The Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA) has launched a new season of its maritime visit program in March, with a total of 1,060 participants who have learned about the facilities of the Port Bay of Algeciras from the sea during this first month of activity. Most of the visitors have been first-year Secondary Education (ESO) students from schools in the Bay of Algeciras and Tarifa, as part of the school visit program organized by the port authority.
Along with students from local educational centers, members of other groups and associations have also participated, as well as groups of students from different parts of Andalusia and Spain with an interest in the maritime transport sector, logistics, or foreign trade. The tours of the bay allow participants to observe from the water the operations required by large container ships, the activity of the passenger terminal, and the industrial facilities, among other infrastructures of the port.
The APBA is simultaneously finalizing preparations for the tenth edition of "Know Your Port," one of the most valued activities by the residents of the region, which will return in May. Unlike the school visit program, "Know Your Port" is aimed at all the neighbors in the area of Campo de Gibraltar. The port authority will provide more information and details on how to register through its website at the beginning of May.www.apba.es.
This initiative is part of the official events agenda with which the European Commission commemorates European Maritime Day every year, celebrated on May 20 since 2008, aimed at highlighting maritime activities and raising citizens' awareness of the economic importance of ports. In 2018, the organization of European Maritime Day recognized "Know Your Port" as an ambassador of the EMD In My Country initiative, a distinction shared with four other events held in Trieste (Italy), the Azores (Portugal), Thermaikos (Greece), and Warsaw (Poland), selected from the 70 local events that made up the official agenda of that edition.
During the 2025 season, about 7,000 people participated in the maritime visits organized by the APBA through its Customer Service team, a figure that reflects the public demand for firsthand knowledge of the activity of the first port in Spain in total freight traffic and one of the main ports in the Mediterranean.
The APBA's maritime visit program is part of the port-city integration strategy that the port authority maintains as one of the pillars of its planning. Opening port facilities to the public, both through maritime visits and initiatives such as the Maritime Lake project, responds to the desire to bring the port reality closer to the neighbors of an area whose economic activity is closely linked to the port.