There are more than two dozen filming locations for the Star Wars saga in Tunisia. Most of them appeared only in episodes as landscapes of the fantastic desert planet Tatooine; they are of no interest to ordinary tourists (not fans).
In the first part of this article we will talk about the five most interesting filming locations. In the second part, we’ll talk about which of them you can see on organized excursions, and where you’ll have to go on your own.
1. Matmata, Sidi Driss Hotel
The Tunisian town of Matmata is famous for the underground houses of the Berbers. In one of these underground houses, the filming of “Episode 4: A New Hope” took place in 1976. The Sidi Driss Hotel, set up in several Berber underground houses in 1969 (7 years before filming), was chosen for the filming location.
Scenes were filmed here in the house of Lars Owen, Luke Skywalker's adoptive uncle. After filming, the hotel owner got rid of some of the scenery; at that time the film had not yet become ultra-popular, and there was no real value in these decorations.
In 1995, a French Star Wars fan named Philippe Vanney restored almost the entire set. Now the hotel is operational, you can book a room there, prices are affordable - from $25 per night.
In 2002, scenes from “Episode 2: Attack of the Clones” were filmed here. How did all the staff fit in here? It’s hard to imagine, because the film crew consisted of 250-300 people.
Obi Wan's Cabin and is located 2.5 kilometers north of the Adjima pier. Ask the taxi driver to drive along the road along the coast to the north, look carefully to the left, don’t miss the white house (see photo next to it, click on the photo to enlarge).
Cantina in Mos Eisley(smugglers bar) is located in the very center of Ajim. This building is now in poor condition. It's difficult to find; there are no good landmarks around. You can either hope that the taxi driver will know its location, or use the mobile Internet and Google Maps, the house is marked on this map.
[:RU]Tunisian city of Degesh ( Degache) became for us the starting point for our journey to the filming location of the legendary “Star Wars” by George Lucas. Here we had to transfer from comfortable buses to equally comfortable all-wheel drive Toyota Land Cruiser jeeps and go on an unforgettable jeep safari across the Sahara.
Degesh is a small town of seven thousand in the traditional North African style. Nondescript squat sandstone houses, very dusty half-empty streets and extremely sparse vegetation. There is absolutely nothing to photograph here, so I’ll immediately move on to the story about the jeep safari.
The first part of the Tunisian safari is a high-speed race in closed jeeps along a section of the route of the famous transcontinental Dakar rally marathon.
Rushing through the rocky part of the Sahara - the most majestic desert on Earth at a speed of 120-140 km/h, you involuntarily feel like the smallest grain of sand in the world, where besides you there is only the infinity of the horizon, sand and the fearless driver of the jeep to whom we entrusted our lives. Extreme overtaking of neighboring cars and sharp turns at high speed are sometimes really scary.
In addition, it happens that the jeep shakes quite a bit on uneven roads and you have to hold on to everything you can. In some places the car does not drive along a track well-worn by time, but along a road that exists solely in the driver’s head. Distances between jeeps can reach up to a kilometer, and the driver does not use any map or navigator.
The second part of the safari is no less extreme than the first. The relatively flat surface of the desert ended... All kinds of hills, hummocks, holes, sand dunes, etc. began.
Without slowing down, the jeep flies up a huge hill and makes a sharp turn. The tilt angle of the car is already close to critical, but the jeep still maintains its balance. The adrenaline level is off the charts...
From the city of Degesh we have already moved 30 kilometers deep into the desert. Suddenly a huge sand dune appeared in front of us. The thought arises in your head that you can either fly over it in a helicopter or try to go around it. However, the driver has his own opinion on this matter... The jeep accelerates, and we take off at 45 degrees onto a sand dune. It is not possible to overcome the obstacle the first time; the car gets stuck in the sand and skids. It’s not possible to force the obstacle the second, third, fourth, fifth time... On the sixth or seventh time, we finally, slowly but surely, climb to the top of the dune.
