Tunisia to become the worlds top seawater therapy destination

Sharjah 24: With a Mediterranean coastline, natural thermal springs, clement weather and affordability, Tunisia has become the world's second-largest destination for seawater-based treatments known as thalassotherapy.

Korbous, a coastal town on the Cap Bon peninsula, has historically been one of Tunisia's hot spots for the therapy, which uses sea water and other marine resources.

Ancestral heritage

Thalassotherapy is an ancestral heritage for Tunisians, since hydrotherapy has existed in Tunisia since antiquity, at the time of the Carthaginians and the Romans.

Other popular thalassotherapy destinations in the country include Sousse, Hammamet, Monastir, and Djerba, which was named the Mediterranean thalassotherapy capital in 2014 by the World Federation of Hydrotherapy and Climatotherapy.

Job creator

Tourism accounts for seven percent of the country's GDP and provides nearly half a million jobs, according to official figures. The sector has seen a decade of setbacks due to terrorist attacks and later the COVID-19 pandemic. But it has been recovering again as the number of foreign visitors exceeded 10 million last year -- a record for the country of 12 million people.

Thalassotherapy on its own draws about 1.2 million foreign visitors a year, with 70 percent coming from Europe, including 40 percent from France. The industry generates approximately $63 million per year.

Cost effective

Visitors come from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, among other countries.

Therapy is much cheaper than in France, with 1,000 euros a week all inclusive instead of 3,000, while the quality of the water and the facilities just as good as in France".

Kaouther Meddeb, head of the thalassotherapy and spa centre at the Royal Elyssa Hotel in Monastir, said the number of clients has been growing lately.

More investments required

Yet despite meeting international standards, the sector remains underappreciated in Tunisia, whereas there's a lack of communication and promotion.

Experts say more investment is needed in infrastructure. This includes road improvements and air services, they say, as there are few low-cost flights.

But plans are already underway to develop eco-friendly thermal resorts in regions like Beni M'tir, a mountainous village in the northwest, and near Lake Ichkeul south of Bizerte.

With all the advantages it has, Tunisia is poised to become the world leader in thalassotherapy.