Other popular thalassotherapy destinations in the country include Sousse, Hammamet, Monastir, and Djerba, which Tunisian news agency TAP said was named the Mediterranean thalassotherapy capital in by the World Federation of Hydrotherapy and Climatotherapy.
Customers mainly come for the quality of spring water, said Raja Haddad, a doctor who heads the thalassotherapy centre at the Royal Tulip Korbous Bay hotel. Today, Tunisia boasts 60 thalassotherapy centres and spas, 84 percent of which are located in hotels, according to the ONTH.
But it has been recovering again as the number of foreign visitors exceeded 10 million last year β a record for the country of 12 million people. Guizani said thalassotherapy on its own draws about 1. That compares with a French thalassotherapy market valued at around million euros last year, according to market research firm Businesscoot.
At a luxury hotel near Monastir, a thalassotherapy centre buzzes with customers despite the cold winter season.
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. Yet despite meeting international standards, the sector remains underappreciated in Tunisia, she said.
