Directors often choose the most striking, beautiful and interesting settings to shoot their movies, meaning that many frequently used locations offer the perfect holiday for film-lovers. From stunning areas of natural beauty, to settings of historical importance and modern urban centres, there are many places where movie lovers can get involved in their passion. Holidaying in our chosen locations will allow you to evoke and recreate memories of your favourite film moments whilst enjoying an incredible holiday at a stunning destination.
Morocco
Morocco is a vibrant, beautiful country which is simply crammed full of culture and personality. This means it is no wonder why so many film directors choose to shoot in the North African nation. Morocco has been host to a wide range of movies and TV series’, the most recent of which include American Sniper, Inception and Game of Thrones. The recent James Bond film Spectre has also been shot in the beautiful Moroccan oasis town of Erfoud, due to its striking desert and rich cultural landscape. Morocco is also often chosen by directors when shooting epic battle scenes, with Troy, Kingdom of Heaven and Gladiator all including scenes filmed in Morocco. You may remember the scene in Gladiator where Maximus, the lead character, is forced to fight and famously shouts ‘are you not entertained’ to a crowd in a gladiatorial arena; this scene was filmed in the Moroccan town of in Ait Ben Haddou. Other recent films shot in Morocco include the Tom Hanks movie Captain Phillips and the 2008 musical Mamma Mia.
Dubai
Because of its epic urban landscape and fascinating mix of cultures, Dubai has been used in some truly great movies in recent times. A thrilling scene from the film Mission Impossible, Ghost Protocol is shot high up on the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. In this scene, Tom Cruise climbs the outside of the 829 meter building, with only a cable the thickness of a piano wire supporting his entire weight! The absence of a stunt double for this scene makes it one of Hollywood’s most ambitious movie moments ever. The star-studded 2005 geopolitical thriller Syriana also features scenes in Dubai, which was chosen for its vast desert, futuristic feel and incredible city scape.
Malta
Several huge movies have been set in Malta in recent years, largely due to the astonishing and vastly unchanged natural beauty of the island, as well as its incredible weather and the easy accessibility of coastal regions. One of the famous scenes from The Count of Monte Cristo was shot at a beautiful and dramatic cliffside in Comino, whilst epic battle film Troy was also largely filmed in Malta, with the medieval city being recreated at Fort Ricasoli. In addition, all of the coliseum scenes from the movie Gladiator were also shot at Fort Ricasoli. The Oliver Stone movie Alexander also included scenes from Malta, with the beautiful Grand Harbour of Valletta being used to portray the ancient city of Alexandria.
Egypt
Egypt’s epic history – combined with the beauty of its natural features such as the River Nile and grand deserts – has meant that the country has inspired, and become the set for, many epic international movies over time. The James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me featured various scenes in Egypt, where monuments such as the Great Pyramids and Sphinx are visible in shot. The film also includes scenes in the stunning capital city of Cairo. The classic 1978 movie Death on the Nile was also shot on location in Egypt, as well as the thrilling, exciting and terrifying 1999 movie The Mummy, where treasure-hunting explorers desecrate ancient Egyptian tombs and unleash evil spirits within. The recent big-budget Hollywood film Exodus: Gods and Kings was also filmed in primarily in Egypt, featuring Christian Bale and Joel Edgerton as the ancient Egyptian Princes Moses and Ramses.
Tenerife
Another stunning location for both classic and more recent films is Tenerife. The 2005 movie A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy featured scenes at Loro Parque, Tenerife’s 13.5 hectare zoo, whilst the huge Hollywood films Clash of the Titans and its sequel Wrath of the Titans included many scenes from around Tenerife’s (and Spain’s) highest mountain – Mount Tiede. If you are interested in classic films – and don’t mind outrageously outdated special effects – you will be interested to discover that the classic adventure film One Million Years BC was also shot largely around Mount Tiede. As well as this, the 1975 adventure The Land That Time Forgot was filmed in Tenerife, in this case with dinosaurs roaming the beautiful island!
With so many beautiful and exciting locations available for film-lovers to enjoy, why not look out for these interesting and much-filmed settings when planning your next holiday? Just watch out for the medieval battles, action heroes and dinosaurs you may encounter!
Lights, Camera, Action!
Discover these stunning locations on one of our great value holidays.