Sousse: what to see, where to stay and how to get around

Now in Sousse--:--:--

--°

Sousse was the Phoenician and Roman port of Hadrumetum, and in the ninth century the Aghlabid rulers made it a fortified base against Byzantium, building the walled medina that is now a world heritage site. Ninety minutes. Check Israel’s current travel warning for Tunisia before going.

A short history of Sousse

The Phoenicians founded the city of Hadrumetum here in the 9th century BC, and it later became an important Roman city. In the 9th century AD the Aghlabids made it the base of their fleet and built the ribat, a fortress for warriors of the faith, in 821, and the Great Mosque in 851. The Christian catacombs beneath the city contain thousands of graves from the 2nd to the 4th century. In 1988 the old city was declared a World Heritage Site. On 26 June 2015 a gunman killed 38 tourists on the beach of a hotel near the city.

The ten best sights in Sousse

1
The Ribat
A fortress of warrior-monks; climb the tower
2
Great Mosque
A fortress-mosque of 851
3
Dar Essid
An old family house in the medina
4
Kasbah and Museum
Roman mosaics in the kasbah
5
Catacombs of the Good Shepherd
Early Christian tunnels of tombs
6
Place Farhat Hached
The square at the medina gate
7
Bou Jaafar Beach
The town beach and its promenade
8
Port El Kantaoui
A resort marina north of town
9
Hergla
A white village on a cliff over the sea
10
Ribat of Monastir
The fort where Life of Brian was filmed

sleepntripFree with every roomThree audio walks in every city

A guide in your headphones, stop after stop.

To the walks

What is an audio walk?

Tours in Sousse →

A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Sousse:

Free walking tours in Sousse

The medina and the ribat

Place Farhat Hached · The square at the foot of the medina walls, named after the Tunisian union leader assassinated in 1952 in the struggle for independence, which came in 1956. From here the gates lead into the old town.
The Ribat · Finished around 821, a ribat was a fortified monastery where volunteers lived as both monks and soldiers, guarding the coast against Christian raids. Its round watchtower was part of a chain of signal towers along the coast said to be able to pass a warning by fire along the coast in a single night.
Great Mosque · Built in 851, it looks more like a fort than a mosque, with corner towers and crenellations and no real minaret — the call to prayer was given from the ribat’s tower or a small turret. Its courtyard is open to visitors outside prayer times.
Dar Essid · A traditional house of a well-off family, furnished as it was, with tiled rooms around a courtyard, a bridal chamber and a tower with a view over the medina roofs to the sea.
Kasbah and Museum · At the top of the medina, the kasbah’s tower of 859 served as a lighthouse. Inside is one of the great collections of Roman mosaics in the world, second in Tunisia only to the Bardo — sea gods, hunting scenes and the poet Virgil.
Catacombs of the Good Shepherd · Under the town run kilometres of early Christian burial tunnels of the second to fourth centuries, holding thousands of tombs sealed with tiles and inscriptions. A short stretch is open to visitors.

The coast

Sousse is also the beach resort of the Sahel, the Tunisian coast of olives, with a marina to the north and Monastir to the south. Half a day; the beaches are busiest in summer.

Bou Jaafar Beach · The town beach just below the medina, with a palm-lined promenade where families walk in the evening.
Port El Kantaoui · A marina village built from scratch in the late 1970s in a neo-Moorish style, with hotels, golf courses and boat trips.
Hergla · A quiet white village on a cliff over the sea, whose women weave mats of alfa grass used in olive presses to squeeze the oil.
Ribat of Monastir · Founded in 796, the oldest ribat in North Africa, on the sea at Monastir. In 1978 Monty Python filmed Life of Brian here, using the fort and the town as Jerusalem.
Bourguiba Mausoleum · Habib Bourguiba, born in Monastir, led Tunisia to independence and was its president for thirty years; he gave women rights unusual in the Arab world. His gilded-domed tomb stands at the end of a long avenue by the sea.
Monastir Airport · The airport of the Sahel, between Sousse and Monastir, through which most charter visitors arrive for the beaches of this coast.

Kairouan, El Jem and Mahdia

Within an hour of Sousse lie three of the great sights of Tunisia: the holy city of Kairouan, the Roman amphitheatre of El Jem and the Fatimid capital of Mahdia. A full day by car or tour.

