10 Real Life Spain “Game Of Thrones” Locations To Visit

Game Of Thrones was filmed in many lands and seen on every continent.

Spain provided a rich backdrop to some of it´s most iconic moments.

Here are our Top 10 Game Of Thrones Spain locations which can be visited by it´s legion of fans.

 

Las Bardenas Reales, Navarra

The lunar desert landscapes of the Bardenas Reales Nature Reserve in Navarra provided the backdrop to Seaon 6  of  Game of Thrones in Season 6, doubling as the Dothraki Sea, the vast plains of the the continent of Essos which are covered in green grass, giving them the appearance of a sea—hence the name. In Game of Thrones, the area is home to the Khalasars, horse-riding warriors who travel in huge packs.

Peniscola

Situated in the province of Castellón, north of Valencia, this coastal town was used for several filming locations doubling as areas of Meereen, the largest of the Slaver Cities of Slaver’s Bay. Peniscola is one of the oldest towns in Spain with a pre-Roman foundation by the Celtic Iberians and later Phoenicians who made it an important trading port. It was captured by the Cathaginians and is believed to be the birthplace of Hannibal and where he is supposed to have made an oath to his father Hamilcar that he would never be a “friend of Rome”

The main filming locations were the Plaza Santa María, Peniscola Castle and the Parque de la Artillería.  The castle was built by the Knights Templar in the 13th century.

Seville

The Dorne Palace and gardens from Season 5 were filmed in the Real Alcazar de Sevilla which is one of the Iberian peninsular´s most lavish and iconic palaces situated near the cathedral. The original Alcazar was built by the conquering Moors who invaded the Peninsular in the 8th century as fortified palace but was destroyed in the Christian “reconquest” of Sevilla in th 13th century when the palace was rebuilt as well as expanded with Gothic features . In Game Of Thrones, Dorne is a region of Westeros ruled by the House of Martells and the Alcazar was the setting for House Martell’s Water Gardens.

Osuna

Situated close to Sevilla. The small Andalusian town of Osuna was the setting for parts of the fifth season. The town´s impressive Plaza de Toros being the scene for the “great pit fight of Daznak”.

Córdoba

Córdoba’s Roman Bridge doubled for the Long Bridge of Volantis. The bridge which was originally built in the 1st century BC by the Romans to complete the Via Augusta which connected Rome to the port of Cadiz by crossing the Guadalquivir River. Although still named Puente Romano the present structure dates to the Moorish reconstruction nearly a thousand years later. Under the Moorish Caliphate Cordoba became one of the principal cities of Europe one of it´s centres of education and learning.

Girona

Season 6,  saw the medieval town of Girona transformed into the Free City of Essos.  The 12th century town´s Arab baths provided the backdrop to many scenes and the city´s cathedral doubled as the Great Sept of Baelor, King’s Landings’s most important building.

Gaztelugatxe

The Basque Country is considered to have some of the most dramatic scenery in Spain and the island of Gaztelugatxe in the Bay Of Biscay was used as the location for Daenerys Targaryen’s ancestral home of Dragonstone . The island is joined to the mainland by a medieval stone bridge.

Castell de Santa Florentina, Barcelona

This 11th century medieval castle of Santa Florentina in Canet de Mar, near Barcelona, doubled for House Tarly’s home in Season 6. The castle is private property but can be visited by appointment.

Almería

Since the 1960´s the vast dry expanses of the province of Almería have been the favourite of filmmakers including the Spaghetti Western´s of the era. The inhospitable  Tabernas desert provided the backdrop in Season 6 of Game of Thrones depicting the Dothraki Sea. The town of Pechina  played Vaes Dothrak, Dothraki’s capital whilst part of Meereen was filmed in the Torre de Mesa Roldán, in the Cabo de Gata Nature Reserve

Castillo de Zafra

Season 6 also saw the 12th century the extraordinary fortress of the Castle of Zafra near the Castillian town of Guadalajara doubling as the Tower of Joy.

 

Cover Photo Credit: Sebastain Maleki
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