DAY 1 - ROME , TUNIS - Sunday (LD)
Tickets will be issued & delivered in the USA.
In Rome you are on your own, or combine
with our Italy's tour packages
Board TUNIS AIR morning flight from Rome.
Our local staff will meet you upon arrival at Tunis Carthage International
Airport.
You'll be assisted with the formalities, and escorted to your hotel
: Hilton or similar for lunch.
There will be time to relax and recuperate
from your journey, and enjoy the excellent facilities. If you wish,
you can adventure into the center of Tunis to start your exploration
of the winding alleys of the souk, filled with treasures of beaten brass
and basketry and carpets, and merchants who will welcome you with traditional
mint tea. Dinner will be at your hotel.
DAY 2 -
THUBURBO MAJUS & DOUGGA - Monday (BLD)
After
breakfast at the hotel, we start our full day to Thuburbo Majus:
This town of Libyan and then Punic origin sided with Carthage and thus
had to pay a tribute to Rome . Thuburbo Maius reached its apogee in
the 2nd c with 10,000 inhabitants and and impressive array of of monuments:
the forum, built in 161-2, the capitol (168) and a number of temples
(Temple of peace, Temple of Mercury, Temple of B'a alat, Temple of Caelestis,
Temple of Saturn) of which one later became a basilica, we'll tour as
well the market, Roman bath and the amphitheater. We'll enjoy lunch
at a local restaurant before proceeding to Dougga: A Numidian city,
mentioned in the 4th century B.C. By Diodorus the Sicilian as Tocai,
tukka was from the 2nd to 1st century B.C. One of the residences of
the Massyle Kings (MASSINISSA, MICIPSA,JUGURTHA). In Roman times the
municipal land was split into two parts; the Numidian city, and a pagus
(rural area) under the authority of Carthage, Whole again, thugga was
a municipium in 205 and honorary colonia in 261. With some 5,000 residents,
thugga had a municipal bourgeoisie which endowed her with a number of
rich monuments. The monuments are incredibly well preserved, allowing
us to imagine the infrastructure this small Proconsular town possessed:
12 temples, 3 of which were transformed into churches in the 4th Century
, 3 Roman baths, numerous fountains, aqueducts and more. Thugga slowly
lost its glory, though it still enjoyed brief periods of revival in
the 3rd, the 4th and 6th centuries (Byzantine fortress) .Though it was
never deserted, archaeological research required the removal of its
residents to a new Dougga lying below classical thugga. Return early
evening to our hotel in Tunis in time for dinner.
Day 3 -KAIROUAN,
HAMMAMET,
SOUSSE, MONASTIR, EL DJEM,TUNIS
- Tuesday (BLD)
After
a leisurely breakfast,We'll delve more
into Tunisia's rich and varied past today, as we motor overland through
pleasant, rolling coastal lands, we'll reach Kairouan, an ancient, holy,
and vibrant city noted for its historic mosques and centers of learning.
We'll lunch at the five-star Hotel La Kasbah. Kairouan also is noted
for its souk, and the crafting of carpets and leather goods. Of course,
there will be time to check out these wares,
We'll stop at the port of El Kantaoui, and then proceed back into time
to venerable Sousse, once the Phoenician City called Hadrumatum. We'll
stroll through the medina, the old quarter, cooled by sea breezes, and
visit the museum as well as the Ribat, a stronghold of the warriors
of Islam. Then we'll continue to Monastir, where we'll stop for lunch,
and visit its own notable ribat, as well as the Bourguiba Mosque, dedicated
to the hero of Tunisia's independence. Lunch will be served at a comfortable
four-star hotel. In El Djem, we'll marvel at an ancient amphitheater,
before continuing to Tunis, where a night's
rest and dinner await us once again at the hotel.
Day 4 - KEBILI, Wednesday (BLD)
We'll enjoy a full day of desert adventure, today. First we'll visit
the village of Kebili, largest of a cluster of oases, islands of life
in a harsh landscape, visit the Byzantine Fort , After lunch we tour
Kerkouane the well preserved ancient Phoenician village.
Then we proceed to el Haouaria , known for its famous Roman Quarries.
On to Korbous and the Roman Hot Springs, we stop at Dar Chaabane to
visit the stone cutters before we head back to Tunis and our hotel for
a delicious dinner.
DAY 5 - DJERBA, Thursday
(BLD)
Our busy day starts with a drive to the coastal city of Gabes, a Roman
outpost of old and a traditional market center where, for centuries,
goods from across the sea and across the desert have changed hands.
We'll visit the oasis, where palm groves and gardens flourish. We'll
then cross to Djerba, an island where Ulysses once encountered the legendary
Lotus-Eaters. You'll have time to explore the old quarters, including
the synagogue of Hara Sghira, Hara Kebira with its modern Jewish community,
and Guellala, with its craft stalls, and to see the waterfront and fishing
fleet, and the lively town of Houmt Souk. After a lunch stop, we'll
cross back to the mainland. Dinner at the hotel.
DAY 6 - TUNIS, CARTHAGE, SIDI BOU SAID
- Friday (BLD)
On this full day,we'll
marvel at the ruins of Carthage, a true metropolis of the ancient world,
as evidenced by its theater, circus, baths, port installations, and
extensive urban plan. We'll lunch at a fine local restaurant, then speed
forward in time to the middle ages, as we visit the picture-perfect
Moorish village of Sidi Bou Said. With its whitewashed walls and narrow
laneways, it's the perfect setting as we stop for traditional mint tea.
Back in Tunis, we'll stop at the Bardo Museum, to view the most extensive
Roman mosaics in the world. We'll then head for the Medina, the old
quarter of the city, with its warrens of shops filled with wares ranging
from humdrum to exotic. After a break to freshen up, we'll meet up at
our hotel for our dinner.
DAY 7 - TUNIS, HAMAMAT, CAMEL MARKET,
Friday (BLD)
Morning visit
to the local camel market of Nabeul and its local souk . After
breakfast, we'll set off to explore! Hammamet, a cosmopolitan port where
sun-worshippers from all over happily coexist with fishermen and traditional
ways.
Afternoon at leisure. Dinner
at the hotel
DAY 8 - DEPARTURE - Saturday (B)
After breakfast, our local personnel will escort you to the international
airport, where you'll board your flight back to Rome. Estimated time
of arrival at FCO is around 6 PM . Subject to availability of space
and air fare, you may fly today to Palermo or Paris instead of Rome
at the same rate.
RATES per person in US$:
Sharing in Double Occupancy: $ 1950
In Single occupancy : $ 2250
