Nice to see you again Nette 
A bit of a blessing in disguise getting your flu bug, if they hadn't changed my shifts I would have been booked to go in the next couple of weeks.
I do hope it all settles down quickly and the tour companies don't abandon Tunisia, tourists will have to start going back quickly to help the country recover economically.
I do hope everybody that those still left out in Tunisia are OK.
A bit of a blessing in disguise getting your flu bug, if they hadn't changed my shifts I would have been booked to go in the next couple of weeks.
I do hope it all settles down quickly and the tour companies don't abandon Tunisia, tourists will have to start going back quickly to help the country recover economically.
I do hope everybody that those still left out in Tunisia are OK.
Nette, it is lovely to hear from you again as you have been sorely missed. 
I do hope you and the family are keeping well. You only had one grandchild last time we spoke so congratulations once more, even if somewhat overdue.
I'm following the situation closely, mainly on Facebook "Support for Tuniisia" which is a closed group so in theory at least it can't be infiltrated. We get regular updates and videos and things do appear to be calming down, though there is still sporadic shooting etc. Now many of the police loyal to the president are being arrested things should improve as they were fomenting the problems. I am also in touch with people out there.
As you say Graham, Tunisia needs the tourists to help the economy recover, and when (not if) we return I know we will be welcomed with open arms, though I doubt we will have to fight for the sunbeds, at least for this year.
I do hope you and the family are keeping well. You only had one grandchild last time we spoke so congratulations once more, even if somewhat overdue.I'm following the situation closely, mainly on Facebook "Support for Tuniisia" which is a closed group so in theory at least it can't be infiltrated. We get regular updates and videos and things do appear to be calming down, though there is still sporadic shooting etc. Now many of the police loyal to the president are being arrested things should improve as they were fomenting the problems. I am also in touch with people out there.
As you say Graham, Tunisia needs the tourists to help the economy recover, and when (not if) we return I know we will be welcomed with open arms, though I doubt we will have to fight for the sunbeds, at least for this year.
How very sad I feel seeing the horrendous damage which, I would imagine will take forever to put right. I had recorded The Secret Mediterranean with Trevor Macdonald and decided to watch it tonight. He was in Tunisia and as he went around in a taxi the driver was telling him that things were going to change soon as there were such a lot of young unemployed people there. Well, I bet he didn't realise how quickly that was going to happen! I have also just seen on the News that 2 foreign men who were on a shooting holiday there were very severely beaten and arrested. Let's hope things get sorted there soon so that their summer holiday season will not turn out to be a total disaster since they are so dependent on tourism. Heartbreaking for all the lovely people there who are now seeing the food shops with little food. I just feel gutted for them and hope some day to be able to go back to their welcoming country,
Thanks Pat for your best wishes and also all the other regular posters who have sent me messages.
It has been a little traumatic here to say the least, but generally only the people who have been demonstrating or in the vicinity have been at risk. It is important to remember that this is political and nothing to do to with tourists. I have seen many incidences that have been blown out of proportion eg. pictutes of burning tyres tagged ``Tunisia is burning´´ which helps no-one. There have been enough sad things occur without this. There are also confirmed cases of professional agitators inciting the violence and one wonders about their agenda!
All those on package holidays have been repartiated - the last Germans yesterday, but i will add that many did not want to go, but had no choice as their contracts were terminated with the hotels and airlines.
At the moment it is relatively calm with a very few isolated incidents and we are in a kind of vacuum waiting for what is going to happen next. I am optimistic for the future of Tunisia and it´s people.
Can i please ask everyone not to turn their backs on this country. We spend half of our lives here and if tourists stay away in the future it will have a devastating effect on the many Tunisians who rely on tourism. It is ´´no work - no pay here´´
Hopefully the pending elections will bring the much needed freedom and stability to this lovely country and it´s people. Inshalla! xx
It has been a little traumatic here to say the least, but generally only the people who have been demonstrating or in the vicinity have been at risk. It is important to remember that this is political and nothing to do to with tourists. I have seen many incidences that have been blown out of proportion eg. pictutes of burning tyres tagged ``Tunisia is burning´´ which helps no-one. There have been enough sad things occur without this. There are also confirmed cases of professional agitators inciting the violence and one wonders about their agenda!
