If you get seasick, you can still fish out of Gibraltar, but the Strait is not a lake and it pays to plan. Book the shorter trip, keep a spare morning in your stay, watch for an easterly levante in the forecast rather than sunshine, see a pharmacist before the day and take whatever they recommend before you board, not once you feel bad. On the boat, stay out on deck near the middle, keep your eyes on the horizon or the Rock, and keep busy with a rod. The rest of this guide explains why the water here behaves the way it does and how to choose a trip that suits a sensitive stomach.<\/p>\n
The Strait of Gibraltar is a narrow gap between two continents, and it carries two things at once. Water flows between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, with a tidal current running on top of it, and the wind is squeezed through the same gap. When the wind blows against the current, the sea stands up into short, steep waves that come close together. A boat sitting over a mark or drifting a bait rises and drops every few seconds, and that quick rhythm is what turns stomachs. A long, slow ocean swell is often easier to live with than an hour of that chop.<\/p>\n
The two winds that matter have local names. The levante is the easterly. It brings the cloud that sits on the top of the Rock, and in the Strait it can build a sea far livelier than the general forecast for the western Mediterranean suggests. The poniente is the westerly, usually clear and dry, and it tends to bring a longer swell. A 2024 paper on Strait winds presented at the Spanish meteorological society conference, citing the classic count by Garc\u00eda de Pedraza, puts the levante at around 165 days a year in the Strait and the poniente at around 60. So an easterly is the normal state of affairs here, not a freak, and a nervous first timer should treat a strong levante day as a day to stay ashore.<\/p>\n
We go through the weather side in more detail, including the border, the early start and what the skipper looks at, in our guide to what to expect on a fishing trip from Gibraltar<\/a>.<\/p>\n Most guests do not think about the size of the boat until they are on it. The two live Reelzy listings in Gibraltar are both run by the same crew, Blue Horizon, from the Queensway area, and both list a cabin cruiser in the 15 to 25 foot range for up to four guests. A boat that size gets you to the fish quickly and puts you close to the water, which is part of the fun, but it moves more in a chop than a big charter cat would. Both listings also show trips that leave at 06:00, so plan for an early night and a calm stomach rather than a late dinner on Main Street.<\/p>\n That is not a reason to avoid them. It is a reason to pick the right trip on the right day, and to tell the skipper honestly when you book that you are prone to seasickness. A skipper who knows can choose where to fish, how long to run and when to call it.<\/p>\n If you are not sure how you will cope, book short and stretch it next time.<\/p>\n Blue Horizon Small Game<\/a> runs a three hour trip and a six hour one. The small game trips target little tunny, mackerel and bottom species such as dentex and amberjack, with squid, cuttlefish and octopus in the mix, and the listing names bottom fishing, drifting and light jigging among its methods. Three hours is the gentle option for a first time out on this water: less time at sea, more of it with a rod in your hand, and you are back for breakfast if it is not your day. Our guide to the little tunny fishing trip from Gibraltar<\/a> covers the late October to February season those trips are built around.<\/p>\n Blue Horizon Tuna Fishing<\/a> is the bluefin boat, with a four hour trip and an eight hour one. Their own page sets the prime giant bluefin window from mid June to mid July and a run of smaller bluefin from mid August to mid October. Tuna fishing means trolling and running to find fish, and a fight that can last a long time once one is hooked. If you are prone to seasickness and set on a bluefin, start with the four hour trip and keep the full day for when you know the Strait agrees with you. The timing and the catch and release rules are in our bluefin tuna season guide for Gibraltar<\/a>.<\/p>\n You can see both boats, and any new ones, on the fishing charters in Gibraltar<\/a> page.<\/p>\n Holiday plans are usually fixed by flights, so the best thing you can do is book early in your stay and keep a second morning free. If the skipper moves the trip because of the levante, you then have room to go out on a better day instead of losing it altogether. Both Gibraltar listings show a full refund if the weather cancels the trip, so a postponement costs you nothing but the change of plan.<\/p>\n When you look at the forecast yourself, look at the wind direction and strength, not the sun symbol. A bright, blue levante morning can be far rougher than a grey, still one. If the forecast shows a strong easterly for the morning of your trip, message the skipper the day before and ask what they expect. A clear answer the night before beats a long ride out at six in the morning.<\/p>\n The NHS advice on motion sickness is simple and works as well in the Strait as anywhere else. Sit in the middle of the boat, where the motion is smallest. Look at a fixed point such as the horizon. Get fresh air. Close your eyes and breathe slowly if it starts to build. Avoid reading or looking at your phone, and avoid looking at the waves themselves. Skip heavy meals, spicy food and alcohol shortly before and during the trip. Ginger, as a tablet, biscuit or tea, is worth a try.<\/p>\n For medicines, the NHS sends you to a pharmacist, who can recommend tablets or patches and advise what suits you or your child. There are dissolvable tablets for children and patches for adults and children over 10. Some remedies cause drowsiness, which matters when you are on a small, moving deck, so ask the pharmacist about that and take what they give you at the time they tell you, before the boat leaves. Acupressure bands are sold too, and the NHS notes they do not work for everyone.<\/p>\n Stay outside. The cabin feels like shelter, but it is where most people get worse, because your eyes see a still room while your body feels the boat move. Find a spot on deck near the middle, hold on to something solid, and keep the horizon or the Rock in view.<\/p>\n Keep busy. Holding a rod, watching the tip and reeling in a mackerel gives your brain something to do besides worry. If the crew is changing lures or setting a trolling spread, ask to help.<\/p>\n Drink water in small sips, eat something plain like bread or a dry biscuit, and leave the energy drinks and the coffee for another day. If you do feel sick, tell the crew early. They have seen it many times, they can move you to a better spot, and on a short trip they may simply head for calmer water near the Bay.<\/p>\n Children need the same plan as adults: the shortest trip, a calm day, the middle of the deck and something to do with their hands. Both Blue Horizon listings say children are welcome. Talk to them, sing, play a game; the NHS suggests distraction for children for good reason. Our guide to a Gibraltar fishing trip with kids<\/a> covers ages, the early start and what to pack.<\/p>\n A skipper who answers those questions clearly is a skipper who will look after you on the water. When you are ready, pick a short trip on one of the Gibraltar fishing charters<\/a>, keep a spare morning in your stay and see the pharmacist before you fly.<\/p>\n Is the Strait of Gibraltar rough for fishing?<\/strong> It can be. Wind blowing against the current in the narrow Strait builds a short, steep chop, and the easterly levante blows on many days of the year. On a calm morning the sea can be gentle; on a strong levante day a first timer is better staying ashore.<\/p>\n Which Gibraltar fishing trip is best if I get seasick?<\/strong> The shortest one. Blue Horizon Small Game runs a three hour trip, and the tuna boat a four hour one. Start short and book a longer trip once you know how you cope.<\/p>\n What happens if the skipper cancels for the weather?<\/strong> Both Gibraltar listings on Reelzy show a full refund if the weather cancels the trip. Book early in your stay so you have another morning to try again.<\/p>\n When should I take a seasickness tablet?<\/strong> Before you board, at the time the pharmacist tells you. Medicines work far better taken in advance than once you already feel unwell, and some cause drowsiness, so ask about that too.<\/p>\nThe boats here are small and the starts are early<\/h2>\n
Choose the trip length first<\/h2>\n
Pick the day, not only the date<\/h2>\n
What the NHS says helps<\/h2>\n
On board: the habits that keep you fishing<\/h2>\n
Children and first timers<\/h2>\n
What to ask the skipper before you book<\/h2>\n
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Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n