Discover Gibraltar

Explore Gibraltar

Holidays

Gibraltar’s majestic rocky outline is one of the great sights of the Mediterranean, with a history to match, embracing early Neanderthal discoveries and many monuments to its pivotal military heritage. Its immense heights, accessed by cable car, o er glorious views and nature walks, with plenty of other sightseeing options, beaches and excursions on land and sea.

What to see and do

Gibraltar has enough to keep you occupied all day, but you could spend three to six hours seeing the highlights - on a tour or on your own - and devote the rest of your stay to the beach, shopping or a dolphin-watching boat trip. Alternatively, devote the whole day to trips to Spain or even Morocco. The o cial tourist board website has useful ideas, links and further information, especially on the confusing array of tickets required for combinations of sights.

What can I do in four hours or less?

Gibraltar’s most popular sightseeing trip is the cable car from the old town, which climbs 1350ft (412m) in six minutes to o er fi ne views and, usually, some of the Rock’s famous wild monkeys. This is something you can do under your own steam, but be sure to buy a ticket online to avoid in part the long queues when cruise ships are in port. Note you will still need to exchange your e-ticket at the base station. From the top station you can walk half a mile (800m) downhill to see St Michael’s Cave) by way of the Skywalk, a glass-surfaced platform opened in 2018. The site’s ticket includes several other attractions that can be accessed on foot by road or path from the top station, including the Upper Rock

Nature Reserve

and O’Hara’s Battery. Another half mile (800m) beyond the Cave is the Apes’ Den, home to the bulk of Gibraltar’s monkeys. Here you can catch the cable car down from the mid-station, but, vitally, not between April and October, when it doesn’t stop here. Alternatively, continue on foot just over a mile (2km) to another of the Territory’s key sights, the Great Siege Tunnels, which you can also access from the top station if you don’t want to see the Cave. Visit walkgibraltar.com for excellent guided walks in the area. Plenty of other tours are available if you don’t want to explore independently, and can save time on a short stay. Typically these last 90 minutes, three hours or six hours, with similar highlights whether you choose the popular o cial taxi tours or the more popular Gibraltar Rock Tours.

What can I do in eight hours or less?

It is possible to join excursions to destinations farther afi eld, but check timings and days of operation: some tours require 10 hours or more and operate only one or two days a week. Parody Tours is typical, with excursions that include Tangiers (from £85 per person), Jerez (£70), Ronda (£70) and elsewhere. Gibraltar has a choice of beaches, mostly on the east coast, for which you will need to use a bus or take a taxi. For sand, visit Sandy Bay or larger Eastern Bay (buses # 4 or 8 to Both Worlds stop): the latter is the only beach una ected by afternoon shadow cast by the Rock. Camp Bay is pebbly, but charming, with two swimming pools and plenty of facilities: take buses #4 or 9 to Rosia. Catalan Bay has rock pools, facilities and a family-friendly atmosphere. Gibraltar is rich in natural history, with superb birdlife, especially migrating birds: contact Avian Tours for details of day excursions. Dolphin-spotting tours with two similar operators are also popular and o er dramatic views of the Rock from the water: Dolphin Safari tours last between one and two hours with a claimed 99 per cent chance of a sighting (£25 per person).

Eating and drinking

UK visitors will fi nd plenty of familiar “pub-grub” dishes, especially in the obvious areas frequented by visitors. Explore side streets and the marina and waterfront for smaller, more local bars and cafés serving traditional Spanish tapas or local specialities such as the Italian-infl uenced rosto (pasta with a tomato, meat and vegetable sauce); fi deos al horno (a baked pasta and meat dish); calentita (a pizza or pancake-like dish made of chick-pea fl our); the similar, polenta-like panissa (cut into strips and fried); pinchitas (kebabs); and torta de acelgas (spinach fl an). Don’t leave Gibraltar without…

Shopping in Gibraltar o ers many familiar UK high street names but prices are VAT (sales tax) free. Note that some shops only accept cash (Gibraltar or UK pounds or euros), and that it is hard to exchange Gibraltar pounds outside the Territory, so spend them locally or ask for change in UK sterling. Local craft specialities include silverware and textiles, notably the Spanish shawls in lace and silk known as mantillas, along with Gibraltar Crystal glass – this factory and shop features a free exhibition and glassblowing demonstrations. Gibraltar Arts and Crafts in the central Casemates Square makes a good one-stop shop for attractive local gifts. Close to the same square is the town market, a busy focus of territory life since 1929.