Tunis, the medina and the Roman sites

Tunis is best explored on foot, starting in the medina and ending at the Bardo Museum. The medina has been on UNESCO's World Heritage List since 1979 and holds some 700 monuments: palaces, mosques, mausoleums, madrasas (Koranic schools) and fountains. Under the Almohad and Hafsid dynasties, from the 12th to the 16th century, it was one of the great cities of the Islamic world. Tunis-Carthage Airport is only 8 km from the Bab Bhar gate, about ten minutes by road outside rush hour. Two days cover the city; a third takes you to one of the Roman towns inland, Dougga first among them.

Tunis at a glance

• Getting there. Tunis-Carthage Airport is 8 km from the medina and 11 km from the Bardo. Carthage, Sidi Bou Said and La Marsa are on the TGM suburban railway; see Carthage and Sidi Bou Said.
• How long. A day for the medina, half a day for the Bardo, a day for each ancient site.
• When. Average highs range from 16°C in January to 34°C in July and August; spring and autumn are the most comfortable months for walking.
• Time zone. Tunisia is on UTC+1 all year: 1 hour ahead of London in winter and the same time in summer.

The medina, from Bab Bhar to the Kasbah

You enter the medina through Bab Bhar, the Sea Gate, and walk up through the souks towards the Great Mosque and the Kasbah. Access to the medina is free.

The Zitouna Mosque is the medina's great mosque and was for centuries a religious university. The prayer hall is closed to non-Muslims; depending on prayer times, you can see into it from the courtyard. Modest dress is required.

Dar Ben Abdallah, a medina palace, houses the museum of folk arts and traditions, devoted to the customs and crafts of Tunis. Admission is free; it opens 9 am to 4 pm in winter and 8 am to 2 pm in summer, until 1 pm on Fridays, and is closed on Mondays (local time).

At the top of the medina, the Kasbah is the seat of government. As with any official building in Tunisia, do not photograph it. Two of the three guesthouses chosen by Sabaro are in this quarter or close to the Zitouna.

For a first visit, a four-hour guided walk through the medina and souks is sold from about €55 per person.

The Bardo Museum

The Bardo National Museum occupies a 19th-century beylical palace, opened as a museum on 7 May 1888, and a modern wing added during the 2009-2012 works. Its collections run from prehistory to modern times across three floors. The main draw is one of the largest collections of Roman mosaics anywhere; the Triumph of Neptune greets visitors in the entrance hall.

Opening hours (local time): 9:30 am to 4:30 pm in winter and during Ramadan, 9 am to 5 pm in summer; closed on Mondays.

Admission for non-residents: TND 30 (about €9) since 1 April 2026, rising to TND 45 (about €13) on 1 January 2027. A combined ticket with the Carthage site costs TND 45 in 2026 and TND 70 in 2027, roughly €13 and €21. The Tunisian dinar (TND) can only be bought in Tunisia; our money in Tunisia guide explains how to change it.

The museum was the target of an attack on 18 March 2015. A four-hour guided tour of the Bardo and the medina is sold from about €93 per person. Our sites and museums guide lists opening hours and prices across the country.

Ramadan nights and autumn festivals

During Ramadan the medina comes alive at night. The Medina Festival puts on around thirty concerts and shows in its palaces and halls; the 42nd edition ran from 21 February to 15 March 2026. In 2027, Ramadan is expected from 8 February to 9 March; our Ramadan and public holidays 2027 guide explains how it affects opening hours.

In autumn, Tunis hosts the Carthage Music Days in October, the Carthage Theatre Days from 21 to 28 November 2026 and the Carthage Film Festival from 12 to 19 December 2026.

Roman towns on a day trip from Tunis

The Tell, the interior of northern Tunisia, is rich in ancient towns, and four of them are easy day trips from Tunis. Driving times are non-stop from Tunis-Carthage Airport; allow more at rush hour.

