Matmata

Matmata is a village in the south of Tunisia, famous for its troglodyte (cave) dwellings. Scenes from a number of Star Wars movies were filmed here.

Get in

 * There are regular daytime services by louage (shared taxi) or bus (8 daily) from Gabes (40 km north-east).
 * SNTRI provides a daily bus service from Tunis Sud station (leaving at 21:30, 23.800 DT) via Sousse (leaving at 23:15, 16.870 DT) and Sfax (leaving 02:00, 10.610 DT), arriving at Matmata at 05:00 (Mar 2017).
 * By car - Matmata lies about 45min inland (south-west) from Gabes on a sealed road. Douz lies about 1 hr 30 min to the west. It's an 1-hour drive from Medenine across mountain roads, passing the historic town of Toujene.

Get around
Matmata is very small, so you can easily walk between places.

See

 * Ask your hotel if they can arrange a tour of a traditional troglodyte (cave) dwelling; many such properties are located around the village and are today still inhabited by local families. You may give the family a small tip (no more than 5DT)
 * There is a small museum behind the Hotel Sidi Driss, displaying local history. No written information in any language is available, so better come with a guide. DT3 per person (February 2018)
 * Mos Espa, home to a young Anakin Skywalker, was constructed from scratch in the desert near Tozeur, and traditional Berber architecture in the Tataouine area was used to portray the slave quarters where Anakin lives with his mother.
 * Mos Espa, home to a young Anakin Skywalker, was constructed from scratch in the desert near Tozeur, and traditional Berber architecture in the Tataouine area was used to portray the slave quarters where Anakin lives with his mother.
 * Mos Espa, home to a young Anakin Skywalker, was constructed from scratch in the desert near Tozeur, and traditional Berber architecture in the Tataouine area was used to portray the slave quarters where Anakin lives with his mother.

Eat
There are a few restaurants serving typical Tunisian cuisine in the town center (where the three roads meet).

Go next
Tounine, Beni Zelten, Matmata Nouvelle, Mareth, Douz, Bazma


 * SNTRI provides a daily bus service leaving from Matmata at 20:30 to Sfax (arriving 23:30, 10.610 DT), to Sousse (arriving at 02:15, 16.870 DT), and to Tunis Sud station (arriving at 04:00, 23.800 DT) (Mar 2017).