This Tunisia guide focuses on real road trips, parking pressure, tolls, fuel, seasonal routes and local restrictions around Sousse, Tunis, Hammamet, so the rental choice matches the journey instead of only the daily price.
Tunisia drives on the right, and the motorway linking Tunis to Sousse and on to Sfax is genuinely modern, with toll booths spaced widely enough that a coastal run rarely feels interrupted.
South of the Sahel, the roads change character quickly: past Gabès the highway narrows to a single lane each way, and the landscape shifts from olive groves to the flat, cracked expanse of the Chott el Djerid within an hour.
Beyond the beach resorts of Hammamet and Djerba, a rental car opens up the fortified granaries of the ksour near Tataouine, the troglodyte houses of Matmata, and the salt-flat crossing to Douz, a version of the country most package holidays never reach.
The TGM light-rail line runs parallel to the coast road out to Carthage and Sidi Bou Said, and drivers who time their visit for a weekday morning can usually find parking near the Antonine Baths without much circling.
Sidi Bou Said's blue-and-white lanes are pedestrian-only near the top of the village, so the practical move is parking at the lower public lot and walking up rather than hunting for a spot closer to the belvedere.
Medina traffic in central Tunis is best avoided altogether; leaving the car at a guarded lot near Bab Bhar and entering the old city on foot saves both the stress of narrow lanes and the risk of a parking ticket.
The road across the Chott el Djerid between Kebili and Tozeur runs dead straight over the salt flat for roughly an hour, and midday heat shimmer can make the horizon blur into water that isn't actually there.
Tozeur's oasis roads wind between date palm plantations irrigated by a centuries-old system of channels, and the mudbrick brick-pattern architecture of the old town is easiest to appreciate slowly, on foot after parking near Ouled el Hadef.
Douz calls itself the gateway to the Sahara, and the paved road stops abruptly at the dunes on its outskirts, where local guides with 4x4s or camels take over for anyone wanting to go further into the desert proper.
Sousse's medina sits directly behind the harbour and is ringed by ninth-century walls still largely intact, with a car park just outside Bab el Bahr making it easy to leave the car and walk the ramparts on foot.
Cap Bon's coastal road toward Kelibia passes vineyards and small fishing ports where the catch is sold straight off the boats, a quieter alternative to the resort strip for anyone with an afternoon to spare.
The car ferry from Jorf to Djerba island takes about 15 minutes and runs frequently, and skipping the longer causeway route from the mainland in favour of the crossing is often faster during peak summer traffic.
The troglodyte houses of Matmata, dug straight into the hillside as pits with rooms carved into the surrounding rock, still function as family homes and one or two open their courtyards to visitors for a small fee.
Ksar Ouled Soltane, near Tataouine, stacks its four-story ghorfas, the arched storage cells once used for grain and olive oil, around two courtyards that photograph strikingly at the golden light of late afternoon.
Chenini's abandoned Berber hilltop village, west of Tataouine, is largely empty of residents now but its stacked stone dwellings and a small mosque remain accessible via a rough but drivable track up to a car park below the ridge.
Avenue Habib Bourguiba carries heavy pedestrian and vehicle traffic simultaneously, and parking directly on it is scarce, so a side-street lot a block or two away usually saves more time than circling for a curb spot.
The airport road into Tunis can back up badly during the evening rush between roughly 5 and 7pm, and travelers with an early flight the next morning often find it easier to stay near the airport rather than fight that traffic twice.
Street parking in central Tunis is often managed informally by a gardien de voiture who expects a small tip for watching the car, which is a normal local custom rather than an attempted scam.
Spring, from March to May, brings mild coastal temperatures and wildflowers across the northern hills, making it the most comfortable stretch for long driving days without the summer heat.
Summer temperatures in the interior south routinely exceed 40 degrees Celsius, and driving across the Chott el Djerid or toward Douz during the hottest midday hours puts real strain on both car and driver, so an early start is worth planning around.
Winter brings occasional heavy rain to the north that can flood low sections of road around Bizerte and Tabarka, while the south stays largely dry and comfortably cool for driving through the desert in daylight hours.
Pick up the car near Tunis-Carthage airport, leave it parked near Bab Bhar to walk the medina, then drive out along the coast road to Carthage's ruins and finish the day among Sidi Bou Said's blue-and-white lanes.
Take the toll motorway south along the coast to Sousse, walk the medina's ramparts from the car park at Bab el Bahr, and continue a short distance further to settle in for the night.
Backtrack north for a loop around Cap Bon, stopping at small fishing ports and vineyards toward Kelibia before returning south to Sousse or Hammamet for a second night on the coast.
Drive inland through Kairouan for a brief stop, then continue south toward Kebili and across the Chott el Djerid to Tozeur, watching the landscape change from olive groves to salt flats along the way.
Spend the morning walking Tozeur's old town and its palm-shaded irrigation channels, then drive south across the mountains to Matmata for an afternoon among its pit-dwelling troglodyte houses.
Drive further south to Tataouine, visiting the stacked granaries of Ksar Ouled Soltane and the hilltop ruins of Chenini before returning toward the coast for the drive back north.
Take the short ferry crossing from Jorf to Djerba island, spend the morning in Houmt Souk's covered market, and return the car at Djerba-Zarzis airport in time for a departing flight.
Inspect the tires and windshield closely for chips or cuts picked up on the gravel roads to the south, since these are the items most commonly disputed at return and the most easily documented with a quick photo.
Return the car with a full tank at a station near the drop-off point rather than the agency's own pump, since agency refuelling is typically charged well above the local pump price.
These guides explain payment, deposit and supplier rules before booking.