Gibraltar - only for an afternoon!

[bazzaw]

We will visit Gibraltar on Queen Elizabeth cruiseship in early June. I had a wonderful day planned out - an early morning stroll through town, cable car up to the mountain, spend some hours there , luch in the town and an aftern vist to Alemeda Gardens.

 

NOW - I realise that we are only there for an afternoon!:o 12 Noon to 5.30 PM.

 

So - what to do now? Bearing in mind that we will probably never return. I am now thinking that perhaps a ship's tour would be the way to go?? At least they get you quickly to the main sights - even if they do have other downsides. DIY shore excursions are more relaxed - but we won't now have time to "relax"

 

Any advice please??

 

Barry

[fabnfortysomething]

if you are off the ship early enough there will be taxis waiting to take you on a tour of the highlights of Gibraltar

 

if you delay though they may have already been taken

[gijoe76]

We were there for a short time also. We just roamed around town, did some shopping. Make sure you are glued to the window as you arrive. This "rock" is breath-taking!

[John Bull]

Gib is one of those places that are well-worth visiting, but limited enough that short hours are not a big problem.

 

Morning rather than afternoon would be better, but you might not manage to persuade the captain to change the itinerary, so:

 

Aim to be one of the first off the ship in case there aren't enough taxis.

You really need a taxi for the upper Rock - either for the upper Rock taxi tour, or just to get you to the cablecar station which otherwise is a brisk 30 min walk.

 

For an upper Rock taxi tour, sharing taxis/vans is normal, they all tend to charge the same rate. A taxi tour of the upper Rock (St Michael's Cave, apes den, Great Seige tunnel & galleries) is about 90 mins - might take longer that time of day, but no worries cos you've plenty of time on hand.

Main hold-up tends to be a line of vehicles for the apes den - so you walk forward along the line of vehicles to the apes.

You take photos, with camera firmly roped to your wrist :cool:.

They take hats, handbags, and anything edible. :D

The line of vehicles edges forward & your vehicle picks you up again.

Get your driver to drop you at Casemates Square for a beer or a snack, then walk the shops & sights of Main Street until it's time to head back to your ship. Or if you want to see the botanical gardens (by the cablecar station), get the driver to drop you there & walk back down Main Street or taxi back to the ship.

The taxi tour has an excellent reputation, drivers don't rush you, timing is perfect for most visitors. Drivers usually carry fruit for the apes, but mebbe steal some from the breakfast or buffet table - too many visitors feed them junk food, which is pretty ignorant.

 

The alternative route up the Rock is by cablecar.

As said, its a good 30 mins on foot or a taxi ride.

Your taxi driver is likely to try to persuade you to skip the cablecar & take the taxi tour (and for most cruisers, esp with limited time, that'd probably be a wise decision)

By "your" time of day there's likely to be a long line for the cablecar, and if its moderately windy the cablecar is suspended (pun intended :rolleyes:).

Take it to the top of the Rock first, magnificent views in both directions (no Med view on the taxi tour). Then walk or cablecar to the intermediate station for the apes den & a short walk to St Michael's cave. You'll not have time for the long walk to & back from the Seige tunnel, which looks over the isthmus & airport at the norhern end of the Rock. Then cablecar back down. For whatever reason, I've never heard of long lines to come back down.

 

Can't remember the cost, but very reasonable & little difference between taxi tour and cablecar

 

Some folk pre-book a taxi tour. Don't know the cost, there's bound to be a premium compared to winging-it, and the experience is identical. With your arrival time there is a risk, I dont know how great a risk, of insufficient taxis so it might be prudent to pre-book, I simply don't know.

 

The town is about a 20 min walk from your ship, there may well be buses, and Gib's buses are now free. So you could opt to miss the upper Rock & concentrate on Main Street & the botanical gardens (don't miss the little Trafalgar cemetery on the way)

 

JB :)

[bazzaw]

JB

 

Thank you for taking the time to supply your very comprehensive answer.

 

Thinking it through - I think we will go with your second suggestion. (we really dislike taxis and taxi drivers :o) We are reasonable walkers - so a 45 minute walk to the cable car will allow us to get a general feel for the place, ride to the top on the cable car, see the apes and views, maybe a short walk around, don't really need to see the caves as we have been in quite a few limestone caves around the World, back down via cable car (middle station isn't open in May) to Alemeda gardens and Trafalgar Cemetery and walk back to casemates where I will enjoy some Pommie beer :) - while my wife browses junk shops! :mad:

 

If the weather is bad, we will probably have to revert to suggestion No.1. :) - or if really bad, taxi to nearest pub in Casemates Square and stay there all afternoon!

 

Barry

[John Bull]

JB

 

Thank you for taking the time to supply your very comprehensive answer.

 

Thinking it through - I think we will go with your second suggestion. (we really dislike taxis and taxi drivers :o) We are reasonable walkers - so a 45 minute walk to the cable car will allow us to get a general feel for the place, ride to the top on the cable car, see the apes and views, maybe a short walk around, don't really need to see the caves as we have been in quite a few limestone caves around the World, back down via cable car (middle station isn't open in May) to Alemeda gardens and Trafalgar Cemetery and walk back to casemates where I will enjoy some Pommie beer :) - while my wife browses junk shops! :mad:

 

Barry

 

Hi Barry,

Yep that makes good sense, though Gib's taxi drivers are perhaps the best I've come across - friendly, reliable, knowledgeable & honest.

Thats not something I'd say about taxi drivers in Istanbul or Bangkok!!:D

The only caveat is that if the weather is obviously windy, the cablecar will not be working.

You might care to take a taxi to the cablecar, & if its not working or the line is excessive you then have the option of changing to a taxi tour, the route up the Rock (a one-way system) isn't far from the cablecar station so a change of plan on-the-fly will cost little or no more. If you walk to the cablecar & find it not working, your chances of getting a cab, along with everyone else at the cablecar, are virtually nil.

 

I tend to agree about caves. Very pleasant but no great loss.

 

As per your plans, best to visit the gardens, then Main St then Casemates (or a pub in Main Street) after your cablecar trip, when you can guage your time-in-hand.

 

Just realised it's May, so hopefully not too crowded.

Might also be worth trying to find out if other ships are in that day, though bear in mind there's also coachloads of trippers who visit Gib. from Spain's Costa del Sol resorts.

 

Have a good one

JB :)