We will start the 360 degree ride. The first of the Gibraltar attractions will be The Pillars of Hercules. This view is one of the most panoramic on clear days as it is possible to see all the Northern Atlas Mountains and an isometric view of the bay.
Next stop will be for those who want an adrenalin rush, walk along the Windsor Suspension Bridge. Magnificent views.
At St. Michael’s Cave, a unique natural formation used for entertainment purposes over the centuries. Full of impressive stalactites and stalagmites but with easy access, it is one of the highlights of Tours in Gibraltar.
Complete the ascent to the Top of the Rock for your next stop. Here you will be able to go on a Skywalk if you dare before seeing the monkeys. The Barbary macaques, that are normally quite friendly unless cornered, are the only free-ranging primates in Europe.
The Great Siege Tunnels, one of the greatest engineering feats of the 18th Century. Built under a four-year long siege into solid limestone rock, they were designed to fire upon the enemy lines that were trying to advance on Gibraltar.
We will drive through the old town of Gibraltar and finish off your 360 degree drive around the Rock which includes a drive through the famous Gibraltar Airport, a stop over Catalan Bay Village, a drive through the WW2 Tunnels & Europa Point Lighthouse.
This three and a half hour trip offers the most popular Gibraltar attractions at the most economic price.
Sharing is caring, as they say. It is true for Gibraltar semi-private tours too. Assemble eight passengers and you will be able to reduce the cost by up to a third of the original price of our Gibraltar rock tours.
To benefit from these savings, register on the Cruise Critic website and once you are signed in, look at the Roll Call page. Here you can coordinate with other passengers to go on tours together, making it a lot cheaper for all of you. Check it out now: www.cruisecritic.com
To book a tour, fill in the form and within 24 hours we will be able to tell you if we can do it and how much it will cost.
Tickets to the Gibraltar Nature Reserve. All taxes, fees and holding charges. English and Spanish speaking guide. Small tour group 5 sites included in this tour.
There are 7 sites included in this tour:
The presence of Gibraltar as a fountain of wealth to the region is undisputable, and it can best be seen on Gibraltar private tours. The round trip of the Rock gives you the sensation of how Gibraltar has changed over the centuries. See the former water catchments on the east side, which are now being given a new lease of life as a nesting place for birds on the Rock side. Check out the beaches below it too, which have been replenished with Sahara sand or the traditional Catalan Bay fishing village which maintains its original charm. Take a peak at a port which served the British Empire on its expansion in the Mediterranean or the more modern buildings that have sprung up along the Western seafront. The guided Tours in Gibraltar will give you some of the history of the area, showing how successive governments have brought to life areas formerly occupied by the Ministry of Defence. You will get to see some of our classic hotels too, which complement the Gibraltar offering and which have really made the Rock a world-famous location for cruise-liner passengers and day trippers alike. Experience the Gibraltar identity in all its forms, looking up to the Rock which has withstood so many wars or to the people milling around in their daily lives. You will start to see some of those roots that have moulded the Gibraltar population. Whether it is the Maltese traders who settled on its shores or the Genoese migrants who came here looking to call it home, tours of Gibraltar show its diverse origins. The 360 degree tour will show off Gibraltar’s walls in all their glory, as they encircled the city and protected it from invaders through the centuries. It might be hard to believe but the sea came right to their base for many years until the creation of the port. Further reclamation has filled in those areas occupied by water where now impressive luxury homes sit, overlooking peaceful marinas with sailing boats from around the world. The more recently developed areas of Ocean Village or Europort, that with their blue-glassed towers have become frequented by the rich and famous. They have won awards for their design too, with their modern architecture providing a striking contrast with the history around them. All in all, expect Gibraltar to surprise you with the way it has married the old with the new, history with technology, patience and ambition.
For those going on semi-private tours in Gibraltar there are few Gibraltar attractions more panoramic than Europa Point. From below the lighthouse and our own minaret we can look at where a whole history of civilisations clashed and warred for control of the Mediterranean. The Ibriham-al-Ibrahim mosque at the site, a £5million gift from King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, is testament to 700 years of Moorish rule in the whole area. But this empire which spread until southern France and Portugal was not the only one that passed through the area. Much before that, the Phoenicians and ancient Greeks traded under the shadow of the Rock of Gibraltar. Their tradition led the Romans to name the Rock and Jbel Musa the two pillars of Hercules, marking the entrance to the Mediterranean a majestic site. And how was the Rock formed, you might ask. Well, five million years back, long before you could take Gibraltar Rock tours, a huge waterfall opened between Jbel Musa and the Rock of Gibraltar. The Atlantic flowed into the Mediterranean desert for 100 years, forming the Straits of Gibraltar. While this view fills the panorama, to the left and right we can see the two Spanish settlements of Algeciras and Ceuta. The port on the Spanish mainland is one of the biggest in Europe, while Ceuta on the African mainland is one of two Spanish exclaves on the African continent. Impossible to miss is the Gibraltar Trinity Lighthouse, erected in 1841 around 49 metres above the sea level. Although it was once manned by personnel who lived below the red and white painted circular building, it is now fully automated and can shine its light 37km out to sea. Alongside the lighthouse, Gorham’s Cave is now a UNESCO world heritage site after the Gibraltar skull was found here. It contains the first recorded painting by Neanderthals 37,000 before the Common Era and is in continual excavation under the watchful eye of the UN. Recently, a university was added to the Gibraltar attractions in the area too, making it a centre for learning as well as leisure. It reflects well the multiple inferences that converge on this point to make it a central pillar for all Gibraltar private tours while giving you a 180 degree view to remember.
