Tamerza: the great waterfall, the canyon and the ghost village

Perched a few kilometres from the Algerian border, Tamerza (or Tamaghza in Berber) is the largest of the three mountain oases of the Jerid. Here the mountain opens into a wide canyon at the bottom of which flows a permanent wadi, a rare thing in the Tunisian South; along its banks, palm, fig and pomegranate trees form a long, narrow oasis that you discover from the corniche road.

What to see

• The big waterfall: at the entrance of the oasis, the wadi plunges about ten metres into a pool ringed with palm trees. A small café overlooks the falls.
• Old Tamerza: on the opposite bank, the earthen village abandoned after the 22 days of rain in 1969. Alleys, collapsed houses, a mosque with an intact minaret: a film set that you explore on foot.
• The canyon: a path follows the wadi between the red walls; the bravest go up to a second, smaller waterfall.
• The viewpoints: the road towards Mides offers a plunging view over the whole oasis.

A little history

A Roman post (Ad Turres) and then a caravan relay, Tamerza was a stage between the Jerid and Algeria for centuries. The old village lived off its dates and its gardens until the floods of 1969, which ruined the earthen houses; the State then built the modern village, a little higher up, with one of the finest hotels of the South on the mountainside.

On our tours

Tamerza is the central stop of the "mountain oasis" morning, between Chebika and Mides, on our 2-day Tozeur, 3-day Djerba → Tozeur and the grand 10-day tour.

Practical information

• From Tozeur: about 70 km, 1 h 15 via Chebika.
• Best season: October to April; the waterfall flows all year round.
• What to bring: closed shoes for the old village and the wadi bed.