Popular Cities

 

Malta is a relatively small Island and could easily be compared to a small city in Europe. Getting from one side of the Island to the other (traffic permitting) usually takes no more than 45 minutes, so where to stay in Malta is not really a problem if you are renting a car or using public transport whilst on holiday in Malta. 

St Julians and Sliema 

St Julians and Sliema are probably the most popular tourist destinations of Malta, primarily because they provide numerous accommodation offerings including hotels, boutique hotels, holiday villas, short let apartments in St Julians and Sliema. Secondly both Sliema and St Julians are connected along the coastline and have a very good selection of  restaurants, pubs, beach bars, supermarkets, cinemas, banks, car rental companies, harbour cruise booths, shopping districts, rocky beaches, a sandy beach and every other amenity one can think of.

These areas also have the highest concentration of expatriates in Malta with many British, Swedish, Italian and other Interntaionals renting properties and working in St Julians or Sliema. Everything is really and truly within walking distance and getting from St Julians to Sliema on foot along the promenade would take no more than 30 to 45 minutes. Further up from St Julians there is the nightlife district of Paceville which is Malta's busiest nightspot with many locals and tourists hanging around on the weekends. Paceville is lined up with Bars, Restaurants and Clubs and edges its way downwards towards St Georges Bay which is home to the only sandy beach in this part of Malta. Roughly 10 minutes away on foot from St Georges Bay there is another little village called Swieqi which is a residential district with numerous apartments available for holiday accomodation. St Julians is also home to the exclusive Portomaso area, which is one of Malta's most expensive residential resorts, this project hosts the Hilton Hotel, a small yacht marina, a few restaurants and a number of high end residential apartments.

In between St Julians and Sliema, there is the very small village of Ballutta, which is home to the Le Meridien hotel and a good selction of holiday apartments. Being the most popular areas of the Maltese Islands, accommodation, although abundant, gets booked very quickly and finding last minute availability for the peak season which is from early June to end September is pretty hard, so if you are thinking of spending your holidays in on one of these towns/villages we highly recommend that you book well in advance to secure the best places to stay. 

Paceville, pronounced "patch_y_ville" is a suburb of St Julians and is the nightlife capital of Malta. Facilities in the area range from state of the art night clubs, casinos, cinemas, live music bars, coffee shops and ethnic restaurants ranging from local to worldwide cuisine. From typical Maltese restaurants to Sicilian or Italian, Greek, Japanese, Mexican, Spanish, Thai, American and more. Most places stay open till the early hours of the morning. Paceville lies on the hill between Spinola Bay and St George's Bay. At the tip of the promontory is Dragonara point, Malta's leading Casino. The casino is in Villa Dragonara, once the private home of a 19th century Maltese aristocrat. 

Valletta & Floriana

Valletta is the capital city of Malta and in recent years it has undergone numerous changes which has resulted in a number of restuarants, cafes, whisky and wine bars sprouting in every corner of the city. Valletta is an architectural gem and a world heritage city with authentic old castiles built during the times of the Knights of St John. The city hosts a number of Museums and Palaces including the Office of the Prime Minister, the Grand Masters Palace, numerous Auberges and the new Parliament building at the entrance of Valletta designed by the famous architect Renzo Piano. Although its many titles recall its rich historical past, Valletta is very much a working, capital city; a bustling cultural centre and the administrative and commercial heart of the Islands. The bastions of this fortress city rank among the world's greatest examples of military engineering.

Valletta is also regarded as a unique example of baroque architecture. Its grid of narrow streets house some of Europe's finest churches, palaces and cultural treasures. In Valletta you will find practically anything you need and a number of accommodation options are being made available to tourists including hotels, boutique hotels, guest houses and short let apartments. Getting to the popular seaside villages of St Julians or Sliema will you set you back no more than a 30 minute bus ride or a 10 minute boat ride to the Sliema Ferries. Although accommodation offerings are on the rise, booking in advance is highly recommended as finding last minute availability is pretty difficult. 

With the Gozo Highspeed fast ferry service you can now travel between Valletta and Mgarr (Gozo) in less than 45 minutes. The service interconnects with other modes of transport including ferries to the Three Cities and to Sliema, a shuttle bus service operated by Malta Public Transport to Victoria (Gozo).

