A land of contrasts, yes!
My husband and I were vacationing in Sousse in mid-August. We drove from Denmark with a Danish travel agency.
Oh Nouvelaire.
Not a very good airline, they spare an extra glass of water, they really feed. Not punctual. There were no problems with luggage.
About the city.
Sousse is a big city, noisy. There are many shops and supermarkets.
About the beach
Each hotel has its own territory on the beach strip, but there are also public beaches where the locals mostly swim. We rented sunbeds (2.5 dinars) on the hotel beach, the umbrella is fixed and you don’t pay for it. The water is hot, mostly calm in the morning. After lunch, a little stormy. The water is a bit dirty - algae, bags and glasses. We did not see jellyfish.
Sellers of all sorts of things hang around the beach. You can safely bargain and bring down the price by 80 percent. But we did not take anything edible because of disgust.
About the hotel.
Since we took the "tour of luck" we came across a terrible hotel, rather a rooming house. Dirty, broken bathroom, lack of towels and soap. Mostly Tunisians stayed there.
But you can safely take a 3 * hotel, because even in 3 * you can find all-inclusive and a decent level of service. 4-5 * hotels are mostly located on the shore.
About restaurants.
Mid-range restaurants. Not bad-Farmers, La Fiesta, Saloon, Lascargot. We had breakfast at the Soho cafe. Breakfast cost 3.2 dinars, with fresh juice and crusan, very tasty.
But you have to get used to smoking and negligence in cleanliness. Not bad Celtia beer, a sort of Heineken-type pilsner. From local dishes, tasty brik with tuna, Tunisian salad, Meshovia salad, Tunisian sausages. Couscous is not bad, but personally I was annoyed by the presence of bone fragments.
About weather.
At night the temperature is +29, during the day it is hot, but because of the wind you don’t notice it. Therefore, it is easy to burn out, you need to smear with a cream at least 15 factors, even if you are lying in the shade. It rained twice during the week.
Useful info.
A trip to Port el Kantaoui costs 7-8 dinars by taxi. You can reduce costs by using a luage minibus or tuk-tuk (2 dinars). Tuk-tuk is for extreme people, as it is open and there are no safety rails. It’s better not to rent a car, it’s risky and expensive. The traffic is terrible. Very careful at pedestrian crossings and in general when crossing roads. Very tasty watermelons, but peaches are juicy, but not sweet. Beer is sold only in restaurants, cafes and wholesale supermarkets. No need to be led by offers to buy something or take it for free - all Tunisians without exception are waiting for payment for literally any extra movement and that's it. Do not be fooled by the offer to conduct a tour - they will require money. Do not go alone, especially girls, as there is an abnormally high level of attention from the locals. In tourist areas, you don’t have to worry about the dress code, but if you are going to the outback, it’s better to cover your shoulders, legs and chest. If you are taking a trip to the Sahara for 2 days, bring water with you, at least 3 liters per person. In supermarkets, it costs 600 melims, and if you buy at a hotel or in roadside cafes, it is already 2.5 dinars for 1.5 liters. Prices in roadside cafes are not indicated and as soon as a bus with tourists arrives, prices immediately skyrocket. We were offered a cup of coffee in a dirty roadside cafe in the depths of Tunisia for 2 dinars (in a restaurant in Sousse the price is 3 dinars). It is also very expensive to take ice cream and sweet soda in such cafes.
The normal price for a small stone "desert rose" is 1 dinar, if they sell for more, bargain up to 1 dinar.
Spices by weight. Prices are horrendous. We wanted to buy a glass of saffron in Kauryan. The price was 65 dinars. After 5 minutes, we left taking a glass of saffron, a pack of spices and a pack of tea for 10 dinars. hands to the sky is the boundary price, there will be no lower.
It is better to buy souvenirs in Kairouan near the mosque, the prices are 2 times lower than in Sousse and Port el Kantaoui. Sousse has a good souvenir shop near the Saloon restaurant.
When you go to ride camels, wear long trousers - they rub hard carpets on the sides of the camel. Hold on tight and don’t let the camera to the camel drivers for a photo - they can easily drop it or demand a couple of dinars for the service. camel departure at 5 am and still dark) and the price is 4 dinars.
It is worth going to Elzahra Medinat Park. Very beautiful laser show and delicious food. A cunning Tunisian can sit at the entrance to the amphitheater and demand 1 dinar for the seats. Don't be fooled, they are free!!!!
Be sure to bring food to the airport - there a sandwich costs 6.5 dinars! If there are dinars left, do not worry, they can be spent in a cafe after passport control.
Duty free is expensive, but it is worth buying harissa, olive paste, halva, local spirits. Good wine Terral.