Having avoided all the rip-off merchants in Egypt I was looking forward to my 90 minute camel ride into the mountains not far from the tourist resort of Hammamet, in fact it was the first tourist destination in Tunisia and in World War II it was one of the headquarters of general Erwin Rommel, located in the south east of the northern peninsula of Cap Bon on the Gulf of Hammamet (South of Tunis). Sadly the Arab Spring has had a very deleterious impact on the Tunisian economy and especially on tourism both internal and from abroad. As the photo shows Hammamet has some wonderful beaches but the promenade that is packed with restaurants, bars and shops was practically empty when we called for lunch. Normally on a Saturday it would be full of locals as well as tourists but it felt and looked like a rather sad Blackpool with a cold sea fret wafting amongst the deserted tables in the seafront restaurants.
La Goulette had benefited since my last visit in 2007 from the construction of a huge cruise terminal mainly to house local boutiques and souvenir shops but nevertheless set out with some cunning thought – you were carefully steered along every alleyway to maximise the foot fall by the various stalls and shops in order to find your way back to the ship!!.
The trip along the lagoon towards Tunis showed little of the dereliction that was to follow on our short drive out to Hammamet but oh boy once on the road the litter began and just got worse and worse. I should say that several other guests did venture into Tunis and found it to be OK but the impression I gained on my tour was not so favourable. I had been impressed with what the previous Government had achieved particularly in terms of welfare and education on my visit in 2007 but today tourism is down significantly and a distinct feeling desolation pervaded everything including the camel ride – ship of the desert – that I was about to undertake.
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