Ksar Ghilane and Matmata Star Wars Jeep Safari: What to Know Before You Book

Five tips before you book

• Tell the operator your height when you book if you are tall. Reply to the booking confirmation and ask for a seat in the front or middle row. One recent reviewer asked and the driver moved the sixth passenger into another car.
• Ask whether the driver of your car speaks your language. The guide moves between cars only at the stops. Travellers who booked in English, German or Italian and rode with a French-speaking driver say they missed most of the commentary between stops. If the reply is vague, ask to be placed in the guide’s car.
• Bring cash for the quad, the camel and drinks. Recent reviewers paid about €30 to €40 per quad for a ride of 30 minutes to an hour, often in a slow convoy with photo stops. Drinks at lunch are extra, and some travellers had to buy a scarf to cover their face on the quad.
• Wear your swimwear under your clothes if you want to use the warm spring. Bring a towel and sandals too, as the time for a swim is fairly short.
• Decide what you will do at Ksar Ghilane if you skip the quad. The stop is planned around the paid rides, and travellers who skip them can face a long wait with little to do. The edge of the dunes is a short walk from the oasis, and you can swim in the warm spring instead.

What the day is actually like

Pickup is early. Recent pickups were between about 6:15 and 7:00, with drop-off back at the hotel between 17:00 and 19:00. The listing itself says only that the excursion lasts all day, with an early start and a late-afternoon return.

Most of the day is spent driving. Recent reviews suggest roughly five to seven hours in the car, with the round trip estimated at 500 to 650 km. Most of the route is on sealed roads. Several reviewers had expected to drive across the dunes, as in the listing photos, and found that the 4x4 stays on the road. The sand is reached on foot, by quad or by camel.

The cars travel as a convoy, so stops start when every car has arrived. Expect a few rest stops on the way south, and on some departures a stop at a shop selling honey and carpets. The order of the stops can change. One July reviewer reached Sidi Driss first thing in the morning, before other visitors arrived.

In summer, the midday stop at Ksar Ghilane is very hot. Our best time guide covers temperatures and daylight by month.

How the seating works

The vehicles are mostly seven-seat SUVs rather than open jeeps. Some departures use Toyota Land Cruisers and others smaller SUVs. There are two seats in the front, three in the middle row and two fold-down seats in the boot. How comfortable the day is depends mostly on how many people share your car.

With four passengers or fewer, nobody needs to sit in the boot. With five or more, one or two people ride there for the whole drive, and tall travellers describe their knees close to their chin. A few recent travellers were in older cars with worn suspension or weak air conditioning. Transportation scores 4.6 out of 5 in GetYourGuide’s category ratings. Even some travellers who rated the day highly say the back seats are uncomfortable for a trip of this length.

The listing states that the terrain can be rough and that the tour is not recommended for people with back problems or limited mobility. Swapping seats at each stop spreads the time in the boot more fairly, and some groups do this.

Stop 1: Ain El Anba

This is a short photo stop on the drive south, where the flat steppe gives way to desert. It works mainly as a break from the car.

Stop 2: Ksar Ghilane

Ksar Ghilane is the longest stop of the day. The warm spring is a pool fed by the source, surrounded by palms, cafés and souvenir stalls. It is pretty but basic, and a few travellers found it muddy or too busy to swim.

The Roman fort of Tisavar sits out in the dunes, and the quad rides go out to it. Most people who do the ride rate it highly. It runs at a slow pace with regular stops, which disappointed some who wanted speed. Camel rides are the gentler option, lasting about 35 to 50 minutes including a photo stop. Our Ksar Ghilane oasis guide has more on the fort and the dunes.

Lunch follows nearby, with couscous as the main dish and drinks paid separately. Most travellers liked it, although a few found the portions small.

Stop 3: The troglodyte house in Matmata

The tour visits one pit house rather than a whole village. A Berber family shows you the rooms around the sunken courtyard and serves bread, olive oil and heja. Most visitors enjoy meeting the family. The visit is short, often 10 to 30 minutes.

