The Grand Mosque, Sousse

London to Tunisia in 48 hours without flying?

You don't need to fly to visit Tunisia.  Far from it.  You can travel safely, comfortably and affordably from London's St Pancras Station to Tunisia without flying, by Eurostar, TGV high-speed train and comfortable cruise ferry.  Take Eurostar to Lille or Paris and change onto a high-speed TGV train to Marseille, then sail to Tunisia by Corsica Linea or CTN ferry, ferries sail every few days.  This page is a step-by-step guide to planning, booking and making a trip to Tunisia by train and ferry, with no flying necessary!

  London to Tunis by train+ferry - times, fares, tickets

  Useful country information - tourist info, currency, etc

  Hotels & accommodation in Tunisia

On other pages...

  Train travel within Tunisia

Useful country information

London to Tunis

	Day 1, by Eurostar & TGV from London to Marseille:  Take Eurostar to Lille or Paris, then a 186 mph TGV from Lille or Paris to Marseille...
	Chill out along the Rhone Valley...  The TGV flies past pretty French villages, crossing and re-crossing the River Rhone on huge viaducts.  Spend the night in Marseille.
	Day 2, at Marseille, you board the ferry to Tunisia, with comfortable en suite cabins, restaurants, bars and sun decks...
	Day 3, arriving in the Bay of Tunis, with the sun glinting off the sparkling waters, and the ruins of Carthage up on Byrsa Hill on your right...

London ► Tunis

• Day 1:  Travel from London to Marseille by train, leaving London St Pancras by Eurostar at 12:58, changing at Lille Europe (arrive 15:30, depart 16:02) onto a direct TGV to Marseille, arriving Marseille St Charles at 20:46.  For full details, see the London to France page.

  Alternative trains are available if you'd like to leave London earlier and spend an afternoon or evening in Marseille, or if you'd like to travel via Paris, see the London to France page.  On certain days and periods there is a direct Eurostar from London to Marseille, see details and days of running here.

  It's a very scenic trip, as south of Lyon the TGV runs along the Rhône Valley, crossing and re-crossing the River Rhône, flying at ground level through the hills of Provence over some impressive viaducts to reach Marseille.  Watch out for a dramatic viaduct over the Rhone just before Avignon, with views of the famous 'Palais des Papes' in the distance (though if you can spot anyone dancing 'sur le pont d'Avignon' you've got better eyesight than me).  You'll catch a glimpse of Marseille harbour with its Chateau d'If of Count of Monte Cristo fame to your right just before arriving at Marseille St Charles station.  Spend the night in a hotel.

  Facilities on board TGVs.   Map of Marseille. 

• Day 2:  Sail from Marseille to Tunis by cruise ferry, usually leaving in the morning or lunchtime and arriving in Tunis the following morning (day 3).  Two ferry companies, the French Corsica Linea and the Tunisian CTN (Compagnie Tunisienne de Navigation) sail from Marseille to Tunis several times a week all year-round.  Sailing times & dates vary, so see the Seat61 Ferry Shop or www.corsicalinea.com for actual times & fares for your dates of travel.  CTN also have their own website, www.ctn.com.tn, although without online booking.  Both French Corsica Lines and Tunisian CTN ships are modern and comfortable with a full range of restaurants, bars, cinema & cabins.  Make sure you're on deck as the ship sails out of the port of Marseille, past the fishing boats in the Vieux Port and the infamous Chateau d'If, with great views of the city.  24 hours later you've crossed the Mediterranean, and the ship sails into the Bay of Tunis, past the ruins of the ancient city of Carthage on Byrsa Hill, with a real sense of arrival that airline passengers will never know.

• Day 3:  The ferry arrives at Tunis international ferry terminal at La Goulette, about 6 miles (10km) from Tunis city centre.  You can either take a taxi (10-15 dinars, but insist that the driver uses the meter) or walk to the nearby La Goulette station on the Tunis-Marsa 'TGM' light railway and take a train two stops to the Tunis Marine station at the end of the line, journey time about 15 minutes.  There are banks in La Goulette for local currency to buy a ticket.  Map of Tunis (the ferry terminal is at the right-hand end of the long straight section incorrectly marked as the Avenue Habib Bourguiba, south of Keredine, at the entrance to the Ben Arous).

• For onward trains from Tunis to Sousse, Monastir, Sfax & Gabès, see the Train travel in Tunisia page.

• Day 1:  Sail from Tunis to Marseille by cruise ferry.  Ferries sail several times a week, usually at around 11:00 or 12:30, arriving in Marseille the following day (day 2) at 08:30, 10:30 or occasionally 14:00.  Sailing times & dates vary, so see the Seat61 Ferry Shop or www.corsicalinea.com for times & fares.  Both French Corsica Linea ships and Tunisian CTN ships are modern and comfortable with a full range of restaurants, bars, cabins, cinema, and so on.  Tunis international ferry terminal is at La Goulette, 6 miles from the city centre by taxi or light railway plus a short walk.

• Day 2:  Travel by train from Marseille back to London.  Allow at least 3 hours to make a connection in Marseille between the scheduled arrival of the ferry and the departure of your train.