As the Rock’s top natural beauty this cave is a must-see on the Gibraltar rock tours. At a height of 300 metres above sea level it is only accessible on foot or via private tours Gibraltar caters for in a very convenient fashion. Receiving nearly a million visits a year, it is one of the jewels of our crown. It also has a local use, as the cave was converted into an auditorium in which to watch shows literally inside the Rock. Only last year Mark Steel filmed a show here and there are also numerous classical music and jazz events held in this remarkable setting. Visiting the cave in one of our Tours of Gibraltar is following the steps of prehistory. In 1974 a Neolithic bowl was found and since then a picture of an Ibex drawn around 60,000 years ago showed the cave’s usage by the earliest human beings. The Greeks, Romans and Phoenicians passed through here too as the writings of Pomponius Mela and Homer show. The idea of using the cave as a place of entertainment originated in Victorian times, where parties, concerts and duels were held inside it. It would be lit up a bit like it is now, as soldiers used the space for their own recreation on visits to the Rock. It led to exploration of the different passageways, with its usage by as a wartime hospital during air attacks. Another range of caverns that stretches far below the Rock was discovered in 1942 when troops tried to create an alternative entrance to St Michael’s Cave. is another of the long list of things to do in. Those who want a bit more excitement can arrange guided tours in Gibraltar to see the Lower St Michael’s Cave. It showcases rare geological formations and an underground lake which visitors have to walk around or can even swim in during the visit. Legend has it that St Michael’s cave is bottomless and that the famous Rock monkeys which hang around at its entrance arrived on the Rock through tunnels that cross the Straits. During Ancient Greek times, it was believed to be the Gates of Hades, giving avid explorers who never returned a possibility to enter the underworld. Nowadays it is a far less bleak prospect as the exits are clearly marked.
As you circle down from the summit on the Gibraltar Rock tours, you come to the northern side of this solitary piece of limestone. On your way in from your Gibraltar transfers you might have seen a number of square holes dotted into the North Face of the Rock. These were formed during the Great Siege which lasted from 1779 to 1783, which now form an essential part of the Gibraltar rock tours. The fact that the Great Siege Tunnels are placed in such a hidden corner of the Rock means that they are often less frequented by those on foot. With our Tours of Gibraltar you will get to see a magnificent human achievement, where the Royal Engineers managed to make headway through solid rock two and a half centuries ago. The intention was to cut off the Spanish advance as it had reached a point where cannons from Gibraltar batteries were no longer able to reach them as they were obstructed by the Rock. Work on the tunnels was slow at first as workers mainly used sledgehammers and pickaxes to gnaw at the solid limestone, loosened by dynamite. The explosions were loud and created so much smoke and dust that a vertical shaft needed to be created as an air vent. Not only that, but finding the right amount of distance from the side of the rock proved tricky in an age where there was no such thing as computers and calculations were done very much through guesswork. Eventually, work was completed for the first stretch of the Great Siege Tunnels in late 1783, although by then the siege had all but ended. At 908ft (277m) it included St. George’s Hall along with Windsor Gallery, King’s and Queen’s Lines as well as Cornwallis Chamber. Four cannons were placed in Windsor Gallery and others put at other points of the tunnel as can be seen in the Gibraltar private tours and Gibraltar semi-private tours. Curtains of ropes protected the gunners from the flashes and smoke, while a wet cloth made sure the rest of the gunpowder did not catch fire, causing a major explosion. The tunnels were expanded in the 19th and 20th centuries when they were used for defence of the Rock during peace and wartime. Nowadays they are only visited by tourists who will be treated to Gibraltar attractions composed of light and sound that make it an exciting journey through time.
