Four and a half minutes of totality from the Rock
Totality begins at 10:45:35 and ends at 10:50:02 (Spanish mainland time, CEST). Maximum eclipse is at 10:47:49, with the sun 38° above the horizon. The partial phases run from 09:41 to 12:01.
Gibraltar sits well inside the path of totality and gets 4 minutes 27 seconds on 2 August 2027. The Rock rises to 426 metres straight out of the Strait, which gives you the rare combination of a long totality and real height, with Africa in view across the water and the Spanish coast behind you.
It is also, at six and a half square kilometres, a very small place. Around 33,000 people live here and there are only a few thousand hotel beds. Demand on eclipse weekend will be far beyond what the territory can hold, so most visitors will come in for the day from La Línea, Algeciras or San Roque, all of which get within three seconds of the same totality.
Effectively identical to Algeciras and La Línea
The Upper Rock looks over the Strait and into Africa
Gibraltar is on CEST, so the local times match
The obvious answer, and the one everyone will have. The cable car runs to the top station, and from the Skywalk and O’Hara’s Battery you get the Strait, the Bay of Gibraltar and the Rif mountains all at once. Capacity is the problem: the cable car moves a few hundred people an hour and the reserve roads are narrow. Book ahead and go up very early.
The southern tip, at sea level, with the lighthouse, the mosque and an uninterrupted view south across the Strait. It is flat, open and easy to reach on foot or by bus, which makes it the practical choice for most people.
On the eastern side, under the great water catchment slope. These beaches face east, which is the right direction on eclipse morning, and they are away from the town centre crowds.
Botanic gardens in the middle of town with plenty of shade for the two hours of partial phases, and enough open lawn to see the sun at 38 degrees.
The land frontier at La Línea can back up for hours in summer, and the runway crosses the only road in. If you are staying on the Spanish side, walk across rather than drive, and cross well before the partial phases begin. Better still, watch from La Línea itself: you lose three seconds of totality and no time at all in a queue.
Partial phases run from about 09:41 to 12:01. Totality begins at 10:45:35 and ends at 10:50:02, with maximum at 10:47:49 and the sun 38 degrees up. Gibraltar keeps the same time as Spain, so no conversion is needed.
Plane: Gibraltar International has direct flights from London, Manchester and Bristol. Seats for that weekend will go early.
On foot or by car: from La Línea, on the Spanish side. Parking in Gibraltar is very limited and non-residents are often better off parking in La Línea and walking.
Accommodation: a handful of hotels on the Rock, and far more capacity in La Línea, San Roque, Algeciras and Sotogrande, all inside the path.
Documents: Gibraltar is not in the Schengen area. Bring your passport for the crossing in both directions.