p50 tour 7 mar27 20/3/09 14:21 Page 9
knowledge touring
ttglive.com
Tunisia
The coach and hotels
The coach was very comfortable,
though an onboard loo would
have been useful.
The hotels were all four-star
and I wouldn’t hesitate to
recommend them. They offered
international and local food, and
the latter was delicious and varied. I
particularly enjoyed the traditional snack of
“brick” – semolina, salt and dough – fol-
lowed by couscous with meat and vegetables.
We enjoyed unbroken sunshine through-
out and in my opinion it was the ideal tem-
perature for touring – warm but not too hot.
The itinerary
Our whistlestop tour gave us a chance to
experience some of the highlights of Cosmos
Tourama’s seven-night Tunisian Adventure
itinerary in just three days.
We started in Hammamet, then took in
the Matmata area, Douz, which is known as
Camel, coach
the gateway to the Sahara desert, and Tozuer
before heading back to where we started.
Highlights included a camel ride at sunset,
which we all agreed was a “must”, and a
drive through the Chott El Djerid salt lake.
and colosseum
We also saw the impressive Roman
colosseum at El Djem, which is the
third-largest in the world and originally sat
30,000, and visited the spice market in the
town of Gabes.
In the oasis town of Tozuer, we took in
Roving Reader Rachel Clifton,
the narrow cobbled streets of the old town
before taking a horse and carriage ride, and
from The Co-operative Travel in
then took a jeep excursion into the hills and
Spalding, reports on a taster trip
W
e sell a lot of coach tours, but
I must admit I would never
have thought to recommend
Tunisia, which I have viewed the Chebika mountain oasis.
experiencing Cosmos Tourama’s
as a beach destination.
Not being one to miss an educational My conclusion
Tunisian Adventure itinerary
opportunity, however, I took up the offer of This trip has shown me to look beyond the
a trip with Cosmos Tourama. usual touring areas and offer alternatives
It showed me the variety a tour can offer, that may not automatically spring to mind.
and we saw the countryside change from Andy from Cosmos and Sami from Tunisia
green fields, with row upon row of olive Tourism hosted a great trip, and although it
trees, to a hilly lunar landscape, and was tiring, I’m very pleased I was offered the
eventually to desert. chance to attend.
Top tips Rachel’s guide to touring in Tunisia
Smoke alarm: Smoking is still permitted pretty Cover up: When out and about, it is wise to dress
much anywhere. Visitors should also be prepared for accordingly, so no hot pants unless you want the
men and sometimes children to be selling something attention of every man in a 200-metre radius.
everywhere you go.
Haggle hassle: If you want to buy something, barter,
You’ve got male: Tunisia is obviously a and if you don’t, just walk away; but I did get a bit
male-dominated society, so it might not be ideal for fed up and was sometimes relieved to get back to
customers keen to promote equality of the sexes. the sanctuary of the coach.
50 27.03.2009
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