The national currency is the Tunisian dinar, denoted by the symbol “دينار” or “DT” (ISO code: TND).

Typical banknotes circulate in denominations of 5 (green), 10 (blue or brown), 20 (violet-red), 30 (orange) and 50 DT (green and purple).

The dinar is divided into 1000 millemes, with typical coins being 5 DT (Silver with copper insert), one dinar (large and silver in colour), 500 millemes (smaller, silver colour), 100 and 50 millemes, (large brass), 20 and 10 millemes (smaller brass) and 5 millemes (small aluminium). It is prohibited to bring dinars in and out of Tunisia, so you have to change your money locally.

Prices are typically marked in dinars and millemes, with a decimal point like: 5.600 or 24.000 or 0.360 sometimes with DT. Markets typically sell items by the kilogram. So tomatoes may have a sign “480” on them which means 480 millemes per kilo. Good cheese will be marked something like 12.400 DT or about US$7 a kilo. Most self-serve supermarkets expect you to put your purchases in the flimsy plastic bags they provide and then bring them to the nearby scales where a worker will weigh them and apply a price sticker.

You can withdraw local cash with a Mastercard or Visa card at many ATMs all over Tunisia.

BY PLANE:

Tunisair express is the domestic airline branched off of TunisAir. You can fly between Tunis and Tozeur, Djerba and Gabes, as well as flights to Malta and Napoli. French-only website, booking is available online or through agencies Tunisair Express.

BY CAR:

Tunisian highways resembles US Interstate or the highways of Europe with a dual carriageway: A-1 runs from Tunis south heading to Sfax, A-4 runs from Tunis north heading to Bizerte, and A-3 runs from Tunis West heading to Oued Zarga. Tunisian highways speed limit is 110 km/h. It is possible to maintain that speed on that road very easily. The routes shown on some maps have a planned extension to Gabes then Ras Jedir (Libya Frontiers) in the South as of 2011-2014 and to Ghardimaou (Algerian Frontiers) in the West, but several years later. The remaining highways have single carriageways, with traffic round-abouts at major intersections, which follow the European model (those in the roundabout have the right of way). Consequently, on roads other than the A-1,4,3 it can be difficult to maintain an average speed of more than 75 km/h most of the time as the speed limit is 90 km/h. Almost all road signs are in Arabic and French.

Like most developing countries, road accidents are the leading cause of death and injury in Tunisia. Tunisians are aggressive, poorly skilled and discourteous drivers. They are unpredictable in their driving habits, jumping traffic lights, seldom signaling when changing lanes, often ignoring traffic lights and stop signs, driving at very high rates of speed regardless of the quality of the roads or condition of their vehicles, and stopping at almost any location even though it may block other cars or potentially cause an accident. Because of the lack of sidewalks, pedestrians walk on the roads often without regard for cars or their own safety. Sadly, Tunisians seldom secure their children in appropriate car seats and these tiny passengers often bear the brunt of most accidents.

Although police are visible at many major intersections, they seldom enforce traffic rules or stop bad drivers unless it is to solicit bribes.

People unfamiliar with driving in developing countries are best to use public transportation or hire a driver.

Driving in Tunis is further compounded by narrow streets and limited parking spots. To see the Medina of Tunis, it would be best to park some distance from the Medina, and take the light rail (called TGM) in from Marsa/Carthage, the green tramway (called Metro) downtown, or perhaps a taxi in from the nearer outskirts.

Rental cars are fairly easy to find, but somewhat expensive, at DT100 or so a day, for a medium sized car such as a four door Renault Clio.

BY TAXI:

Private taxis are reasonably priced even for long-distance travel, just be sure to agree on the fare before you set off. Sample fares for a four-seater are €40 for Tunis-Hammamet or €50 for Monastir-Hammamet. When taking the taxi within bigger towns such as Tunis, there are meters installed. Make sure it is started when you leave and in the corresponding mode (night, day, etc). A green light indicates that the taxi is already taken, a red that it is free.

