port of tunis - western mediterranean - costa serena

we are taking a cost cruise at the end of february, one of the ports being tunis (or la goulette), which we understand is 8 miles out of the city. we hate taking cruise excursions, not only because of the cost but also because we much prefer to have the chance to make some choices as to where we are taken. we have cruised extensively in the caribbean and mexico but not so much in europe. ( we are british by the way, not american!) before, we have always found taxi drivers at the port who are willing to do a tour for you for a fixed rate per person, incorporating the 'usual' places but others if you want, and you get to spend as much or as little time at each place as you like. there are four of us so usually we have a taxi to ourselves. is this likely to be the case at la goulette. i have read some horror stories about being ripped off but wonder if they are a bit exaggerated. we have never been ripped off anywhere before, is there something about tunisia that's different than say, mexico, or columbia or the caribbean islands. we expect them to be competitive and to hassle you a bit for your business but we are used to that. i understand the currency is the dinar, but presumably they would be willing to take euros. would welcome tips and experiences from anyone who has done this port and what to avoid or be especially aware of. the rest of the ports are relatively easy, walking distance, or short taxi ride to the one place we want to see.

The last time we were in tunis on a ship, we stayed on board = simply because we had seen all we wanted to a few years before when we hired a taxi at the port. We had US$ as currency but they will take euros I bet!

Im sorry I cant remember how much the taxi was, but our driver took us to the nearest medina where we walked around a while. He was with us all the time and took us into a tearoom for a mid morning tea experience. I remember buying perfume oil - my favourite perfumes in little roll on bottles. We wondered at the time if they were fake, but they were the real thing. A fantastic buy as it takes up so little weight and space.

We then went to Sidi Bou Said - the beautiful blue and white town. I highly recommend this place! We wished we had missed out the medina in the morning! The driver stayed with his car and we arranged to be back at a certain time - we enjoyed a wonderful lunch overlooking the sea.

When you get off the ship, head for the farthest away taxis and get prices from more than one driver.

Hope this helps a little

Caryl

I'm like you iloveglee, hate organised tours. I normally stay onboard at La Goulette and make it my spa day (my normal port routine of aimlessly wandering on my own like I do in many other regions is not a good option there). However there are most definitely fixed price taxi tours proced in Euros. Even saw a photo of the sign someone posted on the MSC forum. Think there were 3 or 4 options.

I'm sure if you post this on the Africa and Middle East forum, you'll get more details on proces and some feedback from people who'd used this option. Doesn't need to just be Costa cruisers.

I also hate excursions. A few months ago I went to Tunis. We did the Medina and Sidi Bou Said by taxi ( 3 of us) There is a fixed price taxi service as you come out of the port gate but that would have been double what we paid. We walked further along and negotiated. We only had time to do the Medina and Sidi bou said but if we had time we could have done the ruins as well for the same price. We had the driver waiting for us all the time(pay at the end) and I think we paid 15 Euros each, ie 45 for the car. One driver agreed a price for the car and then gave us a ticket stating it was per person. We got out and renegotiated. Just have some patience and your wits about you and you should have a good time. Another option is the tram/train but it is not convenient.

thanks for this. i think i had read somewhere else to bypass the first lot of taxis and go for the ones furthest away. not sure about the souk, i hate all this bargaining that goes on and being hassled to buy. sidi bou said sound quite nice but i think all will depend on what kind of weather we have had. if the only nice day happens to be when we are in tunis, and in early march that might be the case, we might just spend the day on deck.

Hi, I was wondering how you enjoyed your visit to Tunis and what you ended up doing. I'm also a fan of Glee and dislike ship shore excursions.

My husband and I will be in Tunis on the MSC Lirica on May27th and it will be our first time there. I've read so many conflicting reports on this website that I don't know which to believe. However, they are quite old, the most recent being 2011 so your input would be very valuable.

Did you end up on the ship's shore excursion or did you try a taxi tour? Where did you go and what did you see? Were you able to use Euros to pay? A any advice you give us?

We are Americans but also world travelers and have loads of experience visiting exotic places on our own so we aren't afraid of being hassled or having to haggle. We just aren't interested in shopping or camel riding.

Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

some years ago we disembarked , walked around the building to be me met by a local guide, along with a bus which took us into the town with souk via a carpet shop plus journey back, at the time it was good value, I'm sure it will be still there but once full that's it.

hoppy

Hi, I was wondering how you enjoyed your visit to Tunis and what you ended up doing. I'm also a fan of Glee and dislike ship shore excursions.

 

My husband and I will be in Tunis on the MSC Lirica on May27th and it will be our first time there. I've read so many conflicting reports on this website that I don't know which to believe. However, they are quite old, the most recent being 2011 so your input would be very valuable.

 

Did you end up on the ship's shore excursion or did you try a taxi tour? Where did you go and what did you see? Were you able to use Euros to pay? A any advice you give us?

 

We are Americans but also world travelers and have loads of experience visiting exotic places on our own so we aren't afraid of being hassled or having to haggle. We just aren't interested in shopping or camel riding.

 

Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

Have a look at the port section here on CC (relates to all cruise lines). Have you looked at http://www.tripadvisor.com, great information there.

Ron

Hi, I was wondering how you enjoyed your visit to Tunis and what you ended up doing. I'm also a fan of Glee and dislike ship shore excursions.

 

My husband and I will be in Tunis on the MSC Lirica on May27th and it will be our first time there. I've read so many conflicting reports on this website that I don't know which to believe. However, they are quite old, the most recent being 2011 so your input would be very valuable.

 

Did you end up on the ship's shore excursion or did you try a taxi tour? Where did you go and what did you see? Were you able to use Euros to pay? A any advice you give us?

 

We are Americans but also world travelers and have loads of experience visiting exotic places on our own so we aren't afraid of being hassled or having to haggle. We just aren't interested in shopping or camel riding.

 

Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

Hi, How was your trip? I'd like to learn your experience too. I will be there next week and am still debating if I should get off the ship. Any update will be appreciated.