Just along from O’Hara’s Battery on your Gibraltar rock tour is the upper Ape’s Den. Here you will see a large number of Barbary Macaques, the only free roaming primates in Europe and along with the Japanese Macaques. They are also the only macaques outside Asia, making them a very curious resident on top of an otherwise very serene lump of limestone rock. At first they were deemed to be apes because they have stocky bodies, no tails and spend more time on land than on trees. But in fact, they are monkeys, owing to the way they walk on all fours rather than on their knuckles and that they cannot swing from branch to branch like gibbons. As part of Gibraltar semi-private tours you will see the human ancestors eating from the food provided by natural park keepers or playing together. There always tends to be a large variety of different ages at this stage of the Gibraltar tours, making it an enjoyable experience which your driver will expertly guide you through. These playful creatures are so much like humans it is uncanny, and their evolutionary significance is notable. They are very clever and curious too, so watch your bags because they will take them off you when you least expect it, especially if they can smell food. How they arrived on the Rock is a mystery but it is most probable they were brought over by merchants who arrived here from their native Altas and Rif mountains in Morocco. In their packs, macaques are matriarchal, with the males helping out to bring the young. Members of a pack, that can number from ten to 100, share the parenting process, with males mating with each other within the social grouping as opposed to keeping one partner throughout their life. That might explain a few things in human beings! Unfortunately, Barbary macaques are currently an endangered species in Morocco and Algeria, with their habitat threatened by logging and extermination. Numbers continue to fall, although in Gibraltar they have continued to thrive in stable conditions, to the point that occasionally some are transported abroad. Just below beside is the SkyWalk, officially opened by the Luke Skywalker himself. Walk off the edge of the cliff with nothing but a transparent sheet of reinforced glass. Although not for the faint-hearted, this is truly a thrilling experience!
When you think of tours in Gibraltar the first idea that might spring to mind are the famous Gibraltar rock tours. But you will be amazed to know that one of the highlights of private tours in Gibraltar is the drive over the runway. This single runway, which is more 5,511ft (1,680m) long, is one of the quirkiest Gibraltar attractions. Built on the site of a race-track as a Royal Navy back-up in 1939, it was to play a big role as an airbase in World War Two. Nowadays it might just be an obstacle to Gibraltar transfers when tourists have to wait for planes to land, but back then it was an important part of the war effort. Rock dug out of tunnels were used to extend the runway so that larger planes could take-off and land there, helping the Allies win the war. One of the mysteries of the war took place on 4 July 1943 when a B-24 Liberator II took off from the Gibraltar runway and crashed into the sea. Exiled Polish prime minister Lt. Gen. Wladyslaw Sikorski died in the incident making him a national hero. Although the crash was deemed to be accidental, a number of historians have suggested there was foul play afoot and the Nazis had sabotaged the flight. After that, the airport was used to bring the first tourists to Marbella before the Spanish dictator Franco shut the frontier in 1969. Despite this, a passenger terminal was built in 1972, that was extended during the following years as one of the only exit points to the Rock. After the border re-opened with the death of the Fascist general, the Cordoba agreement allowed the building of a new air terminal. This allowed more flights to UK and even some to Spain, which soon stopped because they were just not selling. The airport is considered to have some of the most exciting landings and take-offs in the world being so short, so close to the city centre and with the road that crosses it. However, the latter will soon be a thing of the past as a tunnel will be opened soon, so this is a rare opportunity to enjoy the runway drive before it becomes etched into the history of the legendary Gibraltar Rock Tours.
As you rise from the commotion of the city of Gibraltar on one of our world famous Gibraltar Rock Tours, the air thins as the buildings disappear. The town is a densely populated place but Gibraltar private tours help you get away from it all as you go uphill into the clouds. Winding your way up the narrow roads on a private Rock tour, the first of the Gibraltar attractions is the Pillars of Hercules. This view is one of the most panoramic on clear days as it is possible to see the all the northern Atlas mountains, and an isometric view of the bay. The city of Gibraltar stretches below and it is easy to identify a number of its landmarks with its harbour which proved to be a key stop-off for ships servicing the British empire. One can only imagine the cacophony of sights and sounds when huge ships anchored on the shores of the Rock to trade their wares, or the vessels of war that anchored at the Rock for rest and relaxation before fighting the Nazis and their allies all over the Mediterranean. Nowadays the bay is a far more serene sight, although on Gibraltar tours the myriad of ships waiting for orders in the bay still lends an idea to what the world was like in colonial times. You may even be able to spot sailing boats that come from the north in autumn before they take the route to the Canary Islands and then on to the Caribbean. All of this can be seen from this stop on Gibraltar private tours, standing on one of the Pillars of Hercules made famous by Greek mythology that was taken on by the Etruscans and the Romans. In this tale, Hercules was tasked with fetching the Cattle of Geryon and returning to Eurystheus with them, with the Pillars of Hercules marking the most western point in the Mediterranean worldview. Plato placed the lost city of Atlantis beyond these two pillars, the Rock of Gibraltar and Jbel Musa across the straits in modern-day Morocco. This was revived by the Renaissance as the pillars marked out that there was ‘nothing further beyond’ (Non plus ultra), warning sailors and merchants of the danger beyond. Dante Aligheri in his Inferno XXVI tells of Ulysses tells of his journey to get to know more of the unknown. In many ways this is similar to the visitors who are embarking on a voyage of discovery in the Gibraltar Rock Tours.