The dune offers a beautiful panorama of desert landscapes and the main goal of our trip - the scenery for the Star Wars movie. A minute of balancing on the crest of a dune, a shift in the center of gravity... and now the car is rushing down almost vertically, to the screams of passengers in the cabin.
Welcome to the planet Tatooine! Before, I could never believe that I would be able to visit the places where my favorite characters from the famous fantasy saga walked. Even though today it’s just cinematic scenery and crowds of tourists, the feeling of unity with the place and the characters of the film is indescribable and amazing! I'll tell you how it all began...
A long time ago, in the summer of 1976, a delegation of 130 filmmakers arrived in Tunisia, led by director George Lucas ( George Lucas). It was this North African country, with its cosmic landscapes, that was perfectly suited for filming the desert planet Tatooine, where Anakin Skywalker was born ( Anakin Skywalker) – future Darth Vader ( Darth Vader). His son Luke also grew up here.
The planet was named after a real city in Tunisia - Foum Tataouine ( Foum Tataouine), which Tunisians call nothing more than Tatooine. The town is famous for its ksars - fortified clay Berber granaries). The most famous of which are Ksar Ouled Sultan ( Ksar Ouled Soltane) and Ksar Hadada ( Ksar Hadada). It was Ksar Hadada that became the city quarter of Anakin's hometown - Mos Espa ( Mos Espa) in certain episodes of Star Wars. Episode I: The Phantom Menace."
The filming went on as usual until a crowd of people, strange equipment and robots near the Libyan border caused concern among the authorities of the neighboring country. Lucas' film crew was asked to urgently move away from the border deep into Tunisia...
Unfortunately, we didn’t get to Tatooine, so let’s return to the scenery of Mos Eisley ( Mos Eisley) in a desert.
They are located 15 kilometers from the Algerian border, on the outskirts of the Chott el Garza salt marsh ( Chott el Gharsa), in the desert between the settlements of Nefta ( Naftah) and Degesh ( Degache), from where we left in jeeps.
The town was built from clay and sand in a short period of 2 months. 36 years have passed, and the buildings look like new, thanks to the hot climate and lack of precipitation.
To get pictures of the scenery without tourists in the frame, I had to stand in one place for up to 15 minutes, waiting for the right moment. The presence of tourists inevitably attracts traders here with all sorts of small trinkets (stone roses, bracelets, beads), where they come from neighboring settlements on motorcycles. It's sad that you can't find a single souvenir here that would be related to the Star Wars universe. The sale of souvenirs of similar themes is a goldmine for Tunisia, but apparently this is not interesting to either the Tunisian authorities or the corporation Lucasfilm. In addition, the distance of this place from residential settlements incurs certain costs for protection and maintenance.
Some traders offer a well-known scam for tourists in Tunisia - to take a souvenir photo with the desert fox - fennec. And the price doesn’t seem expensive - only 1 dinar. Everything would be fine, but when the paying tourist took a photo, he, unexpectedly for himself, finds out that he meant “1 dinar for each of the crowd”... It is useless to argue... Be careful.
By the way, I recommend that everyone who wants to visit this place visit Tunisia in the very next few years, since this town may soon disappear forever. The fact is that, every year, a large sand dune is getting closer and closer to the scenery... Currently, it has already gotten close to the walls of the outer buildings. If some measures are not taken, it may happen that in a few years the scenery will be buried under tons of sand...
Not far from this place, on a neighboring dune, there is another memorable point - the site of the battle of the Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn ( Qui-Gon Jinn) and Sith Lord Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace. The famous car race from the first episode was filmed nearby.
If we talk about the remaining Star Wars filming locations in Tunisia, the list includes the following objects:
Sidi Bouhlel Canyon ( Star Wars Canyon), 91 kilometers long, located east of the city of Degesh, in the mountainous part of Tunisia (mountains Jbel Bou Helal).