Stop 4: Hotel Sidi Driss

Hotel Sidi Driss is still a working hotel. Its sunken courtyard and dining room stood in for the Lars family home in the first Star Wars film in 1977, and the crew came back for Attack of the Clones in 2002. Some set dressing is still in place. Entry is included in the tour price.

The visit lasts about 20 minutes in recent reviews. Some fans were glad just to stand in it. Others found that it is mostly a hotel with a courtyard and one room to recognise, and a few felt rushed. Our Sidi Driss guide shows what survives, which is a good way to decide in advance whether 20 minutes is enough for you.

Stop 5: Tamazret and Toujane

The listing ends the day in the Berber hill villages of Tamazret and Toujane. Several reviewers said these were a short panorama stop, or seen mainly from the car, rather than a walk through the villages.

Other practical things to know

• The listing shows a “Wheelchair accessible” label, but its own notes say the tour is not recommended for people with limited mobility. Contact the operator before booking if this applies to you.
• The confirmation with your pickup time may not arrive the evening before. If you have not heard by early evening, message the operator through GetYourGuide.
• The operator may change the itinerary or cancel because of the weather. The listing states that a full refund applies if the tour is cancelled for bad weather.
• Some travellers found drinks at the roadside cafés expensive, so bring water from your hotel.

Is the Star Wars jeep safari worth it?

Yes, if you want a single day that covers a Sahara oasis, a lived-in cave house and the Lars homestead set, and you are comfortable with many hours on the road. The price started from $66 per person when we checked, and it includes the transport, a guide, lunch and Sidi Driss entry. Plan on another €30 to €40 if you want the quad.

It is a weaker choice if you are tall or have back problems and cannot be sure of a seat outside the boot. It is also not the trip for seeing several filming locations. The Tataouine and Ksar Hadada day covers a different set from Djerba, and the Mos Espa trips from Tozeur cover the largest one.

If the route suits you, check dates for the Ksar Ghilane and Matmata safari and read the latest few reviews before you go, since drivers and cars vary from day to day.

How we put this together

We have not taken this safari ourselves. This page draws on the GetYourGuide listing, checked on 13 October 2026, and on the tour’s reviews at every star rating. The lower-rated ones were read in English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Polish and Spanish. Prices and ratings change, so check the listing for current figures. We earn a commission if you book through our links, at no extra cost to you.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is the Star Wars jeep safari from Djerba?

It is a full day. Recent travellers were picked up between about 6:15 and 7:00 and back at their hotels between 17:00 and 19:00, with roughly five to seven hours of that spent in the car.

How many Star Wars locations does the tour visit?

One. Hotel Sidi Driss in Matmata, used for the Lars homestead interior, is the only filming location on the itinerary, and the visit lasts about 20 minutes. The rest of the day covers the Ksar Ghilane oasis, a Berber cave house and hill villages.

Is the quad ride included?

No. Quad and camel rides at Ksar Ghilane are optional extras paid in cash on the day. Recent reviewers paid about €30 to €40 per quad.

Will I have an English-speaking guide?

You can book the tour in English, and the guide speaks several languages. The guide rides in one car of the convoy, though, and drivers in the other cars may speak only French and Arabic. Ask the operator whether your driver speaks English, or whether you can ride in the guide’s car.

Is the tour comfortable for tall travellers?

It can be uncomfortable. The cars are mostly seven-seat SUVs, and when six or seven people share one, two of them sit on fold-down seats in the boot with little legroom. Tell the operator your height when you book and ask for a front or middle seat.

Is it suitable for people with back problems?

The listing states that the tour is not recommended for people with back problems or limited mobility, because the terrain can be rough and the drive is long.

Does the tour run all year?

The listing does not publish a seasonal timetable, so check the calendar for your dates. The operator may change the route or cancel in bad weather, with a full refund if it cancels. Summer days at Ksar Ghilane are very hot, so see our best time guide before you choose a month.