The actual hotel facilities are pretty basic - shared bathrooms, very little in the rooms and a basic restaurant. But that's missing the point - everyone comes to Matmata to see the cave dwellings, and what better way to experience them than spending the night in one! Having seen the Sidi-Driss, I'd say Marhala is far superior, with the Sidi Driss only seeming to exist to show off it's Star Wars connections these days.

Prices are very low, the bed is comfortable enough, and the room price includes dinner (also in a cave). There is also a really nice bar, and drinking a beer looking up at the stars was a really nice way of passing the evening.

One of the very few well-maintained underground options to stay. Friendly staff & good food. Some of the rooms are very spacious & hence not claustrophobic. Toilets are very clean. Bar is handy for a chilled beer after a hot day. Few writers have complained of locks- i actually slept with the doors open. With a friendly village, you need not worry much.

By city standards this is a backpacker-level hostel, but for Matmata, it's tops for the experience of staying in a troglodyte dwelling. Shared bathrooms, but they were clean, and our room had an electrical socket. Be aware though that the light switch controls both the light and the electricity, so if you need to leave something running or charging overnight, you'll have to unscrew the light bulb if you want to sleep in the dark! Otherwise, the rooms were as clean as could be expected, and the temperature was very comfortable. Also make sure to walk down the road to see the Hotel Sidi Driss, another troglodyte dwelling, which was where some of the scenes from Star Wars were filmed, and some of the movie props are still (poorly) maintained.

As well as the intriguing use of part of a pedal and a padlock to clamp the door shut on the outside Room 13 has a couple of pieces of wood on the inside frame that shift and slide to bolt the door at the top when you are in the room. I suspect that other rooms are the same but the mechanism is subtle and easily overlooked. Good idea to bring the bolt (pedal shaft) and padlock inside as well just in case some joker locks the door when you are in the room. The half board option is definitely worthwhile, the view of the stars from inside the 'caves' is good even when the hotel is lit and the vibe of the place, together with the value for money, made this the best place I stayed in Tunisia.