All those on package holidays have been repartiated - the last Germans yesterday, but i will add that many did not want to go, but had no choice as their contracts were terminated with the hotels and airlines.
At the moment it is relatively calm with a very few isolated incidents and we are in a kind of vacuum waiting for what is going to happen next. I am optimistic for the future of Tunisia and it´s people.
Can i please ask everyone not to turn their backs on this country. We spend half of our lives here and if tourists stay away in the future it will have a devastating effect on the many Tunisians who rely on tourism. It is ´´no work - no pay here´´
Hopefully the pending elections will bring the much needed freedom and stability to this lovely country and it´s people. Inshalla! xx
This was so unexpected. We are due to pay our final balance on at the weekend for our holiday for the last 2 weeks in April. I am hoping that things will be better by then and am prepared to travel out again then. I will be so disappointed if we don't get there. Have heard today that the shops in PEK have been ransacked. To me that it pure vandalism, these are mostly gift shops. I can understand people (well I can't actually but can see why) raiding food and commodity shops but there is no reason to raid gift shops. The mindless few as usual. Here's hoping for a better future.
The situation is still very volatile and it seems the people will not accept any government which includes members of the old regime. I have been following it closely, not only on Sky News, BBC and Al Jazeera but on line. I'm so pleased BrenLiz that you don't appear to have been put off and are still prepared to go out there in April if at all possible. I very much hope that by then I will have already been and returned so will be able to report on the situation on the ground from a tourist point of view. As Jenny says, tourists will be urgently needed if the economy is to have any chance of recovery and I know those of us who do go will be even more warmly welcomed than usual, as there will inevitably be far less of us than in previous years. God save Tunisia.
I'm going to echo Aslemma, Jennyfrank and all the others who are urging tourists not to abandon Tunisia. And am much encouraged by seeing posts by people who still intend to visit once things have calmed down. I've also been a regular visitor to Tunisia for several years and intend to be back there later this year. Of course this is dependent on how things progress out there, but as soon as travel restrictions and the current FO travel advice is lifted I'll be making plans to return.
Tunisia is a wonderful country, with much to offer - and in order to recover will need the return of tourists.
Tunisia is a wonderful country, with much to offer - and in order to recover will need the return of tourists.
Good to hear from you Jenny I have been wondering if everything was OK with you
As I mentoned in a different post so much depends on what the tour companies do, if the situation isn't resolved quickly holiday makers (particularly those that have never been before) will not want to visit Tunisia and if if there is not enough demand to make it profitable the tour operators will pull out of Tunisia.
It is very much a catch 22, the situation in Tunisia needs to quickly stabilise and the FCO to improve it's travel advice, then tour operators need to actively promote and encourage travel to Tunisia. Unfortunately the Tunisian economy needs a quick return of the tourists to help it recover but the longer the tourists are away the harder it is going to be to get both previous visitors and particularly new visitors to go.
I do hope the situation gets back to some form of normality very quickly and the tour companies encourage guests travel to Tunisia which is such a fabulous and to be honest underated country as far as holiday destinations go.
As I mentoned in a different post so much depends on what the tour companies do, if the situation isn't resolved quickly holiday makers (particularly those that have never been before) will not want to visit Tunisia and if if there is not enough demand to make it profitable the tour operators will pull out of Tunisia.
It is very much a catch 22, the situation in Tunisia needs to quickly stabilise and the FCO to improve it's travel advice, then tour operators need to actively promote and encourage travel to Tunisia. Unfortunately the Tunisian economy needs a quick return of the tourists to help it recover but the longer the tourists are away the harder it is going to be to get both previous visitors and particularly new visitors to go.
I do hope the situation gets back to some form of normality very quickly and the tour companies encourage guests travel to Tunisia which is such a fabulous and to be honest underated country as far as holiday destinations go.
