We flew with Kathargo Airlines from Edinburgh to Monastir. The flight time is about 3 and a half hours. The airline was very basic with no in flight entertainment and the usual meals were served. The aircraft was obviuosly quite old with shabby seats and trays that didn't work or were broken. If on a Boeing 737 then don't sit near the centre of the plane (seat 12 to 14) as the legroom is quite ridiculous!
On Arrival at Monastir be prepared for long queues whilst you go through immigration. After collecting your baggage don't worry about finding your coach, as there'll be a willing porter ready to whisk you and your luggage off to the desired coach park. The journey to Port El Kantaoui takes about 1 hour taking into account the stops at various Hotels along the way. We stayed at the VincciHotel.
On Arrival we were shown straight to our apartment and asked to register first thing in the morning as it was gone 1am.The Vincci is located on the main road from Sousse and is about 10 minutes walk to the Marina. We were on a self catering basis and found the apartment quite pleasant. The living room had a bed settee, easy chair, table with 4 chairs small kitchen area with two hobs and a fridge. However there was no kettle, microwave or toaster. The bedroom was large with a king size bed and a single, and also had two large cupboards and a dressing table. The apartment was fully air conditioned which you can control, and the bathroom was adequately furnished. The sheets and towels are changed on a daily basis and room cleaned to a good standard.
The Hotel boasts 4 restaurants and 3 bars. We tried the Mexican restaurant and found it to be of a good standard and reasonably priced. We also tried the main restaurant which is buffet style and were glad we were on self catering! The number of fly's on the food was disgusting! The food is very bland and luke warm and to be honest the worst we have tried anywhere. We never went back again. The bars are okay and are all waiter service for which they expect a tip of course. The indoor pool is very good and refreshing. The outdoor pool on the other hand is too small for the number of guests staying at the Hotel. Don't go near the poolside bar, it is overcome with black fly's.There is a shop located within the Hotel which sells most groceries etc but is extremely expensive even by UK standards. I always took a walk to the Marina where there is a mini-market selling goods at up to 4 times cheaper than the Hotel shop. As for entertainment within this Hotel.......forget it! It's complete rubbish and they have the cheek to charge you for it too! Take my advice and give it a miss. You can change money in the Hotel and of course you get more if you use cash rather than cheques. If you're from Scotland, make sure you take English notes.
The Marina as said is about 10 minutes walk from the Hotel. As you walk towards the Marina you'll see a roundabout. The Aqua Palace water park is to your left and costs about 12 Dinars for an adult and 7 for a child. You can have fun there for a couple of hours and when you leave look out for the Golf Brau bar. It serves snacks such as Pizza and salads etc and the best beer you'll taste in Tunisia. As you approach the entrance to the Marina you'll see a mini market located to your right adjacent to a car park. Here you can buy drinks, crisps and much more. There is quite an extensive amount of wine here too, and of course beer. You have 2 choices of beer. Celtia, which is Tunisian, and Lowenbrau which I found far more superior. Once you enter the Marina you'll be greeted by lots of small shops selling the usual touristy type goods. There are plenty of cafe's and restaurants here too and a walk around the Marina is very pleasant apart from locals trying to sell you boat trips etc. During the evening the Marina gets quite busy and we sat in a few restaurants and enjoyed.
There is quite a lenghty beach area both sides of the Marina and all types of watersports are available if you so desire. The Hotels have their own private areas which include free chairs etc for guests use and there are also snack bars. Generally, the beach is quite clean and the water lovely and warm.
If you like lying around the pool or going down to the beach then you'll enjoy Port El Kantaoui. For me I found it a little boring so booked up for an overnight trip to see some sites in Tunisia. There are several trips you can go on, and we chose the Desert adventure which was fantastic! The coach will collect you quite early from your Hotel (for us it was 630) and you will visit many sites including the ampitheatre where they shot scenes for "Gladiator", then onto the original "Star Wars" set, and a chance to ride a camel through the Sahara for an hour........great! The Hotel was fine and an ice cold beer was very welcoming! You'll be woken at 4am and off again to see the sun rising in the Sahara..........beautiful! A wild 3 hour trip in a 4x4 up the Atlas Mountains and of course all meals on the trip are included. If you can manage, do the full 4 day trip, we wish we had. The cost for our trip was £70 each for an adult and £35 for a child 12 and under, well worth it.
Should you wish to visit Sousse to explore the Medina or whatever, then transport is everywhere. The cheapest way to get there is by bus but the taxis are reasonable and quicker (fasten your seat belts!!) It will cost you about 5 Dina, but they will only carry 4 passengers, anymore and you'll have to get another cab.
Overall Port El Kantaoui is a reasonable resort to visit. However, I myself would not return there, but then again I wouldn't go back to Tunisia. If you are visiting then enjoy, but for me it's back to the land of the free, back to the luxury villas in Florida and to see my old chum Mickey!!
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I went to this resort in Tunisia once, but never again. Managed to get food posioning from somewhere and never want to repeat the experience......Nicely reviewed though, Lexy
painty 07.08.2006 16:26
souds lovely, welcoem to ciao, brilliant first review
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Aug 7th, 2006
very helpful by (100%):
