Cinema and The Centers of Art, Culture and Tourism of Lanzarote

You cannot visit Lanzarote without experiencing its Centros de Arte, Cultura y Turismo (CACT – Centers of Art, Culture and Tourism). It would be a serious mistake, like going to a major European capital and not seeing its famous cathedral and the historic surroundings. In many ways, the CACT are Lanzarote’s cathedrals—heritage jewels that reveal much about the island’s nature, history, and art.

These seven unique spaces are almost a must-see for anyone visiting Lanzarote. More than three million people visit them every year. The most visited is the Timanfaya National Park, the island’s great film set and historically the location with the highest number of productions, although nowadays it is subject to restrictions due to strict national and European conservation regulations. The park even has its own specific film route, which we strongly recommend. Meanwhile, on the walking route through Arrecife we also mention another center, the Castillo de San José – International Museum of Contemporary Art (MIAC), while the Casa Museo del Campesino appears in other itineraries (Cinema & wine route). In this route, however, we will focus on the four located in the north of the island, where more than fifteen film and television productions have been shot.

To understand the Centers, one must first understand César Manrique (1919–1992). Born in Lanzarote, he went on to study and develop much of his artistic career in Madrid and New York, mainly as a painter. However, in the mid-1960s, José Ramírez Cerdá, his childhood friend and then president of the Cabildo de Lanzarote (the island’s main public institution), invited him to return to the island to help create unique spaces aimed at attracting the emerging tourism industry.

At the time, Lanzarote had a reputation as a barren, cursed land. Yet, after the success of Manrique’s interventions, perceptions of the landscape changed completely. He managed to enhance a series of natural settings through artistic interventions that blended seamlessly with their environment. Under the concept of Art–Nature, Manrique created holistic works combining different styles and artistic disciplines, all of which highlighted the beauty and uniqueness of the island’s landscape and cultural heritage. His work was not only aesthetic but also ethical: he became an activist and an icon in the defense of the territory against the excesses of mass tourism in the Canary Islands.

Our route begins with Manrique’s last great spatial intervention: the Cactus Garden (Jardín de Cactus), inaugurated in 1990, just years before his death in a car accident. This incomparable, magnetic space dedicated to the cactus family was recently used as a filming location for the Foundation series, an Apple TV production based on Isaac Asimov’s novels of the same name. Pedro Almodóvar, an avowed admirer of César Manrique, also filmed a few scenes here for Broken Embraces.

From Guatiza, the village where the Cactus Garden is located, we follow the coastal road northwards for a double underground stop: Jameos del Agua and the Cueva de los Verdes, two parts of the same volcanic tube stretching from the nearby Corona Volcano. This vast volcanic cavity also formed the so-called Tunnel of Atlantis, beginning at Jameos del Agua, which is the longest underwater volcanic tube in the world. It is worth remembering that Lanzarote has been declared both a UNESCO Geopark and a Biosphere Reserve, in recognition of its natural value.

We suggest starting with Jameos del Agua, another work by César Manrique—though it can also be visited in reverse order, beginning with the Cueva. More than half a dozen films have been shot at Los Jameos, among them works by two prestigious directors: Spain’s Pedro Almodóvar (Broken Embraces) and Germany’s Werner Herzog (Fata Morgana), both drawn to the site’s unique magic.

Just a few meters away is the entrance to the Cueva de los Verdes. The artistic adaptation of this cave was carried out by Jesús Soto, the Cabildo’s artistic master and a close collaborator of Manrique, but also an artist in his own right. Even more films have been shot in the Cueva than in Jameos. Our selection highlights adventure literature on film, since two adaptations of Jules Verne’s works—The Mysterious Island and Journey to the Center of the Earth—were filmed here. It seems only fitting that two tales from the French master of fantasy were brought to life inside this spectacular, mysterious volcanic tube.

Some productions used both Jameos del Agua and Cueva de los Verdes as sets, such as Aida, a Swedish film that boldly relocated Verdi’s famous opera to Ancient Egypt but was shot entirely in Lanzarote.

From the slopes of Corona Volcano, we then climb to its summit to visit the Mirador del Río, another of César Manrique’s breathtaking creations. This architectural masterpiece blends art and nature in a design that fuses architecture, sculpture, interior design, lichens, stones, and local cultural traditions. It has hosted scenes from the pioneering sci-fi TV series Doctor Who, as well as episodes of Apple TV’s super-production Foundation. Spanish films such as Los viajeros del atardecer and Rostros were also filmed here—the latter also featuring scenes in both the Cueva de los Verdes and Jameos del Agua.

Finally, the Mirador del Río serves as a privileged balcony over the Atlantic horizon and the islets north of Lanzarote. This area, one of the largest marine reserves in the European Union, has provided the setting for memorable films such as In the Heart of the Sea and Operation Ganymede.