I rather fear, however quickly the situation is resolved, in the eyes of some potential tourists 'the memory will linger on', especially for those who don't know the country. I have spoken on the phone this evening to a friend in Sousse who says the situation has calmed down there and things are beginning to get back to some semblance of normality. I have my doubts about travel companies actively promoting Tunisia however in the near fuure, as they are mainly motivated by profit and there are plenty of other parts of the world on which they can concentrate.
Just wanted to pop in and say that I was thinking about all the Tunisia lovers on the forum and am so sorry that this is happening in somewhere you all love so much and to the peoples of the Country you love. As soon as I saw of the troubles I thought of you Asleema, I hope you still manage to get away in March, although it doesn't look very promising at the moment. 
I'm inclined to agree with you about the TO's and what their approach will be. I am so old I remember what happened to the tourist trade in the former Yugoslavia for a number of years, although I am not sure if this is a comperable situation.
I couldn't beleive it when I saw that Briar had posted after all this time. If you are still looking in Nettie, much love to you and your now expanded family.
Doe
I'm inclined to agree with you about the TO's and what their approach will be. I am so old I remember what happened to the tourist trade in the former Yugoslavia for a number of years, although I am not sure if this is a comperable situation.I couldn't beleive it when I saw that Briar had posted after all this time. If you are still looking in Nettie, much love to you and your now expanded family.
Doe
Thanks for all the messages that i received last night. I will be answering all those who asked for furthe information.
I don´t really have contact with ex pats, but have a large number of Tunisian friends from all over the country, and all are reporting that it is continuing to stay calm with all the shops now opening. The pending elections will be the testing time for us here. The people are so optiistic for the future. Please continue to support this country. xx
I don´t really have contact with ex pats, but have a large number of Tunisian friends from all over the country, and all are reporting that it is continuing to stay calm with all the shops now opening. The pending elections will be the testing time for us here. The people are so optiistic for the future. Please continue to support this country. xx
A little more info - there was a demonstration Monday afternoon after the names of the new Ministers were announced and several of Ben Ali´s team were still in position. This was non violent and the demonstrators were dispersed by water cannon and tear gas as opposed to the Ben Ali previous violent armed response. I have posted this as i had said that all was calm, but must point out that this was an isolated incident.
I won´t be posing more updates but just repeat ,´´Please come back to Tunisia??´´ xx
I won´t be posing more updates but just repeat ,´´Please come back to Tunisia??´´ xx
This is bad new for Tunisia but is just what I have been predicting
With permission from Travelmole
Jet2 dumps Tunisia summer programme
Jet 2 has cancelled its Tunisia programme for summer 2011 after deciding it couldn't guarantee its passengers safety in the revolution-hit destination.
The airline, which was due to operate flights from Leeds Bradford, Newcastle and Manchester plus newly added Glasgow this summer, says it will not run any services "until the situation settles down."
A statement from the airline said: "Due to the ongoing state of emergency in Tunisia and the advice from the UK Foreign Office against all non-essential travel to Tunisia for the foreseeable future Jet2.com has decided to cancel its scheduled services to Tunisia for Summer 2011.
"The safety of our customers is our number one priority and we also don't want them to face the stressful uncertainty over whether their holiday will go ahead as planned.
"We are, therefore, giving them the opportunity to plan an alternative holiday now, so they can sit back, relax and look forward to their summer break.
Jet2 and Jet2 Holidays plans to contact all passengers booked to travel to Tunisia to offer them a refund and a discount on its other destinations.
The statement concluded: "Jet2.com and Jet2holidays sincerely apologise to our customers affected by this situation which is entirely outside of our control."
Industry insiders have suggested the suspension of the Tunisia service coincides with poor performance but Jet2 insists it is a temporary move.
The news will be a blow to Tunisia's tourism authority which was bullish at November's World Travel Market, predicting a bumper year for the destination in light of its non-euro zone status and the fact that the likes of TUI and Thomas Cook were introducing flights from Gatwick to Djerba this spring.
by Dinah Hatch
With permission from Travelmole
Thanks Jenny. BBC and Sky seem to have dropped Tunisia from their reports but CEEFAX says that 3 members of the new government have resigned. It would appear they are from the opposition party so it seems this situation has a long way to go. I will obviously be keeping in touch with the situation as closely as I can.