BY TRAIN:

The national train company SNCFT runs modern and comfortable trains from Tunis south to Sousse, Sfax and Monastir. There are three classes of service, namely Grand confort (deluxe 1st), 1st and 2nd, and all are quite adequate. Example fares from Tunis to Sousse are DT12/10/6 (€6/5/3) in Grand/1st/2nd class. Although tickets are issued with wagon/seat numbers marked on it, that is largely ignored by locals. So if you are travelling with more people, try to get onboard quickly to find adjacent seats.

A good thing to do is to buy a carte bleue (blue card). It costs around DT20 for a week and you can travel all around the country using the banlieue (short distance train) and grande ligne (long distance). For the long distance you will have to make a reservation and pay a small fee (DT1,50 or so). These passes can also be bought to cover 10 or 14 days. There are rarely queues at the booking office and a little bit of French goes a long way. Trains go also to Tozeur and Gabes in the south where it is easy to access the Sahara and Ksour regions respectively. In some stations where the frequency of trains is small (e.g. Tozeur), the ticket booth will remain closed for most of the day and reopen around the time of the departure of the next train.

A light railway (called TGM) also connects Tunis northward to Carthage and La Marsa. Take this light railway system to Sidi Bou Said as well. One-way light railway tickets will cost approximately DT0.675.

BY LOUAGE:

Locals use louage or long-haul shared taxis where there is no train or bus. There are no timetables, but they wait in the louage station (which is generally near a train station if your destination is accessible by train) until 8 people turn up. The wait is never too long in major cities, most of the time less than half an hour. They are nearly as cheap as the walk up train fares and operate with fixed prices so you won’t get scalped. e.g. Douz to Gabes (120km) for 7 dinars. Be aware that while louages are very cheap, they can also be stifling hot during the summer months (although the windows are left open during the ride and that helps!) and tourists may be hassled, if only rarely – most locals will keep to themselves. Furthermore, louages have the reputation to drive at a fast pace, and to be less safe than other transportation, so be aware of that. Louage departures are very frequent, a louage departs as soon as the seats are filled. It is acceptable to pay for an empty seat to leave earlier. All Louage cars are of white color, with a side stripe showing the coverage area. Louages between major cities are recognizable by their red stripe, louages within region are recognizable by their blue stripe and Louages serving rural areas are recognizable by their Yellow strips (the Rural Louage can be Yellow with blue stripes, or a van fully painted in brown color).

BY BUS:

Long distance bus (called car) is also a safe and economic way to travel between major cities such as Tunis, Nabeul, Hammamet, etc. You will generally find a station in each major city offering many departures per day (every 30 minutes between Tunis and Hammamet). Some of the bus locally called “car comfort” offer higher standards (TV, air conditioner) at cheap prices. Hours can be found online.

EAT:

Tunisian cuisine has similarities with the Middle Eastern cuisine, and mainly builds on the Northern African Maghreb tradition, with couscous and marqa stews (similar to the Moroccan tajine) forming the backbone of most meals. Distinguishing characteristics are the fiery harissa chili sauce, the heavy use of tiny olives which are abundant in the country, and the Tunisian tajine which, unlike the Moroccan dish of the same name, refers to a type of omelette-like pie prepared with a ragout of meat and/or vegetables mixed with herbs, legumes and even offal, enriched with eggs and cheese and baked in a deep pie dish until the eggs are just set, somewhat like an Italian frittata. Lamb forms the basis of most meat dishes and local seafood is plentiful. Pork and pork products are not widely available but can be found in some supermarkets and in some hotels in tourist areas.

