Travel to the Tabernas Desert in Almería or to the Spanish Far West

One of the greatest rarities of the Iberian Peninsula is the Tabernas Desert, the only desert in Europe. It is located in Almería, between the Sierras de los Filabres and Alhamilla, and since the middle of the XNUMXth century it became an immense film set for national and international productions.

Its haunting and arid landscape was immortalized in mythical Wild West films such as 'The Good, the Ugly and the Bad' but also in more modern films such as 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'. Therefore, What is it about the Tabernas Desert that draws attention to the world of cinema so powerfully?

It is probably its lunar landscape, which is dotted with streams and dry boulevards, covered by the profile of the mountains on the horizon and from which a special beauty emanates at sunset when the reddish light of the sun covers the entire area. The sun, high temperatures and lack of rain have created a steppe landscape with very harsh living conditions where only a small but valuable floral and animal population lives.

To the landscape interest, a high environmental value is added because there are animal and plant species that are distinguished by their rarity, many unique in Europe and even in the world. Precisely, due to the richness of its avifauna, this place was declared a Special Protection Area for Birds.

Once in the Tabernas Desert, the traveler will immediately perceive that he is inside a land of contrasts. The barren land merges at Cabo de Gata with the warm Mediterranean, which constitutes one of the most beautiful landscapes on the Andalusian coast.

The Tabernas Desert in the cinema

The Tabernas Desert was Hollywood's film paradise during the 60s and 70s of the XNUMXth century. Here the stages were raised to give life to the Wild West and stars like Clint Eastwood, Brigitte Bardot, Anthony Quinn, Claudia Cardinale, Alain Delon, Sean Connery, Raquel Welch or Orson Welles, among many others, walked through them. His landscapes recreated scenes from great films in the history of cinema such as: "Lawrence of Arabia", "Cleopatra", "The good, the ugly and the bad", "Death had a price" or "Indiana Jones and the last crusade ”.

Once the fever for Western films passed, instead of dismantling the sets, they took the opportunity to give birth to a theme park called Poblado del Oeste Oasis Park where a small town of the Wild West is recreated and some of the mythical scenes of the western genre. Thus you can attend shows such as duels between gunmen, the bank robbery, the can-can dance in the saloon, etc. You can also visit three interesting museums such as:

• Cinema Museum: It has a collection of projectors, posters (movie billboard poster of westerns filmed in Almería) and different accessories that will make you enjoy a walk through the history of the seventh art, ending the visit in an old projection room in use.
• Car Museum: The most emblematic cars and stagecoaches preserved in perfect condition since their use in large film productions, which made Gary Cooper or Clint Easwood, among others, a legend.
• Cactus Garden: This garden is home to more than 250 species of cacti from different corners of the planet.

The ticket price is 22,5 euros for adults and 12,5 for children. El Poblado del Oeste Oasis Park open on weekends and long weekends. As of Easter it is open every day but for more information it is advisable to call 902-533-532.

Route of The Dollar Trilogy

To honor the past of the Tabernas Desert as a film set, the Junta de Andalucía presented this year a route called The Dollar Trilogy that runs through different enclaves where the films 'For a handful of dollars' (1964), 'Death had a price' (1965) and 'The good, the ugly and the bad' (1966) were filmed ) by director Sergio Leone, whose trilogy is a benchmark for western.

This initiative is part of the project of the Great Film Route through Andalusia, which aims to offer the traveler a virtual tour of the community whose milestones coincide with the location of the filming of films that are part of the main film productions filmed in the region.

The Trilogy of the Dollar route also has a symbolic purpose because it is the first cinema route through the province of Almería, for its emblematic value and for the prominence it had in the 60s in international cinema in general and in the western genre in particular.