Tunis Walking Tour: 50 Free Video Stops

This Tunis walking tour links 10 sights and 50 short video stops narrated by Clarissa, from the Sea Gate of the medina to the ruins of Carthage and the blue doors of Sidi Bou Said. The notes below turn those stops into practical day plans, with walking order, transport, etiquette and the free sights worth knowing before you go. For official visitor information, also check Discover Tunisia, the official site of the Tunisian National Tourist Office.

Route 1, into the medina (stops 1 to 4). Start at Bab el Bhar, the Sea Gate on Place de la Victoire, also called the Porte de France, where the French-built new town meets the old city. Watch the gate from Avenue Habib Bourguiba, then cross into the first lanes and follow Rue Jamaa ez Zitouna uphill to the Zitouna Mosque, founded in the 8th century and still the heart of the medina. The Medersa Slimania, an 18th-century college with a green-tiled dome, stands beside it, and Souk el Attarine, the perfume makers' souk, runs along the mosque wall.

Route 2, the southern medina (stops 5 to 7). From the souks, walk south to Dar Ben Abdallah, an 18th-century palace now used as a museum of traditional life, with a marble courtyard and painted ceilings. Continue to Bab Jedid, the 13th-century New Gate in the southern wall, where blacksmiths and metalworkers still fill the streets. Finish at Tourbet el Bey, the mausoleum of the Husainid beys, with its green-tiled domes and rooms of tile, marble and carved stucco. These lanes are quieter than the souks and reward slow walking.

Route 3, the Bardo (stop 8). Give the Bardo Museum a half day of its own. Housed in a former beylical palace west of the centre, it holds one of the world's finest collections of Roman mosaics, along with Punic, Christian and Islamic rooms. The museum is closed on Mondays and has had long closures in recent years, so confirm that it is open before you cross the city.

Route 4, Carthage and Sidi Bou Said (stops 9 and 10). Take the TGM light railway from Tunis Marine to Carthage and climb Byrsa Hill, the citadel of the Phoenician city that Rome destroyed in 146 BC and later rebuilt. See the Punic quarter, the Carthage Museum and the Cathedral of Saint Louis, then walk down to the Antonine Baths, the largest Roman baths in Africa, right on the sea. Ride the TGM a few stops further to Sidi Bou Said for the white walls, blue doors and clifftop cafés.

If you only have one day, Routes 1 and 2 give the best Tunis walking tour on foot, because the medina stops sit within a short walk of each other. A three-day Tunis walking tour works well as the medina on day one, the Bardo on the morning of day two, and Carthage with a sunset in Sidi Bou Said on day three.

For photos, the best free viewpoints on this Tunis walking tour are the arch of Bab el Bhar seen from Avenue Habib Bourguiba, the green domes of Tourbet el Bey from the lane outside, the view over the Gulf of Tunis from the top of Byrsa Hill and the bay from the cafés of Sidi Bou Said at sunset. Some medina shops have rooftop terraces with views over the minarets; enjoy them, but you are under no obligation to buy anything.

Spring and autumn are the most comfortable seasons for a long Tunis walking tour. Summers are hot, so walk the medina in the morning and save Sidi Bou Said for the late afternoon breeze. Winters are mild but can be wet. During Ramadan, many cafés and some shops close during the day and the medina comes alive after sunset, so check the dates if you are planning around food.

The medina is busiest in the late morning, when the souks are full and deliveries squeeze through the lanes. Many medina shops close on Sundays, and the Zitouna Mosque is busiest at Friday midday prayers, when visitors should keep away. Check the opening days of Dar Ben Abdallah, Tourbet el Bey and the Bardo on official sources before your Tunis walking tour, since smaller monuments can close without much notice.

The TGM suburban railway is the easiest way to reach Carthage and Sidi Bou Said, and it runs from Tunis Marine at the end of Avenue Habib Bourguiba. The light-rail metro links the centre with Le Bardo, and yellow city taxis are plentiful and cheap; ask the driver to use the meter. Carthage's ruins are spread out over several stations, so plan to walk between them or take a short taxi ride.

Use the Map button at each stop to check walking time. The medina lanes twist and many have no street signs, so download an offline map and choose a landmark, such as the Zitouna minaret, to orient yourself on your Tunis walking tour.

Dress modestly in the medina: cover shoulders and knees, and bring a light scarf. Non-Muslim visitors usually cannot enter the prayer halls of working mosques, including the Zitouna, and may only see the courtyard from a viewing point at set times. Ask before photographing people, especially craftsmen in their workshops. A few words of French or Arabic, such as “Bonjour” or “Aslema”, are warmly received.

For food, try brik, a crisp pastry with egg and tuna, lablabi, the chickpea soup eaten for breakfast, and couscous with fish or lamb. In the souks, look for makroudh pastries filled with dates, and finish with mint tea topped with pine nuts. In Sidi Bou Said, the hilltop Café des Nattes and the clifftop Café des Délices are classic stops, and bambalouni doughnuts are sold hot along the main street. A small tip is appreciated in cafés and restaurants on a Tunis walking tour.

Tunis is generally welcoming, but medina touts are common. Be wary of strangers who tell you a sight is closed, offer to show you a rooftop view, or insist there is a special festival today; these usually end in a carpet or perfume shop. A polite “La, shukran” (no, thank you) and walking on works best. Bargaining is normal in the souks, so agree on a price before you buy.

Around the Antonine Baths, a presidential palace stands nearby, and photography toward it is not allowed, so follow the signs and guards. The Tunisian dinar cannot legally be taken out of the country, so change only what you need, keep your exchange receipts and carry cash for small purchases, since many medina shops do not take cards.

Several stops cost nothing at all. Bab el Bhar, Avenue Habib Bourguiba, Bab Jedid, the souks and the lanes of the medina are free to walk, and the streets of Sidi Bou Said are free to explore. The Bardo Museum, Tourbet el Bey and the Carthage sites need tickets, and a combined pass usually covers several Carthage monuments. That is why this free walking tour Tunis visitors can start at any hour works well: the 50 videos are free, and you only pay for what you choose to enter.

Ticket rules, prices and opening days change, so confirm the details at each ticket office or on official sources before your Tunis walking tour. Licensed guides can be booked through the tourist office, which is a good choice if you want to see medina interiors that are hard to find alone.

For accessibility, Avenue Habib Bourguiba is wide and level, and the Bardo Museum is the most manageable major stop for visitors with limited mobility. The medina has uneven paving, steps and narrow, crowded lanes, Byrsa Hill is a steep climb, and Sidi Bou Said is built on a slope with cobbled streets. Taxis can drop you close to most entrances, which helps on a slower Tunis walking tour.

When you finish this Tunis walking tour, carry on with more free walks around the Mediterranean and North Africa: the Fez walking tour, the Marrakech walking tour, the Cairo walking tour and the Rome walking tour. You can browse every city on the Free City Tours home page.