Ksar Jouamaa: sleeping in a restored Berber ksar in the heart of the Dahar
On a ridge of the Dahar, a 17th-century ksar has been restored to welcome travellers: you sleep in a ghorfa, dine Berber-style under the stars and wake up facing the Jeffara plain.
- From Djerba
- ≈ 110 km
- Driving time
- ≈ 1 h 45
- Suggested time
- 1 night
- Best season
- October → May
- Altitude
- ≈ 500 m
Between Medenine and the Beni Kheddache mountains, Ksar Jouamaa overlooks the Jeffara plain from its ridge. This fortified granary, built in the 17th century by the tribes of the region, has been restored and turned into a guesthouse: its ghorfas have become bedrooms, its courtyard a place for dinner under the stars. It is our address for a night out of time, less than two hours from Djerba.
The experience
- Sleeping in a ghorfa: a vaulted room of stone and earth, cool in summer, warm in winter, with its low palm-wood door.
- The Berber dinner: couscous, tabouna bread baked under the ashes, mint tea, sometimes music, around the fire in the courtyard.
- Sunset and sunrise: from the ridge, the view stretches over the plain to the sea; in the morning, the light climbs up the neighbouring ksour.
- The villages around: Beni Kheddache and its ksour (Ksar Hallouf, Ksar Kerachfa), Toujane on the road to Matmata, or Tataouine and Chenini a little further south.
A little history
The ksour of the Beni Kheddache region served as granaries and refuges for the semi-nomadic tribes who climbed into the mountains in summer and came back down to the plain in winter. Ksar Jouamaa, one of the best placed, controlled the track between the Jeffara and the Dahar plateau. Its restoration, in the 2000s, set an example: several ksour in the region are now reopening as guesthouses.
On our tours
Our A Night at Ksar Jouamaa escapade (2 days / 1 night) includes the transfer from Djerba, the discovery of the hilltop villages, dinner and the night at the ksar, breakfast and the return. It can be combined with a day in the Dahar or towards Ksar Ghilane for those who want to follow on with the dunes.
Practical information
- From Djerba: about 110 km, 1 h 45 via Medenine.
- Best season: October to May; cool nights in winter, bring a fleece.
- What to bring: a torch, closed shoes; no guaranteed mobile signal, which is the point.
