Monastir

Monastir is Sousse's smaller neighbour on the Sahel coast, with its own airport, a fortified ribat right on the sea and the first president of Tunisia's mausoleum under a gold dome. The old core — ribat, mosque, medina, mausoleum and marina — is walked in a single day, and the rest of a stay goes to Skanes beach or a day trip to a nearby town.

The Ribat's walls come into view from the shore before the entrance does, the same walls that played both Jerusalem and Mecca in crusader films. Inside are a courtyard, a prayer hall and a tower with a view of the sea on one side and the old Muslim cemetery on the other. Entry is €2.37, opening hours are winter 8.30am–5.30pm, summer 8am–7pm, Ramadan 8am–5pm, with no closing day of the week.

The Ribat opens straight onto the medina, much smaller and quieter than Sousse's, 1 h 30 to walk its lanes and the souk without hurrying, free of charge. The medina also holds the Great Mosque of Monastir, a separate building from the ribat with a courtyard visible from the street; the interior isn't part of this walk.

The Mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba is a few steps further on, recognisable from a distance by its gold dome and two minarets. The tomb of independent Tunisia's first president is free and needs no booking, and the gardens around it stay open even when the interior is occasionally shut for a private ceremony.

Monastir Marina (Cap Monastir) is the last stop on the loop, a modern basin full of sailboats and yachts on what was once open shore. The space is public and free, and you only pay for what's eaten or drunk beside the water.

Skanes beach sits apart from this loop, in the hotel zone a few kilometres away, reached by taxi. Entry to the town beach is free, and it belongs on a second or third day of a stay, not the morning set aside for the ribat and the medina.

Monastir has its own airport, Habib Bourguiba (MIR), which serves the whole Sahel, not just this town; getting to the centre means a taxi, taxi (no bus line; the metro station is about 1.5 km from the terminal, no shuttle), 10–15 min. In total the town holds 3 (town, Skanes, a trip). Sousse is twenty-odd minutes by train, and in the other direction are Mahdia, Kairouan and El Jem — each its own day trip, not part of this loop.