Most of the Tatooine landscape scenes were filmed here (in Episode IV of the saga), as well as the location of the sandcrawler for mining - a giant tracked mechanism in which the Jawas traveled across the sands of Tatooine in search of lost droids. Here the Jawas attacked Luke and the robots R2-D2 and C-3PO.
The next place is Luc's house, currently known as the Sidi Driss Hotel ( Hotel Sidi Driss) in the Berber city of Matmata ( Matmata). This town is famous for its underground dwellings dug into solid ground. The hotel still retains the cosmic atmosphere of 36 years ago. Staying here for a Star Wars fan is truly a blessing.
We visited Matmata and, of course, visited one of the underground dwellings of the Berbers, although not the Sidi Driss Hotel, but still... A separate photo report will be published about this city later.
To the west of the oasis city of Nefta there is another Star Wars attraction - the lonely house of the Lars farm, standing in the middle of the desert. You can visit it by taking a local “taxi” in Nefta or renting a car.
The most remote location for filming Star Wars was the Tunisian island of Djerba, on which the house of old Obi-Wan Kenobi is located, and some houses served as the scenery for the large Tatooine city of Anchorhead.
Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope was released on May 25, 1977, and Star Wars: Episode I: The Phantom Menace was released on May 19, 1999. The space saga consists of 6 episodes and the 7th part is currently being filmed.
Actor Mark Richard Hamill ( Mark Richard Hamill), better known as Luke Skywalker, once said: " I didn't even have to imagine that I was on Tatooine. I actually WAS on Tatooine". Well, I will join his words.
External territories, Arkanis sector. The distance from the center of the Galaxy is 43 thousand light years. The desert planet Tatooine, orbiting a double star, is a haven for smugglers and gangsters of all stripes. For centuries, Tatooine has been the site of orbital showdowns between various gangster groups, so that the surface of the planet is literally littered with the wreckage of ancient spaceships buried under the desert sands. 
Officially, Tatooine was colonized several centuries ago; on the planet, in addition to colonists of various races, there are also aborigines: the fussy and annoying Jawa people and the aggressive Tusken nomads. The form of government is complete anarchy, only the king of the underworld, a representative of the Hutt race, Jabba the Hutt, has any power. 
Fans of the Star Wars saga, I believe, have already realized what we are talking about. Yes, I'm writing about the home world of Anakin Skywalker, the future Sith Lord Darth Vader, and home to Obi-Wan Kenobi, Luke Skywalker's mentor. 
On the other hand, Tatooine is a small town in the south of Tunisia, the administrative center of the governorate of Tataouine. It was here that director George Lucas filmed some episodes of the famous story. True, the shooting of the first film, “Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope,” did not take place there, but in the vicinity of the Berber settlement of Matmata, where, in addition to landscapes, the interiors of the Sidi Driss Hotel were featured in the film. 
And the scenery of the town of the future Jedi was built by Lucas in the sandy hills near the city of Nefta, 15 kilometers from the Algerian border (on the map). The arid climate allowed them to survive virtually untouched for 35 years. It’s clear that being in Tunisia and not seeing this is simply impossible. Especially when you are traveling with a child who watched all six episodes of Star Wars before the trip. 
Secret building built by Lucas and not shown in the film =) 
With a child - for scale. 
George Lucas' world-famous Star Wars saga was filmed in various locations in Tunisia. The Martian desert landscapes of this country became the ideal setting for the fantastic plot of the film. Even the distant planet Tatooine from the legendary film epic was named after a small town in the south of Tunisia. A troglodyte village Matmata ideal for filming a number of scenes. Here, in the home of Luke Skywalker, you can even stay overnight at the Sidi Driss Hotel.
Hotel Sidi Driss, where many scenes from the movie "Star Wars" were filmed
At the Sidi Driss Hotel, Matmata, Tunisia
The Sidi Driss Hotel served as the setting for the famous film epic “Star Wars”.
