Beyond the nine that inhabit our spiral arm of the Milky Way, there's arguably no planet more well-known than the barren desert world from which Star Wars adventures have begun and returned to time and again. Tatooine, a roughly Earth-sized planet with a population similar to Montana, was created as the ultimate middle-of-nowhere. Lawless, poor, politically insignificant, and presumably devoid of any outlets for teen angst (a Darth Mall in Mos Espa would've made a killing), Tatooine is essentially Kansas 20 years after climate collapse. But while canonically the desert world is 43,000-light-years from the galaxy's core, in reality, it's just a short flight from Europe in the small North African country of Tunisia.
While Star Wars has grown to be a cultural juggernaut worthy of an entire section of Disney Land, when 20th Century Fox first green-lit the story in 1973, no one involved was certain it would ever even leave the launch pad. Consequently, the lower budget made Tunisia an attractive option for Tatooine, but it was the unusual architecture on the Tunisian island of Djerba that ultimately won the filmmakers over.
Intergalactic travelers looking for the authentic Outer Rim experience will be delighted to learn that many of Tatooine's sets are intact and within short reach of each other. You can find Mos Eisley cantina and Ben Kenobi's home on Djerba Island. And if you're into the prequels, you can find Mos Espa in the west of the country, near the town of Tozeur, where the Star Wars crew left the set to be absorbed by the desert. Other locations are scattered throughout the country, but no trip would be complete without a stay in the "Star Wars Hotel," which was used as the Lars family home.
