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Who hasn't heard of the territory of Gibraltar in the south of Spain? Not only because of its vicinity to Morocco, but also since it is a british territory with political tensions with Spain. Since 1704 it belongs to the United Kingdom, however Spain still claims Gibraltar for its own territory.

Gibraltar is seperated from Spain by its airport, whose runway runs all across the peninsula from east to west. The border is located just north of the airport. This airport is super special, because it has a street, the only landway connecting Spain and Gibraltar, running across its runway. You can also just walk across it. Everytime there is an arrival or departure they have to close the crossway.

Since Gibraltar belongs to the UK the official language is english and the local currency is pounds. However, Gibraltar has their own Gibraltar pound which can only be used here. So you can either go to a currency exchange or just use your credit card. Both will charge fees, so it doesn't really matter. Just keep in mind, your left over money can not be used for payment outside of Gibraltar.

Crossing the border

Since the UK is neither part of the European Union nor the Schengen area you need you passport in order to enter. The easiest is entering by foot, since there is always lots of traffic if you go by car. Also many rental cars are not allowed to go to Gibraltar. Parking is also limited. If you get here by car, there is a big parking lot, located right at the border which is open 24 hours.

After passing the passport control you can either walk or take one of many busses. I recommend walking, being a pilot it was a great experience for me to actually walk across a runway. Plus you might be able to take a cool selfie.

After crossing the border you will soon recocgnize fairly low fuel prices. This is because Gibraltar doesn't charge VAT, so many things can be bought at a cheap price here, just keep in mind there might be custom fees once you return to Spain.

Also you will soon notice, that Gibraltar features a nice mix of iconic british facilities, such as the typical red phone and mailboxes, and the south iberian fauna with plam trees. A nice mix I must say.

City Center

You will soon arrive to the city center of Gibraltar. The Main Street features many different shops, where you can mostly buy cheap liquoer and tabaco products, but also many souvnénirs, fashion and so on. IF you are looking for a nice restaurant, you will also find a nice place to stay as well. I didn't eat here, so I can give out any recommendations.

One sight to visit is the Cathedral of Gibraltar, which is also located in this area. It was build in 1500. Unfortunatelly I got here on my way back, so it was already closed.

Personally I like walking through the cute little alleys, you will soon be alone and there are some really nice spots, especially if you are into photography.

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Rock of Gibraltar

Most of the pennsula is cover by a huge mountain, called the Rock of Gibraltar. It is a big national park, the Uppper Rock National Reserve, with many different sights to visit. In order to enter you have to pay an entrance fee of 16 punds for adults and 10 pounds for children age 5-11. If you book a tour or tickets through a deiffenrent seller expect higher prices. You can either walk up on your own, which can be quiet steep at some points. There are also many agencies offereing guided bus tours. These can be booked online or directly on the city center. A third way is the cable car, which goes to the top of mountain. I chose to walk up there. This way you can visit all of the sights or just skip the ones you don't want to see. Upon entering you receive a wristband with a QR code, which is needed in order to visit some of the sights.

When entering you receive a map showing the different locations of the spots. They are connected through different trails. Each trail shows its lenght and difficulty. If you want to walk through the entire park and visit all the places you should plan at least 4-6 hours. The park is opened every day from 9:30am to 6:15 pm, with last entry at 5:45pm. I will give you an overview over the different spots and what to expect below. 

The rock is famous for the monkeys who live here for a long time. It is not really clear how they got here. They are used to humans being around and are not affraid to walk up to you and even climb on top of. If you have some food inside your bag they will even try to open it and can get very agressive. Be sure to not carry any loose items, as they might steal them, especially sunglasses, wallets or cameras. I put everything inside my bag and seucred it with a little lock. Though they didn't climb on top of me I saw them doing it with other tourists.

trail map
Map of the different trails and the sights to visit. Source: https://visitgibraltar.gi/see-and-do/nature-reserve-pass/nature-trails-38 (January 27th 2023)

Moorish Castle

Moorish castle is a small fort area right after the entrance. From here you have an overview over the city area and western coast. The small castel, which is more of a fortress tower can be entered and walked up on top for a nice view.

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World War II Tunnels

During the second World War the passage of Gibraltar was a well fought area. The british troops used the shield of the rock for their defensive positions, while blocking the passage for german ships and submarines. The troops seeked shelter inside the rock, creating a network of tunnels for refugeee during air attacks, safe storage for supplies and shelter for the wounded. These tunnels can be visited. There are some scenes recreated, however most the time you just walk through empty tunnels. In here it is rather chilly and a little moist, so it is a nice cool down during the summer. However, giving it is mostly empty tunnels it i s not that spectacular.

