Day One: ARRIVAL AT TUNIS
Airport reception and transfer to your hotel. Enjoy a Walk in the beautiful capital of Tunisia. Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
Day Two: TUNIS
We start the day by visiting the famous "Bardo" museum, which has many Roman mosaics and carvings.
After a Delicious lunch, we take an unforgettable walk in the ancient medina, a marvelous world that enables us to discover the "Al zeitouna" and "Sidi Mehrez" mosques, the most original in the old "Medina";. We will also visit"Tourbet el Bey";, mausoleum of Husseinians princes. The "souks" of Tunis are particularly pleasant and colorful: gold jewelry, perfumes and the famous "chicha" seen crafted as you walk in the souks while visiting traditional workshops. Then, we can have tea in one of Avenue Bourguiba's cafés.
Dinner and overnight at hotel.
Day Three: TUNIS - DOUGGA - TUNIS
At Dougga mainly the ancient "Thugga", we will discover the Roman style theater which is still in use and a Libyan-Punic mausoleum.
Lunch included.
Allied with Rome against the Carthaginians, "Thugga" is an important Punic city which was spared by the Roman troops that ravaged Carthage in 146 BC. It was annexed a century later, in 46 BC by Caesar. The location is exceptional, with its soft green hills, a blue sky, some goats, old shepherds ... and the remarkable ruins: the forum of the Capitol, the temple of "Caelestis", the baths, the theater, the square of roses of wind , the Libyan-Punic mausoleum, the arc of Alexander Severus and others.
On the way back we stop in the charming Andalusian town of "Testour".
Return to hotel, dinner and overnight.
Day Four: TUNIS - UTIQUE - Bizerte - TABARKA
We Visit "Utica", a charming place founded by the Phoenicians of "Tyre" long before Carthage. Due to its neutrality Utica was spared and became an important city under the Antonines and the Severi. The museum and its garden have some pretty mosaics inspired by the sea.
Then we drive along the coast to reach the region of Bizerte where we enjoy lunch. We take a Walk around the old portand then we drive around the mountains connecting the massifs of "Mogods" and "wadi Sejnane". The village of "Sejnane" is best known for its native Berber pottery and for the beautiful storks. The whole region was the granary of Rome. It was the theater of sad scenes of terrible battles during World War II. In spring these valleys spread all shades of green which are really fascinating. The pretty little port of "Tabarka" is best known for coral fishing, rocks eroded by the sea, the needles, the Genoese fort and the terrace of the Andalusia cafe decorated with blue ceramics.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
Day Five: CHEMTOU - BULLA REGIA - SBEITLA
We cross the forest of the mountains Kroumirie. 90,000 lightly planted hectares with cork oaks surrounding the costal "Tabarka". "AïnDraham" located 800 meters is a good resort for hunting and for winter sports. In Chemtou or Simithus, the important Roman and then Numidian site, we will discover the impressive quarry where the Numidians marble with the color of the lion's mane was said to be extracted. We will also visit the remarkable museum.
Lunch before we walk the ancient city of Bulla Regia, where the underground mansion floors are really fascinating.
Dinner and overnight at hotel.
Day Six: Sbeitla - Kairouan - Sousse
In Sbeitla we will recall the beginning and development of Christianity in North Africa. The earliest inscriptions are back to the first century and the city built on an orthonormal frame was definitely not Punic. We will see the splendid capitol that consists of three temples that still standing since the 2nd century, joined by arcs which curves are crossed into each other. This remarkable technique was largely used in roman Tunisia. The large spa baths divided into winter and summer ones are a beautiful set. The Byzantine churches have beautiful baptistery decorated with polychrome mosaics. This site is a real beautiful flourishing garden.
Lunch in Kairouan, the First Muslim city founded in North Africa and one of the most important cities in Islam's history. We admire fountain "Aghlabid", the city reservoir built in the ninth century, then we will admire the architectural genuine of the mosque, "Djama Sidi-Okba", one of the oldest places of worship in Islam. The Barber's Mosque, built around the burial of an apostle of the Prophet "MUHAMED", is a pure masterpiece of Islamic art.
Dinner and overnight at hotel.
Day Seven: SOUSSE - El JEM - SOUSSE
We leave for El-Jem, "Thysdrus" or theater of Rome, whose main function was the production of oil. The vast amphitheater, built in the late second century on the model of the "Coliseum"; of Rome has kept its three floors and could host 35,000 spectators.
Visit of the museum and the villa Africa that was discovered in 1990 and restored by the team of Professor Jean Claude Golvin. Built around a central courtyard, the different rooms are luxuriously decorated with mosaics, but the main interest lies in the restoration of walls and roofs. On the way back, we will visit the tropical medina of Sousse
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
Day Eight: Sousse - Thuburbo Majus - ZAGHOUAN - Oudhna - TUNIS
Thuburbo Majus overlooks the "Milian" river and the whole cereal region. The State Capitol, the temple of Mercury, the Baths of winter and those of summer, the "palaestra of Petronii", are all prestigious buildings that worth the visit. The slopes of Jebel Zaghouan: the temple of the water source that fed the aqueduct of Carthage is where we enjoy lunch.
Visit of Oudhna. The road runs along the Aqueduct or "Hanaya" of Zaghouan, a few kilometers in the valley of Wadi Miliane. Connecting Zaghouan with Carthage in a line of 132 km the "hanaya"; is considered one of the most remarkable engineering achievements of the Roman Empire.
Dinner and Overnight at the hotel in Tunis.
Day Nine: CARTHAGE - THE GOULETTE - SIDI BOU SAID - TUNIS
We pay a Visit to Carthage. The ruins of Carthage provide a summary of the history of Tunisia from the foundation of the Phoenician city, in the eighth century BC to the Arab conquest in the seventh century AD. Founded by Elyssa-Dido, ancient Carthage is an amazing city.
The view over the bay of Tunis isamazing and the Punic district houses cling to the hillside.
On byrsa Hill, we will see the archaeological museum which has two superb sarcophagi Punic, then the Punic ports and the Antonine Baths. In the district of Salambo, we will discover the "Tophet"; sanctuary of Tanit and Baal Hammon. Lunch at the beautiful costal city "La Goulette".
By late afternoon we will have a walk in the charming village of Sidi Bou Said: decorated by blue and white, orange-lined streets, and purple bougainvillea brilliance. The town is a favorite residence of painters, musicians and poets.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel.
Day 10: DEPARTURE
Transfer to the airport, assistance with registration and return flight
