The best time to visit Djerba
Djerba has a long season: sea from May to the end of October, the pilgrimage in May, charter crowds in July and August, and a 17–20-degree winter for cycling rather than the beach.
- Best
- May–Jun & Sep–Oct
- Busiest
- July–August: 33–34 by day
- Winter
- December–March: 17–20 by day
Djerba is the south, and that is measured by the sea: it is swum from May to the end of October, longer than anywhere else on the Tunisian coast. The middle of the season — July and August — is charter time with thirty-four degrees and full hotels; May–Jun & Sep–Oct; Jul–Aug 34 bring the same sea with fewer people and a price to match.
Djerba has no autumn in the usual sense: October is still a summer month, with a sea of twenty-five degrees, warmer than in June. Below is month by month, with what each brings.
May–Jun & Sep–Oct; Jul–Aug 34: the ends of the season
Twenty-seven to thirty-one degrees by day, a sea from nineteen in May to twenty-seven in September, a wind that is a nuisance in summer and a relief now, and beaches where you get to choose your sunbed. Hotels run with everything on, without the charter markup in the price. In May the sea is still cooler than the air — nineteen against twenty-seven — so May suits the town and the Sahara as much as the beach; in October it is the other way round, the sea holds twenty-five while the air is already dropping. The Sahara works in both windows without trouble; in summer it does not.
Charter season
July and August hold the record: thirty-three to thirty-four by day, around twenty-four at night, the sea twenty-six to twenty-eight. Charters from all over Europe keep the hotels full gate to gate; the beach works in the morning and after five, noon is for the pool. The north-easterly wind raises waves in the afternoon that are too much for children. Prices are at their highest, and everything runs — from the restaurants in Houmt Souk to the clubs in the zone. The Sahara is not done in summer: Matmata and Tataouine have no shade.
A winter for sightseeing
November is the transition: twenty-two by day and a sea of twenty-two, swimmable for anyone who does not mind that. From December to March it is seventeen to twenty-one by day, sunny most days, the sea fifteen to eighteen — not for the beach, for everything else yes. The island is cycled without the heat, the villages, the synagogue and Guellala are empty, and the Sahara is at its best. Some hotels in the zone close; the funduqs in Houmt Souk keep running. Anyone coming for Tunisia rather than the beach comes in winter.
Month by month
If you only pick one month — October
Before you go
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
When is the best time to visit Djerba?
May–Jun & Sep–Oct; Jul–Aug 34: air 27–31 by day, charters thin out and prices fall. The sea is warmer in September–October (25–27) than in May–June (19–22), which suit the town and the Sahara better than long swims.
Can you swim on Djerba in October?
Yes, until the end of the month: the sea is 25 degrees, warmer than in June. In November it is 22 and only the hardy swim; from December to March it is 15–18 and the island is for cycling.
How hot is summer?
Thirty-three to thirty-four by day in July and August, around twenty-four at night, the sea up to twenty-eight. The north-easterly wind raises waves on the hotel beaches in the afternoon. Everything runs and everything is full; the Sahara is not done in summer.
Ready for Djerba?
Where to next
Getting around Djerba
→A short taxi ride from the airport, and around the flat island a taxi, a hired scooter or a bike — the town…
El Jem · 159 km
→A Roman amphitheatre for 35,000 in the middle of an olive plain — an hour from the beach
How well does Djerba suit you?
→Six questions: a score for this place and others like it.
Front row for the next trip
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