Gibraltar welcomes millions of visitors every year – an impressive achievement for such a tiny destination – and most visitors will spend at least part of their time browsing Gibraltar’s many shops in its vibrant city centre.
Whether just pausing for a few hours during a cruise, or making a day of it, we know that after a tour of the historic sites and taking in the spectacular views of the Straits and the Mediterranean from atop the Rock, people just love a bit of shopping. Especially the duty free kind. Especially with the expertly honed customer care our wide variety of traders provide. Especially with the vast range of products available, from fun souvenirs, to high-end luxury jewellery or the latest in hi-fi, Wi-Fi, pc, go-pro, hi-definition technology. The array is breathtaking and the experience surprisingly enjoyable.
Just a short walk from the cruise terminal, Gibraltar’s Main Street starts at the Casemates Square end, where tourists can pause for refreshment. Main Street then meanders towards Southport Gates the entrance to the city along the ancient, southern city walls, and is lined with stores offering a huge variety of goods.
There are fashion stores ablaze with colours and boasting designer brands usually found in the shopping centres of vast European cities; Hilfigger, Armani, Versace, Desigual and so many more. Alongside these can also be found familiar stores offering more modestly priced fashion: Dorothy Perkins, Wallis, Top Shop among others.
Gibraltar can welcome tourists to a commercial centre that boasts one of Britain’s most popular departments stores, Debenhams, and that can also readily provide a variety of café’s for much-needed energy-reviving pit stops; essential for the serious shopper.
A favourite among Gibraltar’s visitors are the cosmetic and perfume stores where some of the world’s top brands can be purchased: Chanel, Issey Miyake, Bulgari, Dior, Arden, Mac, Bobbi Brown, Benefit….there are so many to name.
Main Street glitters with jewellery shops displaying stunning items, bright with gold, precious stones and luxury watches and brought to customers by world experts in their field and top end customer service.
And for those who love electronics and technology, there are a good number of stores offering high end computing, photography and audio-visual equipment. With its ability to offer duty-free prices and expert sales teams, Gibraltar is the perfect place to pick up a new lens for the camera, or a new laptop, mobile phone, sound system.
There are linen stores, stores selling designer glasses, a glass-blower’s furnace selling unique pieces of locally made glass, art galleries selling art works, shoe shops selling Italian leather designer shoes and boots, vintners, delicatessens…the list seems endless.
One of the many things that makes Gibraltar so appealing to shoppers is that many of its stores are run by traders whose families have been part of Gibraltar’s trading community for generations. As a busy shipping port for centuries, Gibraltar attracted traders from all over the world. Many settled here, grew their businesses and their families here and are part of our wonderful, richly multi-cultural community. Stores may have specialised over the years, and products changed beyond recognition, but having deeply-grounded roots locally, and being essentially small, tightly-run businesses, the store owners and their teams are highly skilled at providing Gibraltar’s thousands of visitors top-level service and a surprisingly wide product range.
Day-trippers pausing at the conclusion of a tour around our beautiful Rock – perhaps one of the terrific private tours that take in the top sites and deliver visitors right into the heart of Main Street at the end of the tour – holiday-makers from cruise ships, visiting business people and many more visitors can all take advantage of Gibraltar as a place for a tremendously enjoyable shopping experience. But let’s not forget that with our superb hotels, Gibraltar is also an ideal place for a city break that takes in the traditional tourist sites, culture, fine dining, night life…and shopping!
