Half Day Tour of Gibraltar

When your time is limited and you've got to be somewhere else at some given time, spending perhaps, half a day on the Rock, what should you see and do? If you're staying just part of the day, then of course, you're going to want to see the actual Rock. The Top of the Rock should certainly be top of your list and you don't want to miss out on some duty free shopping either.

Begin by making your way to the base station of the Cable Car so that you can take a ride to the top and see a little of everything. There is nothing like going straight to the top. The panorama surrounds you on all sides, views of Spain, Africa, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean, and will quite literally take your breath away with the beauty of it all.

The top of the rock is also among the best places to view the monkeys of Gibraltar, those playful residents of the upper rock, the Barbary Macaques who will delight you with their antics. Take time for a fast stroll around the Top of the Rock prior to heading in for something to eat and drink in the Top of the Rock coffee shop and restaurant before you take the cable car back to Gibraltar town.

Not far from the cable car, about a ten minute walk is Main street, where you can find some great duty free items such as electronics, designer sun glasses, drinks, cigarettes and perfumes and jewelry from some of the best names in High Street, including Marks and Spencer, Wallis and Mothercare.

An alfresco lunch at one of the many cafe's lining the streets is just what the doctor ordered after your hike and shopping, and when you've completed your tour, check out Casemates Square where you can hail a taxi or catch a bus to take you back to your exit point from Gibraltar. Your half day on the Rock can take in as much or as little as you'd like, with the Top of the Rock experience being anywhere from half hour to two hours. If you'd like to cut it short a bit and view the Alameda gardens, they are perfect for a relaxing end to your Gibraltar experience.

Full Day Tours of Gibraltar

Gibraltar has a lot to see and do, which you can conceivably do in a day if you plan a little ahead and set aside some time for all the things you really want to see the most. It can also be done in varying ways, at a more hectic pace or at more leisurely means. Listed below, are three methods of taking a full days tour of the Rock of Gibraltar. Each one has something unique to offer the traveler to Gibraltar.

Itinerary 1 -- Walking Tour of the Upper Rock

This Itinerary will be perfect for filling up the day for those who want to walk and to view all that the Nature Reserve can offer them. Ride the cable car to the Upper Rock and get set to see a great deal today.

Buy a packed lunch at the cafe at the top and get ready for a great hiking adventure. The interactive tour which you receive with your ticket to the Cable Car is a perfect way to introduce you to some of the attractions of Gibraltar.

Once you follow this around the "Top of the Rock" which will take from half hour to about two hours, you can follow a country road that winds down the hill to St Michaels cave, taking about twenty minutes, where you will find some very impressive cave formations such as stalagmites and stalactites.

A very short walk which is downhill all the way, leads to the Apes Den, where you'll be utterly amused by the antics of the most fascinating residents of Gibraltar, the Gibraltar Monkeys. This isn't a great place for a lunch break as some of the apes tend to be quite good at stealing your food.

A very short uphill hike will bring you to the Upper Galleries, or the Great Siege Tunnels, where you'll find some of the most impressive of Gibraltar's fortifications, made by the soldiers who served here. The City Under Siege Exhibition will help you to relive this most impressive part of the history of Gibraltar, taking you back in time again, as you view the second important fortification of Gibraltar.

While you're at the Top of the Rock, you're going to want to visit the Moorish Castle, where some say, it all began. Alameda gardens isn't far and is the perfect place for an undisturbed picnic for your luncheon, prior to heading back toward Main Street, just a short walk of five or ten minutes, where you can find all sorts of duty free treasures as you shop your way back to your finish line.

Itinerary 2 -- Variety Day, Shopping, Top of Rock and Dolphin Watching

Gibraltar is famed for its dolphins nearly as much as for the Barbary apes of Gibraltar, and once you see these denizens of the deep you're going to understand what makes people love to watch them. Is there a nicer way in the world to begin a day than taking a boat out into the Bay of Gibraltar, to view and meet up with some of the seas most friendly and charming creatures?

Your trip out into the bay will take just about two hours to accomplish, but its two hours that will begin your day in a peaceful calming fashion, with the faint rays of the morning sunshine warming you while you watch the dolphins interact with each other -- and sometimes with you.

When you arrive back on the land, head to the Cable Car. It will take you to the top of the Rock of Gibraltar, just in time for a brunch type meal or a mid morning snack break at the cafeteria on the Upper Rock. An impressive Interactive Guided tour comes with your cable car ride, where you will review the history, the wildlife and the most impressive geography of the rock of Gibraltar, as well as take some photos of the Apes and other sights you see to take home with you.

Once you've come back to the bottom of the Rock you can view Casemates Square and take in some wonderful duty free shopping, where great prices and great products await you, including the Gibraltar Crystal shop, where you may watch as the glass products are made.

Itinerary 3 -- Relaxed Tour

A beautiful place to start the morning in the warm sun and peaceful atmosphere is the Alameda gardens, where you will enjoy a wide variety of plants and flowers, some of which are found very few other places on earth aside from Gibraltar.

When you've completed your stroll of the gardens, your trip up the Rock in the Cable Car will give you the chance to explore some of the Upper Rock areas with the Interactive Tour that will help you to better understand the history of Gibraltar and the development of its many fortifications and attractions.

After your light walking, you'll be well ready for lunch or a drink and a light snack, which can be readily found at the Top Station cafeteria.

Taking the cable car down, you can enjoy the museum of Gibraltar, which is found inside a piece of history itself, an old historic building, and will give you some amazing insight into the history of the rock as you complete your tour there and work your way back to your Gibraltar hotel.