I am sad to say that our holiday has now been cancelled as we were travelling with jet2. We are frantically trying to find an alternative holiday now. It is such a shame, we were so looking forward to going back after a great holiday last year. Why can't people protest peacefully, they always make things worse for themselves. I too remember the trouble in Yugoslavia, we were actually there when war broke out, have never been back since.
We were in Tunisia last September for the first time and fell in love with the country and its people. The day after we got home, we booked to go back this September and I'm just praying that things are a little less volatile by then and that our holiday can go ahead - there's nowhere else we want to go! Jet2 bailing out is bad news and I hope that Thomsons and other major tour operators don't do the same thing. The last thing Tunisia needs at the moment is to lose its tourism industry.
Just been catching up with the forum..........Good to see you back Briar, it was you who first gave us lots of info on Tunisia a few years ago, and the contact with Nejib. We are still in touch with Nejib and thought I would let you know both he and his family are fine. We had hoped to go to Tunisia in May this year, however with the current situation I think we shall wait. Tunisia depends on tourism, I really hope it is not badly affected by this situation. The poeple are so warm and welcoming. Elsa.
Hi, I was wondering if anyone has just come back from Tunisia, I'm interested to know how they feel and if they saw any violence. My friend says another friend has just come back from PEK and didnt know anything about the unrest (ie never saw or heard anything).
Is anyone due to go? I know most flights have been cancelled for this sunday, but has anyone had the all clear to go.
We go in April, and Im still unsure, Ive got just over a week to pay balance off holiday, n decide if I want to change destination for a total cost of £140. Only thing is as its so close to departure, every where that is left is really expensive, and I can only go at a certain time, petty I know when such terrible things have gone on.
Anyway, would love to hear off people.
Is anyone due to go? I know most flights have been cancelled for this sunday, but has anyone had the all clear to go.
We go in April, and Im still unsure, Ive got just over a week to pay balance off holiday, n decide if I want to change destination for a total cost of £140. Only thing is as its so close to departure, every where that is left is really expensive, and I can only go at a certain time, petty I know when such terrible things have gone on.
Anyway, would love to hear off people.
We just came back from Marhaba Palace on 10 January and can honestly say we were completey unaware of trouble and we were shocked to see all the problems 2 days later and the scenes in Tunis (where we had been the week before). We had travelled to Dougga and Thiburbo Majus on 6 Jan and saw no problems or felt unsafe. Its such a shame for all the lovely people in Tunisia and all the staff who have no jobs right now. Hopefully the tourists will return as soon as the Foreign Office advise its safe. We had intended to go back in May so we will have to keep our fingers crossed that things improve soon. When we left the MP there were quite a lot of '7 weekers' there and cannot imagine they would have been repatriated without a fuss! We have also been in touch with Nejib and he says everyone is ok. Cant beleive we just said bye bye to him and the staff 9 days ago. I have read on a few other forums that PEK is fine, shops are open (including Magasin General for the "essentials wine") and the pharmacy etc and the Big Market is very busy. We cannot wait to go back - we stayed at Marhaba Palace 3 times in the last year after going there on spec as a late deal Christmas 2009 and it has been one of our most enjoyable holiday destinations ever.
Post a Reply
Please sign in or register an account to reply to this post.
Similar Topics
-
the Cyprus general chit chat box
Posted by Wizard in Cyprus Discussion Forums
-
Egyptian Banter - The place for a blether and Chit Chat
Posted by Kiltman HT Mod in Egypt Discussion Forum
-
Volcano Tales
Posted by vicjayhay in General Holiday Enquiries, Hints and Tips
-
Well known tales of Gozo
Posted by the real holidaymaker in Malta and Gozo Discussion Forum
-
Old wives tales...(Indian style)
Posted by noggin in Goa Discussion Forum