Djerba Island Holidays

Island charm

Djerba is an island just off Tunisia’s southern coast. As holiday destinations go, the place is a relative newcomer – but with its whitewashed villages and sandy coastline it’s already going down a storm with tourists. The northeastern bit – AKA Zone Touristique – has nabbed the hotels and the night-time action. And it’s picked the best beaches, too.

Sandy beaches

It’s Djerba Island's beaches that have really put this place on the map. You’ve got no less than 125 kilometres of pale sand spooling around the coastline here. The beaches come with hotels attached, so you won’t be short of places to refuel between sunbathing. And they don’t stint on watersports around here, either.

Movie-set countryside

This isn’t a bright-lights, big-city place – the countryside is dotted with villages, not towns. You can still get a culture fix, though. There’s the world’s oldest Torah – the Hebrew holy book – at El Riadh, and a super-sized mosque in El May. Meantime, movie buffs get Ajim – the sand dunes here were the star turn in the first Star Wars movie.

Day trips to Houmt Souk

Twenty minutes’ drive from the Zone Touristique gets you to Houmt Souk – the nearest thing you’ve got to a city here. A visit to the old town gets you a Medieval fortress and streets that spill over with bazaars and antique dens. And the place has loads of traditional Tunisian restaurants near the port.