Kairouan Great Mosque · Founded in 670 by Uqba ibn Nafi, the Arab conqueror of North Africa, the mosque was largely rebuilt in the ninth century and is the oldest in the Maghreb. Kairouan is counted a holy city of Islam, and tradition says seven visits here equal one pilgrimage to Mecca.
Jewish Kairouan · In the tenth and eleventh centuries Kairouan was also one of the great centres of Jewish learning, in close contact with the academies of Babylon. Rabbenu Chananel and Rabbi Nissim Gaon taught here, and their commentaries on the Talmud are still studied in every yeshiva.
Aghlabid Basins · Two great round reservoirs of the ninth century, the larger about a hundred and thirty metres across, that stored water brought from the hills by aqueduct for the dry city.
El Jem · An amphitheatre of the third century for about thirty-five thousand spectators, among the largest the Romans built and one of the best preserved, rising over a small town in the olive country. You can walk down into the passages under the arena where the animals waited.
Mahdia · Founded in 921 by the Fatimids as their first capital, on a narrow peninsula guarded by a great gate, the Skifa el Kahla, the Black Gate. Mahdia is known for its weavers of silk and gold thread for bridal dresses.
The Ribat · Back in Sousse at sunset, the view from the ribat’s tower over the medina, the port and the sea is the best end to the day.

sleepntripRoad and rail routesEvery night on the road, our hotel

Whole routes, with a room up to $80 at every stop.

To the routes

Getting to Sousse and getting around

Monastir Airport · Twenty minutes south of Sousse
Enfidha Airport · The other airport, forty minutes north
Sousse bus station · Buses and louages, the shared taxis

Cheap eats in Sousse

The Sahel is olive country, and Sousse eats with its oil: couscous with fish or lamb, brik, mechouia, a salad of grilled peppers and tomatoes, and from Kairouan makroudh, diamonds of semolina filled with dates, fried and soaked in honey. Street food around the medina gates is cheap.

Kairouan Great Mosque · Makroudh in Kairouan
Place Farhat Hached · Street food at the medina gate
Port El Kantaoui · Fish in the marina
Mahdia · Fish by the old port

Museums in Sousse

Sousse and its region hold Roman mosaics, catacombs, an amphitheatre and the forts of the Aghlabids.

Kasbah and Museum · The mosaics
Catacombs of the Good Shepherd · Early Christian tombs
El Jem · The amphitheatre
Dar Essid · A Tunisian house

Nature and day trips near Sousse

The Sahel is a coast of olive groves and long sandy beaches.

Bou Jaafar Beach · The town beach
Hergla · The cliff village
Port El Kantaoui · Boat trips

Things to do in Sousse with kids

With children: a fort to climb, a beach in town, an amphitheatre for gladiator games and boat trips.

The Ribat · The tower climb
El Jem · Under the arena
Port El Kantaoui · Pirate-ship cruises

Holy places in Sousse

From early Christian catacombs to the fortress-mosques of the Aghlabids and Kairouan, holy to Muslims and once a capital of Jewish learning.

Great Mosque · The fortress-mosque
Kairouan Great Mosque · Uqba’s mosque, and Rabbenu Chananel’s city
Catacombs of the Good Shepherd · The catacombs

Nightlife in Sousse

Sousse has the liveliest nights of the Tunisian coast: hotel bars, the marina and the clubs of the tourist strip.

Port El Kantaoui · The marina at night
Bou Jaafar Beach · The evening promenade
Place Farhat Hached · Cafés by the walls

sleepntripFree cancellationEvery room we sell cancels for free

Plans change? Until the date on the card it costs nothing.

Find a room

Frequently asked questions about Sousse

What is there to see in Sousse?

The top sights in Sousse are The Ribat, Great Mosque and Dar Essid. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.

How many days do you need in Sousse?

Three to four days are enough to see the best of Sousse without rushing, including at least one walking tour.

Is there a free walking tour in Sousse?

Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Sousse, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: The medina and the ribat.

How do you get to Sousse and get around?

The main ways are Monastir Airport, Enfidha Airport and Sousse bus station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.

Where to stay in Sousse, and for how much?

sleepntrip shows only rooms in Sousse that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.

Looking for a hotel in Sousse for your dates?

Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.

All hotels in Sousse

Plan a trip across TunisiaMedinas, beaches and desert→