Emile Hostel

Emile Hostel is privately run, with dorms and private rooms in a separate building. We stayed in the dormitory section and found it (and Gibraltar in general) to be a little island of Englishness in the middle of everything European.

Upon entering there is a small lobby with pamphlets about the local sights and activities. To your left are the toilets and to the right the dining room, showers, and bedrooms.

It's a small hostel with only three dorm rooms, each with two or three bunk beds with bedding provided. The rooms are spacious with lovely natural light and plenty of room for backpacks and bags (but unfortunately there are no lockers). The dining room has plenty of tables and chairs, reminiscent of an English lounge. Unfortunately the kitchen on the premises is the owner's personal kitchen and isn't for guests to use. However, breakfast is provided each morning (toast with jam, small cake, tea/coffee, or juice) between 8:30 and 9:30.

We recommend overcoming any shyness issues beforehand. The showers, whilst separated into male and female, are rather communal. There are two showers separated from the dressing area by one curtain, so women and men each have their own showering area.

The worst thing about this hostel is the daily lockout from 10:30 to 4:30. However, when we were staying there, the owner let us keep the key for the days we were there and we could come and go as needed. Be really nice and he might do the same for you. The showers are also locked between 10:30 p.m. and 8:30 a.m., so plan accordingly.

While the price of this hostel is very reasonable, beware as Gibraltar itself is rather expensive, especially compared to Spain or Portugal.

Getting to the hostel is very easy. If you are walking or driving, just pass the frontier and continue straight across the airport runway and past the Elf service station (on your right) and the BP (left). At the Shell service station, continue ahead and the road veers right. About three hundred meters ahead you will see Pizza Hut on your right. Emile Hostel is on the very small street opposite this. It's about a fifteen-minute walk from the frontier.

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