Atlas Film Studios, Ouarzazate

A working film studio

If you love cinema, Atlas Film Studios is a must in Ouarzazate. Several major blockbusters were filmed here, and a guided tour takes you through its sets, some indoors and others outdoors, which keep changing for new projects. The studio is still operational, so you may cross a film crew at work. It is also a great place for striking photographs that seem to travel back in time.

Atlas often serves as a base camp for productions that film out in the open, and some have built sets in the desert, from Roman palaces to Mecca. It is the best known studio in town, but not the only one: Fint Studio and CLA Studio also work here, and even the Cinema Museum is sometimes used for shooting.

From Lawrence of Arabia to Game of Thrones

Ouarzazate has an impressive film history, with titles such as Lawrence of Arabia, Gladiator, Babel, The Passion of the Christ, Kingdom of Heaven and Prince of Persia. Its most celebrated recent association is Game of Thrones, whose producers chose Ouarzazate for its studios and landscapes to film scenes of House Targaryen. Some sequences of The Way Back were also shot at Atlas on the same set as Kundun.

How to get to Atlas Studios

The studio is just outside the city, 3 km west on road N9 toward Marrakech. Coming from Marrakech, it is the second building on your left; the first is CLA Studio. A petit taxi costs about 10 DH, or take bus line N1 and walk a few hundred metres to the main gate.

If you want to stay close to the sets, the Oscar Hotel inside the studio grounds has been refurbished with film themed decoration. Many other hotels and guest houses are available in and around the city. Opening hours and fees can change, so check them locally or call the studio before you go.