Tunisia is a country in North-Africa that has a Mediterranean Sea coastline in the very centre of south Africa. Tunisia lies to the south of Italy and Malta. Algeria borders Tunisia to the west. Libya lies south-east of Tunisia.

Most nationalities, including those from the USA, Canada and the United Kingdom do not require a tourist visa to travel to Tunis. If your nationality is not listed below, you have to contact a Tunisian Embassy and apply for a tourist’s visa.

You do NOT require a tourist visa if you are from one of these countries: Algeria, Antigua, Austria, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bermuda, Bosnia & Herzegovina, British Virgin Islands, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Cote d', Croatia, Denmark, Dominica, Falkland Is, Fiji, Finland, France, Gambia, Germany, Gibraltar, Gilbert Islands, Greece, Guinea, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland Rep, Italy, Japan, Kiribati, Korea (South), Kuwait, Libya, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Monaco, Montenegro, Montserrat, Morocco, Netherlands, Niger, Norway, Oman, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Saint Helena, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent & Grenadines, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovenia, Solomon Is, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States, Vatican City and Yugoslavia.

When you are traveling to Tunisia your passport must be valid at least six months after you cross the border. We recommend that you renew your passport if it is even close to 6 months before expiration. You will get a stamp in your passport upon entry into Tunisia (it is important that you get it) which will let you stay in Tunisia for three months. Tunisia does not have an entry fee.

Nationals of Australia and South Africa can get their visa upon arrival at the airport, but to be sure, double-check with the Tunisian Embassy.

As usual in most African countries you must be careful about what you eat and what you drink when traveling to Tunisia. We recommend avoiding the purchase of food from street vendors, especially raw food. Tap water can be drunk in most towns, but there's lots of cheap bottled water around to be totally sure. Tunisia is malaria-free.

Recommended immunizations and vaccinations

No vaccinations are required to enter Tunisia, but we strongly advise to take Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccinations. Be sure to be up to date with your tetanus and polio vaccines.

Vicious crimes are not common in Tunisia but getting harassed by "guides" and small theft is very common in the tourist dense areas. Try to be careful, stay out of non-lit places at night. Keep your valuables safe, don’t flash your jewelry and cameras, and don’t wear your camera on the neck.

Tunisia is an Islamic country so we suggest you take that in mind when choosing your clothing. In most tourist regions and Tunis, dress is modern and only half of the women ever wear head scarves. However you won't see that many short skirts or shorts. You’re free to wear a bikini at the pool or at the beach, but we strongly advise not walking around in your bikini top in other places.

The Tunisian Dinar is Tunisia's official unit of currency. Click here to convert your currency and see the latest exchange rates. It may be troublesome for some people, but 1 dinar is equal to 1000 millimes, not 100. Don’t be frightened if you se 6,100 on a ride home with the taxi, it’s only ~6 Dinar.

The Tunisian Dinar is not exchangeable outside Tunisia, but you can easily change Dollars in Tunis, British Pounds and Euros at most major banks witch will be in the main street at any city or town.  Most ATM’s accept credit cards. Personally, my US MasterCard was accepted everywhere. Simply using an ATM is both less time consuming and often cheaper.

You have to spend all your Dinars in Tunisia, because their currency is not simply non-exchangeable outside Tunisia, but it is illegal and you will be fined very heavily if you try to do so!

Credit Cards are accepted at luxury hotels, in the tourist zones and some luxury restaurants, but cash is usually the way to go. American Express is rarely accepted.

As usual the weather mostly determines when to travel to Tunis. If you prefer to trek in the desert the best time to go would be at autumn or spring. It will be nicely chilly at night, and suitably warm (but not to hot) at day.

If you enjoy lying at the beach without the crowds, May and September are ideal. Most tourists travel to Tunis in July and August. The swimming is perfect and the beach towns are filled with life. Be sure to take care of your accommodation early on however, if you don’t want to be in a bad surprise.