Skanes

Skanes, with its beautiful and seemingly endless sandy beach, is a suburb of the Tunisian Mediterranean port town of Monastir. The town has happily given itself up as a tourist Mecca, centred on a modern marina and a revamped Medina crammed with souvenir shops and restaurants. Even its ancient Ribat (fort) has been rebuilt and glamorised by being used as the setting for several movies like Monty Python's Life of Brian, as well as Raiders of the Lost Ark.The historic city of Monastir retains its ancient air of having been Tunisia's holiest place, and an important strategic stronghold that was once used as a base by Julius Caesar. Just a few miles from the centre of Monastir lies the extravagant stretch of grand hotels that have been built along the coast in the area known as Skanes. These magnificent architectural delights are set in acres of lush gardens, most of them encompassing their own patch of well-maintained sandy beach.The Skanes hotels are well connected to Monastir and other nearby resort towns, like Sousse, by a tourist road train and a plethora of taxis. Monastir also has the advantage of having its own international airport. Parasols and umbrellas pepper the beaches, along with the stands of local vendors and watersports equipment renters.