What's a good film-locations itinerary for Morocco?

Morocco has doubled for ancient Rome, Tibet, biblical Jerusalem, Somalia and a dozen fictional kingdoms, and the gravitational centre of all that is Ouarzazate — locals call it Ouallywood. For a film-locations week I'd start in Marrakech for a couple of nights (the Bahia Palace, the Saadian Tombs and the medina rooftops have appeared in everything from Hitchcock to Bond), then drive over the Tizi n'Tichka pass to Ouarzazate, which is the real heart of the trip and where I'd base for three nights.

Ouarzazate's draw is twofold. First, the studios: Atlas Studios and CLA Studios are working backlots you can tour, wandering past the leftover sets — Egyptian temples, a Tibetan monastery, planes and pharaohs from films shot here. Second, and unmissable, is Aït Benhaddou just up the road, the honey-coloured fortified ksar that is arguably the most-filmed location in Africa: Lawrence of Arabia, Gladiator, The Mummy, Kingdom of Heaven, Prince of Persia and Game of Thrones (Yunkai) all used it. I always say walk it at dawn or late afternoon when the light turns the mud-brick gold and the tour buses have gone — it's a genuinely moving place beyond the film trivia.

From Ouarzazate I'd push east to the Merzouga dunes for a desert night, because the Erg Chebbi sands have stood in for the Sahara of countless epics and the camel-trek-and-camp experience is the cinematic payoff of the whole trip. Looping back, the route past the Dades and Todra gorges and the kasbah road delivers more big-screen scenery than any soundstage could. If you'd rather end on the coast, swap a desert night for Essaouira, whose ramparts and harbour played Astapor, the slaver city, in Game of Thrones, and which makes a relaxed, salty finish.

Two honest notes. The studios and even some film sets are touristy and a little kitsch — go for the fun of recognising them, not for grandeur; the real cinematic awe is in the landscapes and Aït Benhaddou itself. And a good local guide adds enormously here, pointing out exactly where a scene was framed and sharing the on-set stories, which turns a photo stop into something memorable. Tell us your favourite films and we'll weight the route toward the ones you most want to stand inside — Roman epic, fantasy kingdom or desert adventure.