World Country Guide

Travel - International

Air
The national airline is Tunis Air (TU) (website: www.tunisair.com). There are regular direct flights to Tunisia from all over Europe, but no direct flights from Asia, Australasia, South America or the USA. Tuniter also runs services to Hassi Messaoud in Algeria and Malta (see Travel - Internal section).

Approximate flight times
From London to Tunis is two hours 30 minutes, to Djerba is three hours, to Monastir is three hours and to Sfax is three hours 15 minutes.

International airports
Tunis (TUN) (Carthage International) is 8km (5 miles) northeast of the city (travel time - 15 to 30 minutes). An airport-city coach and buses are available. Return is from Hotel Africa Meridien (city air terminal). Taxis are available; a surcharge is levied at night. Airport facilities include a duty free shop and banks/bureau de change.
Djerba (DJE) (Melita) is 8km (5 miles) from the city.
Monastir (MIR) (Skanes) is 8km (5 miles) west of the city. Buses are available to the city centre. Sfax (SFA) is 15km (9 miles) from the city.
Tabarka (TBJ) is 2km (1.25 miles) from the city.
Tozeur (TOE) (Nefta) is 10km (6 miles) from the city. All the above airports have bars, restaurants and both incoming and outgoing duty free shops. Taxis are available at all the airports.

Note
A new airport at Enfidha, 100km (62 miles) south of Tunis, is scheduled for completion soon.

Note
Tunisian currency is not valid in duty free shops.

Departure tax
None for visitors. TD45 for residents and nationals only.

Sea
Tunisia has seven major ports. SNCM (Ferry Terrane) runs ferry services from France and Italy to Tunisia. For more information, contact their main office in France (tel: (8) 9170 1801; fax: (4) 9156 3586; e-mail: confo@sncm.fr; website: www.sncm.fr). The major routes are Marseilles- Tunis (travel time - 21 to 24 hours) and Genoa-Tunis (travel time - 21 to 24 hours). A hydrofoil service is available from Sicily between May and September. Costa Cruises offer summer cruises from Genoa to Tunisia.

Road
Theoretically, there are several points of entry by road from Algeria, normally served by buses and long-distance taxis: Annaba (in Algeria) to Tabarka (following the coast road); Souk Ahras (in Algeria) to Ghardimaou and El Oued (Algeria) to Gafsa. However, political unrest means that it is difficult for tourists to cross the border. Entry by road from Libya is via the coast road at Gabs, via Ben Gardane and Ras Ajdir.