The Northern Defences Park

The Northern Defences are the tunnelled fortifications cut into the north face above the isthmus, the works that made Gibraltar unassailable from land, and a site largely closed to visitors for decades. Locals called the overgrown slope el jungle.

Fortress Attractions has agreed with HM Government of Gibraltar to invest around £4 million in opening them up. The government retains ownership; the company manages the site, with large sections staying publicly accessible. Since 2025 a team of archaeologists and conservators has cleared vegetation, stabilised rock, exposed stone paving and stepped pathways cut into the rock, and stripped Portland cement from Landport tunnel to reveal the original gateway. Monthly community newsletters report the work, and the Heritage Trust has taken students and residents through it on guided visits.

What will open, per the operator: the park route through the Prince's and Queen's Lines to the Tower of Homage, the tunnel experience of the British Empire tier, and the Jungle Park, an adventure zone with a staff-controlled zip-line and a tree-to-tree ropes course with bridges and nets, which the operator gives three hours. The former Landport Cottage becomes the ticket office and interpretation centre. On 11 September 2026 the operator put the park's opening at early 2027.