Day-by-day stages
Day 1 — Tunis → Hammamet → Nabeul
81 km, about 1 h 10. Hammamet’s walled medina right on the beach, then Nabeul, the capital of pottery and ceramics — its Friday market is one of the liveliest in the country.
Day 2 — Nabeul → Kelibia
58 km, about 50 min. Coast road towards the tip of Cap Bon. Kelibia’s fort overlooks the fishing harbour; ten-odd kilometres north, the Punic town of Kerkouane is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Day 3 — Kelibia → Tunis → Bizerte
194 km, about 2 h 35. Back through the inland peninsula, then the A4 motorway to Bizerte, its old port and kasbah. Ichkeul National Park, a UNESCO site, is half an hour away.
Day 4 — Bizerte → Tabarka
136 km, about 2 h 15. The road follows the wildest stretch of coast in the country to Tabarka, its Genoese fort on the islet and dive sites known for their coral.
Day 5 — Tabarka → Dougga
127 km, about 2 h 15. Up through the cork-oak forests of Ain Draham, then Dougga, which UNESCO describes as the best-preserved Roman town in North Africa: capitol, theatre and whole districts on a hillside.
Day 6 — Dougga → Tunis
108 km, about 1 h 40 via the A3 motorway. Back to Tunis.
Starting from Tunis
Picking the car up at Tunis-Carthage airport keeps you out of the city centre from the start: the A1 motorway to Hammamet is a few minutes away. If you spend a few days in the capital first, Carthage, Sidi Bou Said and the medina are easy to visit without a car.
When to go
May to October for swimming on Cap Bon and at Tabarka. The north is the wettest region of the country: in winter the countryside is at its greenest, but the hill roads around Ain Draham can be slippery.