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Great Siege Tunnels

The Great Siege Tunneld are located a little bit farther up at the end of the road. Here you will encounter some monkeys hoping around, also playing in the entrance walkway.

I must say, that these tunnels are a better sight to visit than the World War II Tunnels. They were built in the late 18th century and served a similar purpose like the World War II tunnels, but are more decorated. Since they are located more towards the side of the mountain you have many viewing points, formerly used as gunnery points, granting a nice overview of the airport are and the eastern coast. 

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Apes Den

Apes Den is probably the most favorite visitor place, because here you can find plenty of monkeys. The name gives it away a little bit. So I was a little dissappointed, since there weren't any monkeys when I came to this point on my way up. I walked around a little bit, even climbed up Charles wall, but there weren't any monkeys around.

On my way down the picture was different. IN the late afternoon they were climbing around and populating the place. However, this isn't the only place where you can find them, they are around many other places, mostly where groups of humans gather and they have a chance of getting some food.

Windsor Suspension Bridge

Continuing the road upwards you will get to the great Windsor Suspension Bridge build along the cliff crossng a 50 metre deep gorge. It will be closed during strong winds, luckily it was a calm day so I could walk over it. In case it is closed or you are affraid to cross you can simply walk along the walkway around the bridge, from here you can also take nice pictures of it. The bridge was constructed in 2016, so it is a fairly new attraction.

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Saint Michaels Cave

Probably one of the most famous attractions are the St.Michaels Caves, a limestone cave formed over thousands of years. The upper caves can be visited throughout the regualr visiting times. They are using a great light show alternating with regular light, so you get a great show while visiting. However, it is not recommended to visit fi you are epileptical. MAke sure to watch your step inside, since it is rather dark and the floor can bet wet.

The caves are also used as an auditorium for different shows wtih a stage and seating area for up to 400 visitors. On a regular visit you can just sit here and enjoy the light show before leaving.

Just centely they discovered the lower caves ending in a great lake, Unfortunatelly they are only visitable in groups and this has to be arranged beforehand. So if you want to see them and are in a group amke sure to contact the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. beforehand in order to make an arrangement.

Leaving the caves you get to a small store where you can buy some refreshments, food and souvenirs. Just be carefully with your food, the monkeys are already waiting right outside climbing up and down the roof just waiting for your food.

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Skywalk

Walking farther up towards the top cable car station you come to the skywalk. Along this road you can pretty much find monkeys everwhere. one even got ahold of my water box while i was taking pictures. Having lost my refreshment I took the chance of taking some shots of him enjoying a drink before moving along towards the skywalk and finding a garbage can for the now torn apart water box. 

The Skywalk is located to the right side, you have to walk up some stairs and immediately turn to the left. If you continue on straight ahead you will end up somewehre else instead. Fun fact: Mark Hamil visited this place as Luke Skywalker himself. From here you get a nie view over the eastern coast, you just shouldn't be affraid of heights too much, since the floor is made of solid glass. Just as the name predicts.

From here you also get a nice view of the big ball shaped military radar dish on the peak of the mountain.

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Barbary Macaque Feeding Station

Just a hundred metres down the road you get to the feeding station for the monkeys. Here they are being officially fed with all different kind of fruits and vegetables they need. In case you haven't been lucky spotting a monkey on your way up you will eventually find them up here enjoying their meal. Just be kind to them and don't interrupt them in their territory.

In case you got up here with the cable car, this will be the first spot you visit when walking down from the cable car top station. 

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Other Points to visit

Unfortunatelly I spent the entire day in the National Refugee, and when I got back down the sun was already starting to set, so I decided to cross the border again and return to my car to drive back to Malagá. However, I still want to mention the few points on my list I didnt get to visit while I was there.

For once there is the Europa Point, which is located on the southern shore. Here you can find a nice nice lighthose built in the early 19th century. However, this isn't the most southern point of Europe, that point is located roughly 25 kilometres to the west. 

While being down here you can also pay a visit to the Ibrahim-al-Ibrahim-Mosque, one of the biggest mosques located in a non-islamic country.

In order to see everything I would suggest to spend one night here and have two days instead of one day trip. You can stay on either side of the border, this is clearly up to you. In case you ever make it to this area of Spain I suggest  to visit Gibraltar, it is worth a short visit.

Accomendation

I didn't stay here overight, so I can not gove you any recommendations for Gibraltar. Though I would still like to supply you with some usegul links.

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Hey! My name is Max, I am a 24 years old pilot from Germany. My passion is all about seeing the world, both on the ground and from above.

Life goal: Have visited 100 countries by the age of 45!
Countries visited so far: 14

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