Maps of Movies

The Lion King (1994)

Where The Lion King says it takes place, and where it was really shot.

The Pride Lands never existed, but the film's crew studied a real park in Kenya to draw them.

Scenes and places

The presentation at Pride Rock (1994)

Rafiki lifts the newborn Simba before the gathered animals. Scar, the king's younger brother, watches from the edge, already coveting the throne.

Set in Pride Rock / Pride Lands — Pride Rock is the lions' kingdom in Eastern Africa; the film opens with the animals gathering below it.

A rock outcrop at the heart of the fictional Pride Lands, which the crew modeled on a real Kenyan park.

Filmed at Hell's Gate National Park, Kenya (Hell's Gate National Park, Nakuru County, Kenya) — The film crew visited this park in October 1991 to study the landscape; the Pride Lands are modeled on it. It was a research trip, not a filming location (the film is animated). Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: About 90 km from Nairobi, in Nakuru County near Lake Naivasha.

The lesson on the borders (1994)

Mufasa shows cub Simba the land and forbids him to go beyond its borders. He explains the duties of a king and the circle of life.

Set in The edge of the Pride Lands — Mufasa shows young Simba the kingdom and where it ends.

A viewpoint over the kingdom; the film gives no real-world model for it.

The elephants' graveyard (1994)

Scar tricks Simba into going there. Simba and Nala, his best friend, are chased by three hyenas until Mufasa arrives to rescue them.

Set in Elephants' graveyard — A forbidden place beyond the Pride Lands, full of bones and hyenas.

A bleak bone-strewn place outside the kingdom; no real-world model is named.

The gorge (1994)

Scar leads Simba down into a gorge and signals the hyenas to drive a herd of wildebeest toward him. Mufasa rushes in to save his son. Afterwards Scar convinces Simba to leave the kingdom and never come back.

Set in The gorge — A narrow gorge where Scar's plan against the royal family plays out.

A deep ravine on the plains; the film gives no real-world model for it.

The desert (1994)

Exhausted and alone, Simba collapses in the sand. Two strangers find him before he is lost.

Set in The desert — Simba runs from the Pride Lands and collapses in a desert.

A dry wasteland far from home; no real-world model is named.

Timon and Pumbaa's oasis (1994)

Timon and Pumbaa teach Simba their motto, hakuna matata, and he grows up carefree. Years later he rescues them from a hungry lioness, who turns out to be Nala.

Set in The oasis — A lush jungle oasis where Simba grows up with Timon and Pumbaa.

A green hideaway far from the savanna; no real-world model is named.

The night out with Nala (1994)

Simba and Nala fall in love on their night out. She urges him to go home because the Pride Lands are in drought, but guilt makes him refuse and he storms off. Rafiki tells him his father's spirit lives on in him.

Set in The night-time meeting place — Simba and Nala spend a night out; later Simba meets Rafiki.

A moonlit stretch of land; the film gives no real-world model for it.

The return to Pride Rock (1994)

Simba decides to learn from his past instead of running from it. With his friends he sneaks past the hyenas back to Pride Rock to face Scar.

Set in Pride Rock, the return — Simba comes back to the kingdom he left.

The same rock as the opening scene, now ruled by Scar.

Characters

• Simba — A lion cub, the king's son, who must grow up in a kingdom he is told to leave.
• Nala — Simba's best friend since they were cubs.
• Scar — The king's younger brother, who covets the throne.

Questions answered on the map

• Where are the Pride Lands from The Lion King in real life?