What to buy in Tunis & Casablanca

[lovelyladi]

Any ideas for souvenirs that are not too touristy when we are in Morroco & Tunisia?

[Pat.bz]

Handmade brass platters would be my number one

[NautiqueBelle]

In Tunisia: Sand Roses.

The one I have is light tan in color and very delicate looking. I keep it with my seashell collection. See these links:

 

http://bedrockfossils.com/sasaro.html

http://www.himfr.com/buy-Sand_Rose/

[Dunmore2]

I love the perfumed oil I bought in Tunisia. It is still fresh and potent after 2 years It is called "Flowers of Hammamet " and smells of roses and jasmine. There are quite a few scents available and the glass vials are small and easy to pack. If you are flying in rather than sailing, the airport sells wonderful items too, both before and after the security area. The wooden items inlaid with mother of pearl are beautiful. The glass hookah pipes are nice too, but cumbersome to pack. There are beautiful salad bowls and pestal/mortar sets made from olive wood. We stayed there for a week after our last cruise and loved the experience. If you have a chance, try to sample the white melon, the grapes,the dates, fresh almonds or pistachios. Delicious.

[California Native]

Dunmore...

Thanks for your informative post...

We are just beginning our planning for our 4/20/09 Brilliance of the Seas Cruise that ports in Tunisia..

Did you use a private tour during your visit?

Thanks!

K.

[Dunmore2]

No, we were at a hotel in Hammamet for the week and spent most of our time in that area. We rented a car on two separate occassions and drove to a few sites. Tunis is a huge city and I would not recommend renting a car there. A guide would probably be your best bet. Someone who knows how to get from point a to point b quickly. A taxi driver could do that as well. The Eyewitness Travel Guide to Tunisia was helpful.

[kimanjo]

Any ideas for souvenirs that are not too touristy when we are in Morroco & Tunisia?

 

We just got back from a cruise with Tunis as a stop. We went to a "souk", the bargaining market. There were stalls with lots and lots of leather (camel, supposedly, but who knows). They wanted 200 Eruos. I came out empty handed, didnt even want to play that game with the price starting that high.

We got back to the bus, and one of our fellow passengers got a beautiful one. The vendor started out at 180 Euros, and after the back and forth, and her actually leaving the stall, she said "all I have is this 20Euro". THat's it nothing else. Well, she got it. Beautiful purse.

 

DD wishes we could have gone back for the bright pink bag she loved!!!

[California Native]

Thanks for the story!

I've bargained around the world, but I've heard in Tunisia, Eygpt, Morocco and Istanbul...it's a whole other world...

so i've been gathering experiences such as yours to know

how to handle the elevated level of aggresiveness...and to know how to play the game properly!

[Toots]

We took a wonderful ship's tour of Tunis and surrounding area and in the Old Medina shopping area in Tunis we bought two pieces of beautiful pottery. They started at $100 each and as we walked away shaking our heads and saying no, the price kept dropping until we paid $10 each. We're not comfortable bargaining, but in Tunisia it seems to be the rule.

[SanNic44]

Where2next,

 

Please start a thread about bargaining. I'm no good at it and would like to learn the tricks of the trade PRIOR to my next trip.

 

Thanks.