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Bizerte, Tunisia : Travel Guide

Bizerte is at one and the same time the most French and the oldest city of Tunisia. This is the place for the Phoenician colony called Hippo Diarrythus, established around 1000 BCE. But today's Bizerte bears a character of being the last place the French left. Bizerte served as a French base for five years into the Tunisian independence. The French only left after perhaps 1000 young Tunisians had died in attacks towards the military base the French wanted to keep here.

There are many good reasons to visit this place. It's far cooler than the rest of Tunisia in midsummer, it has some of the best restaurants in Tunisia, it's one of the few seaside cities of Tunisia (there are many cities close to the sea, but most of these never "meet" the sea, keeping a distance of a couple of hundred metres), and there are many very good beaches close by. The central port of Bizerte is a beautiful place. It's "defended" from the sea by a double kasbah that is in perfect shape despite the 400 years of age (the original structure dates back to Byzantine times). The houses at the port are made up of a beautiful mixture of greyish white and pale blue.

The old port

In modern times, that is since 1895, a straight and wide canal has connected the Bizerte Lake with the Mediterranean Sea. Before that, in times of Ottoman dominance or the time of the sea pirates, a smaller port passed through further north. Around this, the part of town which still feels like the true centre, was established. Of this today, two fortresses still guard the entrance, the smaller one called ksiba, the larger known by the standard name of kasbah. Both stand out as very visually attractive, especially when you throw in the views of the port of the media as well. There was for a long time a small island in the centre of the media, covering the area of the main markets in down town. For centuries this little island served as the main quarters of European tradesmen.

City scenes

Bizerte is definitely the town you best enjoy from a little distance. Where the port appears as white and well-designed, a closer look into the areas will be disappointing to many. As a matter of fact, many other Tunisian towns have more of those narrow streets, whitewashed walls broken only by iron-clad widows and richly ornamented and painted wooden doors. Still, a look around is worth it! Look especially for the 17th century Great Mosque and its adjacent two zawiyyas. The markets just behind the port are interesting shows of the variety of fruits and fish of this region.

Corniche - the beach

Bizerte's beach seems to go on and on. And it doesn't end before almost 5 km further north, at the Cap Blanc. Its quality varies all the way, some places are too crowded hence also littered. But not far from this, a more secluded area opens up. The main challenge for many visitors, as well as for many locals, is to find a good spot near town centre. Here, many of the beach metres have been taken over by hotels.

Aerial photo

A really illustrative photo, showing both the strategic location of Bizerte as well as its economic base. Modern Bizerte lies to the right (north) of the canal. The old town lies along the short curve of the old canal (slightly further right). Before the construction of the straight and wide canal, this continued further in to the Bizerte Lake.

Practicalities

Hotels and alternatives

Unfortunately, Bizerte is one of the worst places to get good value for your money if you plan to stay the night. This comes from the fact that there are no medium priced hotels. The cheap places are terrible, and they better places often overpriced.
During summer season, you should arrive early in the day to check out the hotels. Out of season, prices drop to a more pleasant level. But this is also the time when Bizerte stats to be a bit cold and windy.

Restaurants and Alternatives

Just as with the hotels, there is quite little to offer in terms of restaurants. Some guide books promise good sea food here, but finding the actual restaurants is difficult.

Nightlife

Night life in Bizerte is great through summer. Streets are crowded, discos are frequented by just as many women as men. And in many hotels there are live performances. So if you have found a hotel for the night, don't go to bed early.

Change Money

Bizerte has all necessary banks for changing money, as well as some ATMs for cash withdrawals. Many of the better hotels will change money in the reception.

Transport

There are plenty of forms of transportation in and out of Bizerte. Shared taxis are plentiful if you're going south, but more sparse if you're heading in direction of Tabarka and the western mountains. Other options are buses and trains.

Important

If you're spending the night during summer, book ahead for hotel rooms or arrive early in the day.