Hammamet's Medina is the most accessible and least overwhelming of Tunisia's walled old towns — a compact, genuinely inhabited quarter within 15th-century walls, where workshops, mosques, and residential lanes coexist alongside tourist shops. The main gate on the landward side leads into a network of narrow alleys; the kasbah at the seaward corner is the focal point.
The craft workshops here produce genuine work rather than import pieces: pottery, leather, and brassware made on-site. Prices are negotiable and generally lower than in the more famous souks of Tunis. The Great Mosque, rebuilt in its current form in the 15th century, stands near the centre of the Medina and is the architectural anchor of the whole quarter. Non-Muslims cannot enter, but the exterior and the surrounding lanes are worth the walk.