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Practicalities (Partly written by Tore Kjeilen a visitor from Norway who gives an interesting insight from a different perspective)
Hammamet is so
much a tourist resort, that you can for long hours get a feeling that Tunisia
has evaporated and all the country left behind are zealous shop keepers. German,
French and Swedish are spoken at all sides of you. Silly European men walk the
streets in nothing but bear paunch, football shorts and Adidas sandals. You pass
families where no one says a word, and all walk and eat ice cream at the same
speed, many pushing trolleys ladened with shopping bags. Female tour guides in
orange dresses are followed by a crowd of camera-ornamented tourists, while she
talks without stopping and pretends that she is a specialist on Tunisia and its
culture.
And then suddenly
a Tunisian Casanova changes the image, but just slightly, where he walks towards
you with his hand around the waist of a twenty years older Finnish woman
confused by all the sudden attention she gets
Most of the year, there
seems to be more Europeans here than in Marseilles. This makes many travellers
stay away from Hammamet, especially if they know a bit of the distinct charm
that the city had just a few decades ago. But Hammamet is a well-adjusted port
to Tunisia for many people. Many tourists go for comfort and fun, and then
Hammamet is among the best choices of Tunisia. And if anyone would like to go on
excursions, Hammamet is close to many sights: Tunis, Kairouan, and many small
towns out on the Cap Bon peninsula.
HOTELS AND ALTERNATIVES
For independent travellers, the best time to get a fair deal in a hotel is in
late spring and early fall. Through summer, most hotels are filled up with
package tourists, and through winter, many hotels close.
Hammamet has a wide offering
of hotels, but the best selection is in the middle range. Rock-bottom-budget
travellers will have problems finding an acceptable offer on hotels.
For people wanting comfort
at any price, Hammamet has many good alternatives.
Hammamet has two camping
grounds, where one actually is in town centre! But it is still good.
RESTAURANTS AND ALTERNATIVES
There are more than enough places to eat in a town like Hammamet. You will have
no problem finding places with both charm and good food. Value for money is
quite good.
NIGHTLIFE
Hammamet has a selection of bars and discos, where any traveller, also females,
can go and feel safe.
CHANGE MONEY
No problems. Banks, ATMs and many shop keepers accept credit cards like VISA and
MasterCard. Hotels of 2 stars and up will normally be able to change money.
TRANSPORT
Hammamet have OK connections with other cities, but you will normally have to
take a taxi to get to the station you want. There are more than one station for
shared taxis, the train station is about 1,3 km up from town centre. The bus
station is in town centre, next to the station for taxis that go to Nabeul.
A fair assessment on the whole in my opinion, although no mention of the wonderful sea front fish restaurants.
Kids dancing in the Medina
The Hotel I would recommend in Hammamet is the Le Saphir Village and it's Sister Hotel Saphir. This is an all inclusive complex situated a short walk from the sea front with it's beautiful sandy beach and beach bar. There are a number of fine leather shops nearby where you can barter your way to some very nice bargains. Inside the Medina in Hammamet itself you may find it a little bit threatening with the Tunisian habit of touching and hassling quite intimidating. This however is easily overcome with the use of a few simple words in the native tongue such as Labass as you move on or La Shukran in a stern voice or if all else fails, mandish floos will almost certainly do the trick. On the beach you will also be offered a number of goods, don't dismiss them completely, you can pick up some really cheap gifts by bartering hard, I bought two very nice Tunisian drums for a couple of pounds each and some tasty costume jewellery for next to nothing.
Taxi's are the quickest way of getting around although if you are wanting to travel any distance, say Tunis or Sousse then the railway is well worth using. It's very reliable and you have the option of three classes, it's well worth paying for 1st class as the price difference is minimal. The best trip for me was to Tunis where I hired a taxi for the day for Janice and myself for £25.00. The driver took us to Carthage and showed us all the individual sites, of which there are many and then took us to Sidi Bou Said, one of the most picturesque places I have ever seen. He took us for tea in a small hotel on the hillside overlooking the harbour and introduced us to his cousin who was a waiter there. Where would that happen in England? Hammamet is now growing with the addition of Jasmine Hammamet, a man made resort to the south of the old town. Magnificent Hotels adorn the superb new promenade and marina, but to me the magic of Hammamet is in and around the old town and Medina.
Another must see is the Cultural Centre of Hammamet which any taxi driver will take to but, ask for dar Sebastion, dar being Arabic for house.
It was built by George Sebastion who was of Rumanian extraction, George fell in love with Hammamet in 1920 and set about building his dream home which took 5 years. The Swiss painter Paul Klee and the French writer André Gide found artistic inspiration there, Edward VIII and George VI spent holidays there and in 1943 Rommel arrived uninvited and used it as his headquarters during the North African Campaign. Once the war was over Sir Winston Churchill took up residence followed by Sir Anthony Eden and many world famous stars. In the grounds is a fine amphitheatre which is used regularly for outdoor concerts including the International Hammamet Music Festival, well worth attending.
This is Sidi Bou Said and a picture of the panoramic view
overlooking the harbour
,
have you ever seen a more beautiful view?
You can travel very cheaply to Tunisia in the weeks before
Christmas when the temperature is very pleasant and the sites are exceptionally quiet. If
you choose to stay in July - August be prepared for temperatures in the high
nineties and very crowded resorts.
Still under construction
please send your comments
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