Bizerte Governorate

Spread along Tunisia's north coast, Bizerte is the northernmost city in Africa and still bears the marks of its Phoenician, Andalusian, Ottoman and French chapters — the French only left its naval base in 1963. The old port, tucked beneath a 17th-century kasbah, opens onto a saltwater lake linked to the Mediterranean and onto Ichkeul National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site for its migratory birds. The governorate covers 3,750 km² of golden beaches (Raf Raf, Sidi Salem, Sidi Mechreg), dramatic capes (Cap Blanc — the continent's northern tip — and Cap Zbib), offshore islands (Pilau, Galite) and craft villages like Sejnane, whose women's pottery is inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list. An hour from Tunis on the A4 motorway, it is the ideal base for the north coast, the ancient ruins of Utica and the old corsair haven of Ghar el Melh.