In Marrakech: the medina and palace hotels on screen
Jemaa el-Fna, from Hitchcock to The Mummy
In 1956, Alfred Hitchcock shot the opening of The Man Who Knew Too Much in Marrakech, with James Stewart and Doris Day. The American tourist couple crosses Jemaa el-Fna square, with its acrobats and storytellers, and it is on the square that the plot is set in motion. More than forty years later, The Mummy (1999) used the square and the medina to stand in for the streets of 1920s Cairo, as filming in Egypt was not possible. The square has changed little in spirit: juice stalls in the morning, musicians and circles of onlookers in the evening. To get the films' bird's-eye view, head up to one of the café terraces around it, for the price of a drink.
La Mamounia, the hotel of the stars
In The Man Who Knew Too Much, the heroes stay at La Mamounia, the city's most famous palace hotel, where some of the scenes were filmed. Hitchcock stayed there himself. Without being a guest, you can see the lounges and gardens by booking tea, a meal or a drink; smart dress is required in the restaurants and bars.
Sex and the City 2, The Old Guard and Mission: Impossible
In 2010, Sex and the City 2 passed Marrakech off as Abu Dhabi: the souk scenes were shot in the medina, and the palace in the story is the Amanjena, a hotel on the outskirts of the city. Hideous Kinky (1998), starring Kate Winslet, follows a mother and her two daughters in 1970s Marrakech. More recently, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) closed a stretch of motorway near Marrakech for two weeks for Tom Cruise's motorbike chase, and the Netflix film The Old Guard (2020) shot in the city and in the Agafay desert. These places are private hotels or roads: there is nothing to "visit", but fans will recognise the medina.
Ouarzazate, Morocco's "Hollywood"
Atlas Studios
About 200 km from Marrakech over the Tizi n'Tichka pass, Ouarzazate and its Atlas Studios are the only stop in this guide designed for visitors. Founded in 1983, the studios are visited with a guide, with no booking needed, for 80 DH per person (about €7), plus a supplement for the Kingdom of Heaven set. You will see Egyptian temples, Cleopatra's palace, oriental alleys and the plane from The Jewel of the Nile (1985), among sets from Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven (2005) and the series Game of Thrones. Some sets close during shoots.
Aït-Ben-Haddou, the most filmed ksar
About thirty kilometres from Ouarzazate, the ksar of Aït-Ben-Haddou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been the setting for more than twenty-five major productions. Lawrence of Arabia (1962), the provincial arena scenes of Gladiator (2000), Kingdom of Heaven and, in 2012, the city of Yunkai for season 3 of Game of Thrones were all filmed here. Gladiator II (2024) came back to shoot in the area. Access to the ksar is free; a few families still live there, so ask before photographing residents.
The Telouet kasbah, on the way
Between Marrakech and Aït-Ben-Haddou, a detour of about an hour leads to the Telouet kasbah, the former palace of the Glaoui family. Its stucco and zellige salons are not a well-known film set, but they give an idea of what the films recreate: the life of the great lords of the South. The stop fits easily into a two-day trip.
Essaouira: from Othello to Game of Thrones
About three hours' drive to the west, Essaouira owes its first film fame to Orson Welles, who shot much of his Othello there; the film won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1952. A square in the town now bears his name, near the ramparts. In 2012, the bastions of the Skala de la Ville, with their cannons lined up facing the ocean, became Astapor, the city of the Unsullied, in season 3 of Game of Thrones. The ramparts and the medina are free to explore; the day trip is made by coach or minibus from Marrakech.
Summary table of filming locations
| Film or series | Year | Location | Distance from Marrakech | What you see today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Man Who Knew Too Much | 1956 | Jemaa el-Fna, La Mamounia | In the city | The square, the palace hotel (by reservation) |
| Lawrence of Arabia | 1962 | Aït-Ben-Haddou | About 3.5 to 4 hours | The ksar, free access |
| The Jewel of the Nile | 1985 | Atlas Studios, Ouarzazate | About 4 to 4.5 hours | The plane, in the studios |
| The Mummy | 1999 | Medina and Jemaa el-Fna | In the city | The square and the souks |
| Gladiator | 2000 | Aït-Ben-Haddou, Ouarzazate | About 4 hours | The ksar and the studios |
| Kingdom of Heaven | 2005 | Ouarzazate, Aït-Ben-Haddou | About 4 hours | The set (supplement at the studios) |
| Sex and the City 2 | 2010 | Medina, Amanjena hotel | In the city | The medina |
| Game of Thrones, season 3 | 2013 | Aït-Ben-Haddou, Essaouira, Atlas Studios | 3 to 4.5 hours | The ksar, the Skala, the studios |
| Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation | 2015 | Motorway near Marrakech | On the outskirts | Nothing to visit |
Prices checked in October 2026: Atlas Studios 80 DH, other sites free apart from drinks or reservations.
Planning your film outing
For the medina, half a day is enough: Jemaa el-Fna in the late afternoon, then a drink or a booked dinner at La Mamounia. For Ouarzazate and Aït-Ben-Haddou, a same-day round trip is possible but exhausting, with more than 8 hours on the road: most tours sold in Marrakech leave around 7am and return after 8pm. A two-day option, with a night in Aït-Ben-Haddou or Ouarzazate, lets you see the studios, the ksar at sunset and the Telouet kasbah without rushing. Essaouira works as a day trip, or better over two days, by CTM or Supratours coach (about three hours).
A few precautions: in the ksar as in the medina, residents are not extras. Ask before photographing anyone, and be wary of fake guides offering to show you "the house from the film" for a fee. If you travel in late November or early December, the Marrakech International Film Festival screens films on Jemaa el-Fna square, in the open air and for free.
Further reading
To combine these places into one trip, follow our itinerary one week in Marrakech, which takes in the Tichka pass, Aït-Ben-Haddou and Essaouira. To compare all the day trips, see our guide to day trips from Marrakech. And if the South makes you want to go further, read our guide to the Merzouga desert from Marrakech.
