Port el Kantaoui - very dirty with fag ends everywhere and rubbish piled high - with a very pungent smell!

Led to believe it would be upmarket with designer shops - not so. All the shops are basically the same, full of tat and very touristy. I did expect better, especially after reviews on the Internet and in various books and brochures we read before going.

We did try one restaurant in the Marina a couple of days before departing Tunisia, which was very good but can't remember the name of it. The staff were a lot more friendlier than the hotel staff and the food was actually hot and tasty and cost £20 for both of us which was 2 courses with 2 drinks each. Dessert was Baked Alaska the size of an enormous steak plate!

One tip - if you go to the Marina, go before 7 pm as it is manic after this and you can't move for people. Also take very sensible shoes as the area is all cobbled and uneven. I saw a couple of ladies slip over as mules are all the rage in Tunisia at the moment.

It is quite cheap to get around, the local taxi from our hotel to resort cost 3 dinars - about £1.10 each way. The horse and carriage cost 10 dinars - about £4.40 each way.

We didn't really see much entertainment in the Marina itself so can't comment on this.

The beach was very sandy and soft but full of fag ends and piles of seaweed. It is a bit more than 5 mins. from the Royal Kenz - more like 10-12 at a normal pace. Quite hard to do in the heat of the day. Each hotel has its alloted area with water sports in-between. We tried the parasailing (well my husband did) which he enjoyed, but be aware it is hard to pull the rope to get down and he almost didn't make it. I don't advise a female to go on their own as you could get into difficulties. If you want some good pictures go to the beach early as there are hardly any people on it.

Sousse was only about 20 mins. away by taxi (about 7 dinars, which was supposed to be only 5 dinars, but we were ripped off on more than one occasion). BEWARE - the taxi drivers don't always take you where you want to go. On two occasions we were dropped way off where we asked to go, and were stranded. It wasn't a communication problem either, they did it on purpose!

Port el Kantaoui is a nice enough place but being purpose built lacks character.Some nice restaurants & shops but not enough to keep you busy for two weeks

Port El Kantoui was specially developed for tourism some time ago, has lots of places to eat, and special recommendation goes to the Restaurant Daurade where we had dinner 3 times despite having paid for half boart at the hotel.
There is also a great little snack restaurant at lunch times, located opposite the larger Pirate ship mooring. Don't sit and wait for a menu, as all the food is listed on two large displays at the entrance. Forgot the name but its the one with the ice cream machine in the corner!

Having spent most of the week on excursions we travelled through Sousse & Monastir several times and El Kantaoui is the more picturesque & hassle free location of the the three. The surrounding golf course appears well maintained and the beach wasn't too crowded. The entrances to the beach were littered with rubbish, broken pottery & various other untidy items so take care, but once on the beach it's fine.

In general the people are friendly but be warned, the taxi drivers can try and rip you off and the shop/stall owners become very annoying very quickly by hassling you to buy things and go into their shops. We understood it's their way of making a living but some can become rude & even aggressive if you ignore their advances. For us, this spoilt our holiday cause we felt hassled all week. But i'm sure it's not like that to everybody so don't let that put you off too much.

Port el Kantoui is a fab resort I have just come back October the 20th stayed in an apartment with a Tunisian friend overlooking the marina it was great. Going back Feb and then Oct 2005 certainly recommend port.

I found the resort to be out of this world the marina and beaches are the best I've seen.

The resort was an eyeopener, wherever you go you have got people offering to buy you for cammels.

Also walking past shops were terrible because you have got people coming up to you and saying "What ever you want I will do for you good price" then when you ask them how much they don't tell you till after when you start to walk out of the shop. If you try and lower the price they will keep saying no but when you walk out they will chase you

The Marina is soulless and characterless and full of people trying to flog awful stuff which appears to be the same wherever you go in Tunisia - camels, chess boards etc. We got bored of it very quickly.

The best thing about the holiday was the Tunisian wine which is surprisingly good and reasonably priced, and the pool which was lovely.

I was amazed at the state of the area outside the hotel - buildings half built, rubbish all over the place. The Tunisians need to take a little more pride in there resort as a whole rather than just the hotels.

I think I would have a much more positive view of Tunisia had the weather been nicer and the shopkeepers realised that more people would buy their wares if they would just let you alone for a second.

The beach could do with a more intense clean up to get rid of Jelly fish and the seaweed that collects daily. The Sand is beautiful and most areas are kept relatively clean but could be better and that would make it even more atractive.

The Soviva is a good walk from the beach, and has no sunbeds or bar or in fact anything.