• Harissa: very hot spicy chili paste (sometimes made more mild with carrots or yogurt), served with bread and olive oil as a starter at almost any meal.
• Shorba Frik: lamb soup
• Coucha: shoulder of lamb cooked with turmeric and cayenne pepper
• Khobz Tabouna (pronounce Khobz Taboona): traditional oven baked bread
• Brik (pronounce Breek): very crispy thin pastry with a whole egg (Brik à l’œuf), parsley and onions and sometimes meat like minced lamb or tuna (Brik au thon). Very tasty as an inexpensive starter. Eat it very carefully with your fingers.
• Berber Lamb: Lamb cooked with potatoes, carrots in a clay pot.
• Merguez: small spicy sausages.
• Salade tunisienne: lettuce, green pepper, tomato, onions, olives, radishes mixed with tuna.
• Salade méchouia: puréed grilled vegetable salad seasoned (often with harissa) and served with olive oil and sometimes tuna.
• Fricassé: small fried sandwich with tuna, harissa, olives and olive oil.
• Tunisian cakes: sweets related to Baklava.
• Bambaloni: fried sweet donut-like cake served with sugar.
• Tunisian “fast food”: sandwiches, makloubs (folded pizzas), “libanais”…

Regrettably, Tunisia has a very underdeveloped restaurant culture, and most food prepared in restaurants, outside of Tunisian homes or souks is disappointingly bland and carelessly presented. These characteristics tend to apply across the price scale, though one can occasionally eat tasty couscous or “coucha” stew in some low-priced restaurants. One’s best hope for good eating in Tunisia is to be invited as a guest in someone’s home or eat at a food stall in a souk.

DRINK:

Being a progressive Muslim country, alcohol availability is restricted (but not greatly) to certain licensed (and invariably more expensive) restaurants, resort areas and Magasin Général shops. Large department stores (Carrefour at Marsa/Carthage and Hammamet) and some supermarkets (e.g. Monoprix) sell beer and wine, and some local and imported hard liquors, except during Muslim holidays. Female travelers should be aware that, outside resort and areas of significant tourist concentration, they may find themselves with a beer in a smoky bar full of men drinking in a rather dedicated fashion. Some bars will refuse to admit women, others may ask for a passport to check nationality. Look around a bar before you decide to imbibe!

• Beer: Celtia is the popular local brand, but some places also carry imported pilsner beers. Locally brewed Löwenbräu is decent, and Heineken has entered in the Tunisian market in 2007. Celtia “En Pression” (On Tap) is good. Celestia is a non-alcoholic beer which is also popular.
• Wine: Most places that serve alcohol will have Tunisian wine, which is quite good. Tunisian wine always was produced by French oenologists. Most of it was exported to France till the 1970s. Wine cooperatives were left and produce 80% of the wine which is served mostly to tourists. Since the privatisation of some parts of these cooperatives the international taste of wine entered the market in Tunisia. The small companies like Domaine Atlas, St. Augustin, Ceptunes etc. have successfully established the new generation of Tunisian wine. Importation of wine is extremely difficult because of very high taxes. Some high-end hotel restaurants can make French or Italian wines miraculously appear at a price.
• Boukha: is a Tunisian spirit made from the distillation of figs.
• Coffee: served strong in small cups. Tunisian cappuccino is also served strong in small cups. “Café crème” is available in many tourist areas and may even appear in an “American Cup”. Local favorites include the capucin (espresso macchiato) and the direct (latte).
• Tea: is generally taken after meals. Sometimes served with pine nuts floating in the tea.
• Mint Tea: very sweet peppermint tea that is taken at any time of the day.

There are lots of fine hotels in Tunisia. Many smaller hotels can be found in major cities, tucked into most roads. Hotel star ratings are not at par with European and US standards – a 4-star Tunisian hotel is the equivalent of a 3-star hotel elsewhere.

You can also rent a furnished apartment. Some private people offer their own apartments for rent especially in summer.

It is advisable to organise your accommodations online or by phone prior to your arrival. Other than pricier hotels, most accommodations don’t seem to have a website. French would be handy when booking accommodations.

TBC.