have great views on your way. On the way back you pop in to the local house where you eat locally baked bread with olive oil.

We've also done the Pirate Boat trip - good show if you get board of lying on the beach all the time.

Aslemma, Sousse is great city! We've been driving thought on the bus on the way back from Hammamet to Monastir...I wanted to stop the bus, go out and settling down there for at least 2-3 years....

Also, one more thing I liked a lot is TEA!!! SPIPA - it's subsidized by the government that's why it is difficult to find it in supermarkets, only in hotels

rnd3000 - thanks for the info! My 19 year old son loves quadbiking.

We are off to the Magic Life Manar Hotel in Hammamet in August for two weeks. Can't wait!

md3000, I've been going to Sousse for so many years now that it's almost my second home. I know it isn't as aesthetically attractive as PEK but it does have a more 'real' feel about it in my opinion. I've never tried that particular tea and don't always like that which is served in hotels so either take Tetleys with me or buy some Liptons Yellow Label out there. You can get most things in the supermarkets these days and often in the little shops as well.

rnd3000

Wahid is certainly worth mentioning - don't forget his cab number

Speaking of Side Bou Said John, did you manage to visit the lovely little café Aetite Svede at 12, Avenue 7 Novembre? I haven't been for a few years but am told it's still up and running. It's run by a Swedish lady and her Tunisian husband and serves gorgeous cakes, and every type of tea imaginable, with proper china and a lovely atmosphere.

mmm, aslemma,Its many year since we drove through Side Bou Said,and this year we are going to do a trip where we can stop and browse around there and have made a note of the place to have some cake and tea,sadly I would have liked to have met up with you,but we will miss eachother again,we arrive on the 12th Oct,all these recommendations help everybody,cheers Christine.

Story of my life Christine. I leave the day before you arrive. The same happened with Pittie earlier in the year as she arrived in Sousse late evening as I was leaving early the next morning so we were only able to have a quick chat on the phone (thank goodness for Tunisian SIM cards). This time Jenny and Frank will be going out for their usual 6 months in Mahdia after I get back to the UK but we hope to meet up again when I'm out there next March or early April. If I get a big win on the lottery I'll pay for a meet-up out there for all us regular Tunisian forum HT'ers.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you (and myself) so that you win a nice price.
I'm not restricted in travelling dates Gert-Jan

Further to rnd3000's earlier post concerning Wahid (Tunis taxi driver), see below my account of mine and my partner's recent meeting with him...

My partner and I happened upon Wahid by luck after arriving in Tunis on a louage taxi. As previously mentioned, his grasp of language is very good and we had no problem conversing with him in English. We agreed on a price (which was about a third of that being quoted by tour operators) and off we went. His cab is new and air conditioned and I agree that he's a careful driver.

We visited the Carthage mosque (a beautiful and very peaceful place of worship) and as I'm a woman and hadn't thought to bring anything to cover my clothing beforehand, Wahid was well prepared and gave me a djellaba and headscarf so that I could enter the mosque. We also saw Carthage, visited the American 2nd World War Cemetery and Theatre Antique de Carthage (amphitheatre), had lunch in La Goulette and finished the day in Sidi Bou Said. All in all, a lovely day and Wahid was very punctual when promising to pick us up after stops for lunch and at Sidi Bou Said.

I would thoroughly recommend him to anyone and as we were so pleased, we gave him a tip on top as his prices certainly aren't 'greedy'.

Thanks for recommending Wahid. A friend is considering joining me in Sousse for the second week of my next trip and as it's her first visit I'd like to show her a few of the sites so I'll probably give him a ring and try and organise something. I'm not so sure if she'd survive a trip in a louage so we may decide to take the train to Tunis.

going out next wednesday, week at iberostar averroes,not been for 15 years,wonder what changes ,if any, await

Have a good trip grouchoib. At least you will get some sun. I guess you'll find quite a few changes in 15 years as things seem to change every time I go out, which is twice a year. The latest report for the hotel on here is excellent. Try and visit The View, a cafe right on the beach, run by Kate from the UK and her Tunisian husband: I haven't been myself as I'm usually in Sousse but it has had very good reports. Also the Shakespeare Bar is a joint Tunisian/English venture (Dawn and Ramzi). Do please put a report on HT when you get back as it's the only way we can pay our dues to this forum.

http://www.nomarmiteintunisia.co.uk/eatingout.htm