• If the ferry arrives 08:00-09:30, there's a 13:10 TGV high-speed train from Marseille to Lille, change at Lille onto Eurostar, arriving London St Pancras at 19:03 (21:03 on Saturdays), still on day 2.  If your ferry arrives 09:30-11:00, there's a 15:36 TGV to Paris, change train & stations in Paris and take the Eurostar arriving London 21:39.  If your ferry is due to arrive any later than 11:00, then you should plan to spend the night in a hotel and travel the next day (day 3).  This advice takes into account the fact that ferries can sometimes arrive late.  See the London to France page for the full range of times, fares & options from Marseille to London.

• Book the ferry first, online at www.corsicalinea.com or using the Seat61 Ferry Shop.  Make a note of the sailing dates & times.

• Then book the train from London to Marseille.  You can book online from any station in Britain to Marseille at www.loco2.com, with print-at-home or collect-at-station tickets.  See the London to France page for a complete step-by-step guide to booking train tickets from the UK to Marseille.

• Book the ferry first, by calling Corsica Linea's and CTN's UK agent, Southern Ferries, www.southernferries.co.uk, on 0844 815 7785.

• Then book the train from London to Marseille, by calling International Rail on 0844 248 248 3, lines open 09:00-17:00 Mondays-Fridays or Ffestiniog Travel (01766 772050) - but it's quicker and cheaper to book online.  Click here for more European rail booking advice.

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London - Tunis via Genoa

It is also possible to travel from London to Tunisia via Genoa in Italy - the ferry may be a bit cheaper from Genoa to Tunis than from Marseille to Tunis, but the train fare from London to Genoa is usually more expensive and less convenient than London to Marseille.

• CTN (Tunisian) provide a ferry service from Genoa to Tunis once or twice a week, with fares starting at about £85 single, £155 return - visit the Seat61 Ferry Shop to check fares and sailing dates.

• Grandi Navi Veloci (Italian) also sail from Genoa to Tunis two or three times a week - see www.gnv.it to check fares and sailing dates.

• For details of train times and fares between London and Genoa, and how to buy tickets see the London to Italy page.

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Find hotels in Tunisia

		◄ Favourite hotel search & price comparison: hotelscombined.com
		www.hotelscombined.com checks all the main hotel booking sites at once to find the widest choice of hotels & the cheapest seller.  It's been named as the World's Leading Hotel Comparison Site in the World Travel Awards and I recommend it to find hotels in even the smallest places and to check that another retailer isn't selling the same hotel for less. ► Favourite hotel booking site: www.booking.com www.booking.com is my favourite hotel booking site, and unless HotelsCombined throws up major price differences I prefer doing my bookings in one place here.  You can usually book with free cancellation - this allows you to confirm your accommodation at no risk before train booking opens.  It also means you can hold accommodation while you finalise your itinerary, and alter your plans as they evolve - a feature I use all the time when putting a trip together.

Personal recommendation...

The Hôtel Majestic on the main Avenue de Paris in Tunis has the best French colonial facade in town and is a great place to stay, see www.booking.com/hotel/tn/majestic.en.html.  It was closed for refurbishment for a while, but has reopened in 2011.  It's comfortable and central, and rooms with en suite facilities cost around £20 per night.

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Guidebooks

You should take a good guidebook.  For the independent traveller this means either the Lonely Planet or the Rough Guide.  I personally prefer the layout of the Lonely Planets, but others prefer the Rough Guides.  Both provide excellent practical information and historical background.  You won't regret buying one!

Click the images to buy online at Amazon.co.uk

The European Rail Timetable has train, bus and ferry times for every country in Europe.  It costs £15.99 from www.europeanrailtimetable.eu.

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Travel insurance & health card

Take out decent travel insurance, it's essential...

Never travel without proper travel insurance from a reliable insurer with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover.  It should also cover loss of cash & belongings (up to a limit), and trip cancellation.  An annual multi-trip policy is usually cheapest even for just 2 or 3 trips a year - I have an annual policy myself.  However, don't expect travel insurance to bail you out of every missed connection, see the advice on missed connections here.  Here are some suggested insurers, Seat61 gets a little commission if you buy through these links, and feedback from using insurance for rail & ferry travel is always welcome.

In the UK, use www.confused.com to compare prices & policy features across major insurance companies.

If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over 65, see www.JustTravelCover.com - 10% discount with code seat61.

        If you live in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try Columbus Direct's other websites.

  If you live in the USA try Travel Guard USA.

Get an EU health card, it's free...

If you're a UK citizen travelling in Europe, you should apply for a free European Health Insurance Card, which entitles you to free or reduced rate health care if you become ill or get injured in many European countries, under a reciprocal arrangement with the NHS.  This replaced the old E111 forms as from January 2006.  The EHIC card is available from ww.nhs.uk.  It doesn't remove the need for travel insurance, though.

Carry a spare credit card, designed for travel with no currency exchange loading & low/no ATM fees

Taking out an extra credit card costs nothing, but if you keep it in a different part of your luggage you won't be left stranded if your wallet gets stolen.  In addition, some credit cards are better for overseas travel than others.  Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which UK credit cards have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when you use an ATM abroad.

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