Getting in and visas for Gibraltar

The airport runway and the border crossing with Spain [Photo: Rolf Palmberg] Map of Gibraltar

By plane

Gibraltar airport has daily scheduled flights to and from London-Gatwick (LGW)[British Airways] and London-Luton (LTN) [Monarch Airlines] in the UK, and to and from Madrid-Barajas (MAD) [Iberia Airlines and British Airways]. The Monarch service is a lot cheaper than the British Airways, normally half or quarter. The two services usually take off within an hour of each other. As of Sunday 30th of March, easyJet will commence their scheduled service to The Rock with two daily flights arriving from and departing for London Gatwick since their takeover of GB Airways (the British Airways franchise). The flights arrive from London at 10:50 and 18:45 respectively and prices start from £17.99 single, inc taxes and charges. From this point on, a reduced British Airways service will be available, operating just one flight a day to and from Gatwick. Flight schedules will vary depending on season / time of year. With the introduction of easyJet's operation from Gibraltar, together with the governments planned airport expansion, it opens the door for new routes from Gibraltar to cities such as Berlin, Paris and possibly New York. Private jet's are reported to have reached as far as Miami, Florida direct from Gibraltar Airport. Flights are also available from the African side of the Mediterranean. Specifically, twenty minute short haul flights are available from Agadir, Morroco.

By car

Queues at the border may make it less time-consuming to park cars in La Línea and walk across. The land border is open 24 hours a day, though expect delays when planes are landing - the only road into Gibraltar runs right across the airport runway! However, once the airport expansion is complete, traffic (except buses) will be diverted around to the east side of the runway to ease overall traffic congestion.

By bus

Buses from Spain stop just short of Gibraltar in La Línea, but its bus station is only 3 minutes walk from the border. After walking across the border, there are buses every 15 minutes to the centre of Gibraltar and Europa Point, or it's only about another 10 minutes walk (across the runway and through a tunnel under the city walls) to the main Casemates Square. At La Línea there are regular buses to and from Seville, Malaga, Cadiz, Granada etc. and hourly to Algeciras From Algeciras you can get the bus to Gibraltar. When you walk out from the harbor (with ferries), turn left, walk along the main street for about 100m and then turn right. Continue about 200m along this street to the small building with railroads. There is a small sign for the bus stop. This bus can get you to La Linea for about 1.6 euro and it goes every 30 minutes during the day. You will arrive at the bus station about 500m from the border with Gibraltar. In the summer it can take up to 2 hours to cross the border- air conditioning is recommended! But after all it is worth it! HAVE FUN. Tarifa beach is the best place to go for surfing and body - boarding. Current info for Malaga bus station: Estación de Autobuses de Málaga

By boat

When the frontier was closed, there was a ferry service from Gibraltar to Morocco. Although there may be an occasional passenger service geared up to the Moroccan workers in Gibraltar, who have problems crossing the frontier, the Gibraltar ferry has ceased and the nearest service is from Algeciras in Spain. These ferries accommodate cars. Cruise ships often include Gibraltar as part of their itinerary.