The village of Matmata got its name from the Berber tribe of the same name that inhabited the local area. Traditionally, the inhabitants of these places built their homes in man-made caves in order to thus escape from the drying heat of the desert. First, a huge hole was dug, 8-13 meters in diameter and about 7-10 meters deep. Then, along the perimeter of this pit, resembling a crater, living quarters, storerooms, and kitchens were dug into the ground. A well was often dug in the center of the pit. It was possible to get into such a “house” from above only by going down a ladder - hollowed out in the ground or rope.
Underground dwelling in Matmata, Tunisia
From above, the troglodyte village looks like a cratered lunar landscape.
In 1967, heavy rainfalls that lasted about 2 weeks (an extremely rare natural phenomenon in the Sahara Desert!) led to the flooding and damage of a large number of cave houses. Local authorities organized assistance to the affected residents and hastily built ordinary above-ground houses for them near the damaged underground village. However, many families still prefer traditional cave dwellings to modern ones. The reason for this is obvious - in the dungeons the temperature remains at approximately the same level in both heat and cold. But modern buildings are not so good at saving their inhabitants from the scorching heat of the desert during the day and the piercing cold at night.
Interior of a Tunisian Berber dugout house
Kitchen in the troglodyte house
With the growth of tourism, many troglodyte houses have opened to the public, thus bringing additional income to their owners. And one of them has even been transformed into the Sidi Driss Hotel - a unique place for those who crave new experiences.
Hotel Sidi Driss became famous throughout the world as Lars's farm in episodes 1 and 4 of the Star Wars film saga.
Spartan interior of cave hotel rooms
Bar of the cave hotel Sidi Driss
Dining room at the Sidi Driss Hotel
Star Wars fans will be especially delighted by this place; everything about the Sidi Driss Hotel is reminiscent of the filming that came here. Everywhere you can find parts of abandoned surroundings and decorations. Lars farms, where Luke Skywalker spent his childhood. The interiors are easily recognizable to fans of the legendary film.
The views of the hotel are easily recognizable in the footage from the Star Wars movie
As one example, the place of feasts for the family of a brave Jedi, through the passage from the dining room you can get to Aunt Beru’s kitchen:
A still from the film of the Star Wars saga - a scene of a family feast in the dining room of the Lars farm
The interior of the Lars family's dining room remained unchanged after filming took place here.
The mural on the ceiling of the dining room was restored in 1995 by the French artist Philippe Vanney, an ardent fan of the epic film.
Ceiling painting in the dining room, perfectly restored by one of the film's enthusiasts
According to the plot of the film, the planet Tatooine suffered from the searing heat. Lars's farm produced moisture that was so valuable in these places. All farm premises were located underground. There were living and utility rooms, security terminals, sensors, capacitors, and a garage with fantastic vehicles of the future. Moisture traps were placed in different areas of the farm.
The Lars family's moisture farm from Star Wars
Plan of Lars's farm - in modern times, Sidi Driss Hotel
The Sidi Driss Hotel in Matmata served as the backdrop for two parts of the film epic - Episode IV A New Hope in 1977 and Episode II Attack of the Clones in 2000. At the instigation of the film's director, George Lucas, the desert lands of the Sahara turned into a fantastic world of distant galaxies. Who would have thought back in 1977 that the first film would be such a dizzying success, and the south of Tunisia would become a real place of pilgrimage for fans of this space saga! Today, tourist excursions are organized to the places where Star Wars was filmed. And local residents sell souvenirs to visitors and offer to take pictures in Jedi cloaks and swords.
The unusual architecture of the Berber granaries-ksars, as conceived by the film director, became an ideal setting for the slave quarter
The mesmerizing views of Tunisia look no less mysterious even with only one sun - a still from the movie “Star Wars” and a modern photo from the shooting location
In addition to Star Wars, other films were filmed in the desert spaces of Tunisia, among the most famous: Gladiator, The Adventures of Indiana Jones, The English Patient. The mysterious landscapes of southern Tunisia never cease to attract the attention of directors. It is difficult to imagine that this surreal place, which rather resembles the landscapes of distant and unexplored galaxies, is quite real and is part of our amazing and diverse planet Earth.