Dougga, the best-preserved town

Dougga, ancient Thugga, has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1997 and covers about 70 hectares. The town existed by the late 6th century BC at the latest, and some historians believe it was the first capital of the Numidian kingdom. The 21-metre Libyco-Punic mausoleum and the temple of Massinissa, built in 139 BC for the cult of the Numidian king, date from that period.

After the Roman conquest in 46 BC, the town was not destroyed: Numidian inhabitants and Roman settlers lived side by side for two and a half centuries. Together they gave it a theatre, temples, baths and arches, which survive as a whole. That is what makes Dougga exceptional: you can read the full plan of an ancient African town adapted to the Roman model.

The site is open daily, 8:30 am to 5:30 pm in winter, 8 am to 7 pm in summer and 8 am to 5 pm during Ramadan (local time). Admission is TND 8, about €2.40, for non-residents. Allow three hours on site. In July, the Dougga International Festival holds concerts in the ancient theatre.

A group day trip from Tunis combining Dougga and Bulla Regia is sold from about €147 per person; Bulla Regia is described on our Tabarka and Kroumirie page.

Thuburbo Majus

Thuburbo Majus is a 120-hectare Roman town in the Oued Miliane plain. It became a municipium under Hadrian and a colony under Commodus, in the 2nd century. You walk across the forum below the capitol, past the winter and summer baths, the palaestra (athletes' exercise yard), some fifteen temples and grand houses. The site is open daily, 8:30 am to 5:30 pm in winter and 8 am to 5 pm in summer (local time); admission TND 8.

Oudhna, thirty kilometres out

Oudhna, ancient Uthina, lies 30 km south-west of Tunis in the Oued Miliane valley. Founded in the late 1st century BC for veterans of the 13th Legion, it peaked under Hadrian. Its capitol is among the largest temples in North Africa. Its amphitheatre keeps the underground structures from which hoists raised animals and fighters into the arena; in Tunisia, similar ones are known only at Thuburbo Minus and El Jem. The site is open daily, 9 am to 5 pm, 9 am to 4 pm during Ramadan (local time); admission TND 8.

Zaghouan and the Carthage aqueduct

At the foot of Jebel Zaghouan, the Water Temple is a 2nd-century sanctuary built under Hadrian at the head of the aqueduct that carried spring water to Carthage, some 132 km away. Arches of the aqueduct can be seen between Oudhna and Mohammedia. A day trip to Zaghouan from Tunis is sold from about €135 per person.

Where to stay in Tunis

Sabaro's choices in Tunis are three historic houses in the medina.

• Dar El Jeld, near the Kasbah at the entrance to the souks, has 16 suites around a lemon-tree garden, a hammam, a spa and two restaurants: Dar El Jeld restaurant, opposite the hotel, and a rooftop above the medina. Rates on request.
• Palais Bayram occupies an 18th-century palace at Bab Menara, steps from the Zitouna: 16 rooms and suites, a domed hammam and a vaulted restaurant. From about €150 a night for two, room only.
• Dar Ben Gacem spreads 15 rooms across two restored houses, Dar Pasha and Dar Kahia, a four-minute walk apart. Tunisian breakfast is included. From about €100 a night for two.

Prices were checked for March 2027 and include taxes; the tourist tax of TND 12 per person per night in 4- and 5-star hotels is paid separately at the hotel. For a seaside stay, the hotels of Gammarth and Sidi Bou Said are about twenty minutes from the airport: see Carthage and Sidi Bou Said. Our boutique hotels and museums and culture pages suggest more addresses around the country.

Safety and entry requirements

All of Tunisia is under a state of emergency, in force since 24 November 2015. Traffic bans or curfews can affect central Tunis. Keep away from demonstrations, which mostly take place at weekends and on national dates, 14 January and 17 December, in the city centre, and from places where security forces are stationed. The "Travel advice" table on this page gives the advice for your country, and our safety in Tunisia guide sets out the situation.

A passport has been compulsory since 1 January 2025: national identity cards are no longer accepted, even on package holidays. Our visa and entry requirements guide gives the visa-free stay and passport validity that apply to your nationality.