The planet Tatooine of Star Wars movies

by Madis Vellamäe
(Tallinn, Estonia)

I believe that many of us know and have seen Star Wars movies. But how many of you knew that one of the most memorable locations of the series, Tatooine, the desert planet home to Luke and Anakin Skywalker before Luke became a Jedi Knight, was mainly filmed in southern Tunisia?

Many of the sets and landscapes still exist today. The Mos Espa set is still in good condition and there are around 15-20 buildings.

The home of young Luke Skywalker, the Lars homestead, can be found in the small village called Matmata. The Lars homestead is actually a section of the Hotel Sidi Driss and the hotel is still in business - it costs only about US $10 to stay the night. So just imagine it: you can actually stay the night at Luke Skywalker's home!