Sousse – February 2024

One was becoming to the soothing sound of the call to prayer at 5:30am each morning, however it was time to return to the UK today via Enfidha-Hammamet International Airport. The country’s motorway network makes traversing Tunisia’s major cities (and said airport) pretty easy hence if your taxi driver is struggling to navigate to Enfidha, simply tell them to head out to the motorway, you can’t go wrong from then on!

As expected, security outside and inside the airport is very tight akin to the rest of the country (police checkpoints are plenty around Tunisia), however, there is a positive aurora about the majority in terms of feeling safe.

After saying our farewells to Lotus Royal Move, we headed into the rather small terminal not knowing what to expect. We were pleasantly surprised by how knowledgeable the check in staff were in regards to electric wheelchairs making for a smooth process. Akin to Oslo and Yerevan, only manual wheelchairs are allowed airside, however this time we were given written confirmation that Superbunny had been loaded onto the plane. The only thing to watch out for is that battery chargers are considered to be a security risk hence you need to collect it before you board.

My next adventure takes me to Istanbul in Türkiye on the 8th April. You may be thinking how have I not travelled to said country in my 31 years of existence of being a British citizen (if you are confused by this, Türkiye is one of THE destinations for British tourists), the answer is unknown. Whilst one is in Istanbul, the plan is to also catch the YHT high-speed railway to İzmit. Of course, the hotel is conveniently located near a public transportation hub.

In the meantime, keep an eye on the YouTube channel for a wheelchairs (Superbunnys) perspective of rolling around the Sousse Ribat and Souk plus El Jem (using a portable ramp).

Sousse is a very walkable city with all the main sights being within a 10 minute radius of each other thus making for a pleasant stroll/roll for a few hours. As I mentioned, the Marriott Pearl hotel is located around a 20 minute walk from the centre with the best route taking one along the beach front…

Akin to Cyprus (again!), the front consists of a wide boulevard linked with palm trees, it even has signs indicating where best for wheelchairs to enter said beach (along with a disabled parking space opposite sandy ramps)…

Anyway, after turning the corner (and navigating through few issues with drop curbs!), one is confronted by the majestic walls of Sousse Medina and Ribat…

There are various entrances into the Medina and subsequent Souk, some cobbled and some paved. One decided to enter over the cobbles just for a little authenticity…

However, you are bound to find a paved (and very busy!) section at some point…

The only issue with the Sousse Medina and Souk is that steps could be lurking around any corner in the labyrinth and you have no idea until you reach them, memory is key!

The next stop was the Ribat which is located within the same area. My prior ‘vlog’ research informed me that only the bottom section is accessible after a little step. It is worth noting, however, that disabled individuals can enter for FREE (oh and you can only pay with cash)…

Wandering around Sousse, it appears that Tunisians have a habit of parking on drop curbs, rather annoying for wheelchair users but on the whole, very friendly people!

Tomorrow, we heed out of Sousse with Lotus Royal Move to visit El Jem which is the third largest Colosseum in the world after Rome and the now collapsed Capua. As the access isn’t great at the UNESCO site, one asked Lotus for a portable ramp to assist Superbunny. As I am unsure whether this method has been tried before, this could go one of two ways, let’s see…

It is hard to fathom that one has visited more than 35 countries (at the time of writing) but yet to step foot on the African continent. This changed today when we touched down at Enfidha-Hammamet International Airport in Tunisia. Enfidha-Hammamet is a relatively new airport sandwiched between Hammamet and Sousse and was constructed mostly to allow European airlines to bring tourists closer to the plethora of holiday resorts (plus allowing one to fly direct from Bristol).

Although the airport regulations means that no wheelchairs are allowed to the plane door (bar their own), the speed at which Superbunny was transported to the baggage area was exceptional, it took longer to navigate the tangled road network out of said place!

Akin to Cyprus, one was surprised by the lack of information regarding accessibility when researching Tunisia given it’s tourism status. I was therefore mostly reliant on trusty Street View and conventional travel vlogs to suss out the lay of the land. It was also a challenge trying to source wheelchair accessible transportation which was also surprising, however, one soon came across Lotus Royal Move. Despite being based in the capital, Tunis, Lotus Royal Move are willing to transport wheelchair users across Tunisia for a reasonable cost. At the time of writing, they are also in the process of creating accessible tourism packages.

For the next 4 nights, we are staying at the Sousse Pearl Marriott Resort which is to the north of the city centre and around 45 minutes from Enfidha-Hammamet Airport . The rooms are pretty standard for a Marriott, although the bathroom is on the small side. On the positive side, look at all this space…

The plan for tomorrow is to head into the centre (which is around a 20 minute walk) to explore the Souk, Medina and the ‘accessible’ parts of the Ribat (what would I do without vlogs!). Earlier this year, one invested in a GoPro to bring a new perspective to my travels, the real test for this begins tomorrow!