Ouarzazate

A regional capital in southern Morocco at the junction of several valley routes leading toward the Sahara, known as the gateway to the desert and as a major location for international film and television productions. The Taourirt Kasbah, a large earthen fortress on the eastern edge of town, was once a palace of the ruling Glaoui family and remains the most architecturally substantial kasbah complex open to visitors in the region. The nearby Atlas Film Corporation studios have hosted productions from Lawrence of Arabia to Game of Thrones, and studio tours are available. The surrounding landscape of bare hills and dried riverbeds is representative of the pre-Saharan south.