The desert landscapes of Tatooine with the scenery left behind after filming make the image of distant planets so real and tangible
Photo sources: www.hotel-sidi-driss.com, www.voyage-insolite.com, www.thankyouforbeingsophisticated.com, commons.wikimedia.org, fiveadventurers.com, perspectivesbyairfrance.com, thisisafrica.me, www.pbase.com , www.flickr.com, www.shutterstock.com.
Hotel cost
The cave hotel Sidi Driss has only 20 rooms. All rooms are very simple, with a minimum of amenities and an ascetic interior. The hotel also has communal showers and toilets, a restaurant, a bar and even wi-fi internet. There are no ATMs in the surrounding area; the nearest town of Gabes is 40 km away.
Accommodation with breakfast will cost approximately 15 € per person per day, with breakfast and dinner - 20 €. The food is focused on local cuisine with an abundance of traditional couscous dishes.
The low season, when the number of tourists in the area is minimal, is from November to March.
Video
Location
Hotel Sidi Driss
Address: Matmata Ancienne, Matmata, Tunisia
Facebook Page: Hotel Sidi Idriss
[email protected]
" - the next blockbuster of the next film franchise - is accompanied by such unprecedented excitement. Here are some basic facts that will help those who are not Star Wars fans, if not feel, then at least understand the greatness of the moment and carry on a conversation with fans of this grandiose space saga.
I. Where did Star Wars come from and what's so special about it?
Poster for the first film in the Star Wars saga - Episode IV: A New Hope
Original trilogy tells about the adventures of Luke Skywalker. He is an orphan from the provincial planet Tatooine, who, by the will of fate, finds himself involved in a rebellion against the Empire. Along the way, he destroys the Death Star - a superweapon of the Empire capable of destroying entire planets, becomes an adept of the mystical Force and a student of Yoda, master of the ancient Jedi order, finds out that his father is Darth Vader, the right hand of the Emperor and the main villain of the Original Trilogy, and finally , contributes to the overthrow of the Empire and the triumph of good over evil.
Poster for the first film in the second Star Wars trilogy - The Phantom Menace
In 1999, the film “The Phantom Menace” was released, followed by “Attack of the Clones” (2002) and “Revenge of the Sith” (2005). These were episodes I, II, III - prequel to the Original Trilogy, the story of Anakin Skywalker's transformation into Darth Vader. The prequel trilogy in many ways mirrors the Original: its main character Anakin - also an orphan from Tatooine - becomes an adept of the Force, gets involved in political intrigue, goes over to the Dark Side and eventually turns into that same Darth Vader.
In short, the Prequel Trilogy is the story of the triumph of the Dark Side and the transformation of the Old Republic into the Empire, and the Original Trilogy is the story of the revenge of the Light Side and the rebirth of the Republic.
You can consolidate what you’ve read or quickly remind yourself of the plot of the entire film saga with the help of this video by a British video artist, who fit the key moments of the cult film epic into 3 minutes:
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IV. Yoda, Jabba, Obi-Wan: who's who in Star Wars
Luke Skywalker(Mark Hamill) is a dreamy orphan from Tatooine who, over the course of the Original Trilogy, becomes a hero, a Jedi, and gains friends, mentors, a sister and even a father. Although the relationship with my father somehow did not work out right away...
Anakin Skywalker(in childhood - Jake Lloyd, in youth - Hayden Christensen) - a dreamy orphan from Tatooine. First he becomes a Jedi, finds friends, mentors, and a lover, and after the death of the latter he finally goes over to the Dark Side. He receives terrible injuries in a battle with his former mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi, after which he cannot live without a terrifying suit with a respirator. So he turns into Darth Vader. Father of Luke and Leia.