Mellieha & St Paul's Bay

Mellieha is one of the most picturesque villages on the Island and is home to a number of hotels, numerous self catering apartments and private villas, fine restaurants and traditional shops. If you are a sun worshiper and your idea of a holiday is hanging around beaches, open air beach front restaurants and taking it easy, then Mellieha is probably the place for you.

Mellieha is home to Malta's longest stretch of sandy beach which is known locally as Ghadira bay, here one will find numerous beach front restaurants and bars and all the water sports services one could imagine will be offered by the sea including, boat hire, paragliding, skiing, paddle boats, snorkelling, wind surfing, jet skiis, canoes, etc. Mellieha is also home to one of the most exclusive villa estates in Malta known locally as Santa Maria Estate and Il Kortin, these two areas are fully or large villas mostly with private swimming pools that enjoy glorious views over the Mediterranean sea. Many clients, especially the larger groups, opt for renting holiday villas when on holiday in Mellieha and more often than not, Villas in this area are pre-booked for the summer by March or April at the latest. There are also a large number of hotels and holiday apartments in the centre and close to Mellieha's sandy beach

Since Mellieha is located in the north of Malta, one can easily go to Gozo or Comino for a day which would just require a 5 to 10 minute drive to the Gozo Channel car ferry terminal where ferries run every 30 mins in the peak months. The north of Malta is where most of the larger sandy beaches are located which include Golden Sands, Riviera, Paradise Bay and Gnejna.  Mellieha also enjoys its own night spots, but getting to the busier nightlife towns of Bugibba and St Julians would take anywhere between 20 to 40 minutes depending on the route taken, whether using public transport or a car rental and the traffic at particular times of the day.

St Paul's Bay and its neighbours Bugibba and Qawra are Malta's largest, seaside resorts. They offer plentiful accommodation ranging from self-catering apartments to hotel complexes and a variety of nightlife and leisure options. The coastline here has some wonderful open sea views and a vista across to St Paul's Island, where, according to legend, the ship carrying the Apostle is said to have been wrecked. Standing prominently on the isle is a large statue of the Apostle commemorating this legendary event. The coastline promenade provides a long, though mostly level and easy walk from St Paul's Bay all the way to Qawra Point, with its tower and views over Salina Bay. St Paul's Bay started life as a small fishing village. The parish church, built in 1617, was carefully restored after suffering heavy damage in World War II. Nearby is the Wignacourt Tower built in 1610 during the reign of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt. It served as Malta's northern-most defensive outpost until fort St. Agatha was built in Mellieha in 1649. Today, it houses a small museum dedicated to Malta's rich military-architectural heritage.

Marsaxlokk & Marsascala

Marsaxlokk, the most photographed Maltese village, is one of the oldest ports in Malta. It’s name is derived from the words Mersa Sciroc, meaning “port to the south-east” named by the Saracens during their occupation of the Maltese islands from 870AD-1090AD.Being a natural harbour Marsaxlokk has been used by the various inhabitants of the Maltese islands. There is evidence of this at an archaeological site to the east of Marsaxlokk at Tas Silg, pronounced Tas silch. This area takes it’s name from a nearby Christian church dedicated to Our lady of the Snow, “silg” in maltese means snow, ice, hail or frost.

Marsaxlokk is mostly well known for its numerous fish restaurants which are mostly opposite the picuresque fishing bay. On Sundays this stretch of fish restaurants is full of locals and tourists who visit the village specifically for the open fish market and then usually spend the afternoon having lunch there. Saturdays are usually more tranquil and tables are placed by the seaside. Find some time to visit Marsaxlokk during your holiday in Malta, you won't be dissapointed.

Marsascala is another fishing village (often written as M'Scala) with its picturesque bay that lies to the south-east of Malta. The Maltese call the area WIED IL-GHAJN (wid il ajn) and many Maltese families have summer homes there. In the holiday season it is buzzing with activity, much loved by locals and visitors alike. It sprawls at the feet of two hillsides descending from Zabbar and Zejtun. Its long U-shaped coastline and beach, its rocky promontories and its multicoloured fishing vessels give it lots of character. this is enhanced by a big variety of modern leisure facilities, restaurants and bars.  Marsascala Bay  used to extend deep into the valley to a cave with a natural spring of fresh water where old mariners took their water before sailing. This zone used to be a haven for Roman ships during their long period of occupation.