Obi-Wan Kenobi(in the Prequel Trilogy - Ewan McGregor, in the Original Trilogy - Alex Guinness) - Jedi, Anakin's mentor, who failed to protect him from the Dark Side, but managed to cripple him. In the Original Trilogy, he lives as a hermit on Tatooine, keeping an eye on Luke from afar. Instructs Luke on the true path, dies at the hands of Darth Vader.
Princess Leia(Carrie Fisher) - leader of the Rebel Alliance. He considers his homeland to be Alderan, the planet that Darth Vader destroys with the help of the Death Star. Over the course of the Original Trilogy, he gains a brother, Luke, a father, Darth, and a lover in the person of the charming scoundrel Han Solo.
Han Solo(Harrison Ford) - smuggler and captain of the Millennium Falcon, the fastest starship in the world. Luke and Obi-Wan hire him to fly away from Tatooine, and at first he is only interested in money in this whole story. But gradually he becomes imbued with revolutionary ideas, and also falls in love with Leia and eventually becomes a fighter for the Alliance. His best friend and constant companion is a huge Chewbacca, most similar to the Yeti.
Yoda(in the Original Trilogy - a doll, in the prequel - a visual effect) - a short green man who constructs his speech in an unusual way. The most powerful Jedi in the world. In the Prequel Trilogy, he is the leader of the order. Unable to prevent the death of the Republic, he goes into exile on a swampy planet. There he is found by Luke, who becomes his student.
Palpatine(Ian McDiarmid) - member of the Galactic Senate, representing the planet Naboo. The secret head of the Sith order - adherents of the Dark Side of the Force, sworn enemies of the Jedi. With the help of complex intrigues, he becomes Chancellor of the Republic, and then Emperor. Anakin/Darth Vader's mentor on the Dark Side. In the finale, he dies at the hands of a student who will return to the Light Side.
Queen Amidala(Natalie Portman) - in the Prequel Trilogy, the ruler of the planet Naboo, who has trusted Palpatine for too long. Anakin's lover, mother of Luke and Leia. He dies, after which Anakin finally goes over to the Dark Side.
Jar Jar Binks(visual effect) - a silly Gungan, a representative of the race of indigenous inhabitants of the planet Naboo. The Gungans are at odds with the people living on Naboo, but Amidala manages to establish relations with them. After this, Jar-Jar becomes a politician of galactic significance. But he doesn't stop being an asshole.
Jabba the Hutt(doll) - a giant slug, the largest crime boss of Tatooine. Han Solo owes him money, and the story of their confrontation is perhaps the best subplot in the entire franchise. At the end of the episode "The Empire Strikes Back", Solo is frozen alive and sent to Jabba as a souvenir. Leia tries to rescue him, but she herself falls into Jabba's slavery. In the end, Luke saves everyone.
Boba Fett(Jeremy Bullock in the Original Trilogy, Daniel Logan in the Prequel Trilogy) is a taciturn bounty hunter. The character is purely auxiliary - he tracks down Solo on Jabba's order. But his romantic image of a masked, restless space rogue made him one of the most popular Star Wars characters.
Ray- another orphan (though not from Tatooine, but from Jakku) in the Star Wars Universe, which is - surprise! - becomes the main heroine of the new trilogy. A seemingly unremarkable girl suddenly discovers the Force in herself, deftly controls the Millennium Falcon, and in the finale of the seventh episode even wields a lightsaber like a real Jedi. Among other things, the authors strongly hint at Rey’s special connection with Luke Skywalker, whom she, much older, discovers on the planet Ech-something, where he lives in exile.
Kylo Ren- the main villain of the new Star Wars trilogy. The son of Han Solo and Princess Leia is more like his grandfather, Darth Vader, in character, and therefore puffs and scares everyone with sudden outbursts of anger no worse than his famous relative. He is the commander of the “First Order” - an organization generated by the fallen Empire and hatching plans to capture all planets.
V. Star Wars Quotes You Should Learn
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...
Luke, I am your father!
Come to the Dark Side!
Do it or don't do it. Don't try.