Malta

Just taking a shot here, because nobody I know seems to go to Malta, but I’ll be there for a week at the end of the month. Any suggestions for restaurants or things to do? Appreciate any info.

I know this is an old thread, but I’m going for 6 days in August. Any updates from the OP or anyone else that has been?

I was there on business around 1994. It was not something that I could spend much time doing anything fun, so I have no real info to help. But, I never saw so many rocks in my life. They were collected and used as boundaries, and still the fields were full of white rocks. One thing I am sure about, and that is that Malta is a “strange” place.

I found Malta pretty fascinating and I’m planning a return trip in another year or two. Mdina is a great town to stroll around, but I could see it getting hot in August. The Hagar Qim temples/ancient ruins and the Mosta Dome are worth a visit as is Valletta. We didn’t make it to Gozo but will on the next trip.

It’s been a while so I’m not sure if these restaurant recommendations are still valid, but we enjoyed Trattoria 1850 in the Xara Palace in Mdina. The high end restaurant in the hotel is supposed to be excellent but we couldn’t get reservations. We also liked Tarragon in St. Paul’s Bay - very good food and service but not cheap. I’d recommend reservations for both that and Trattoria 1850.

I don’t know where you’re staying or if you’ll have a car, so those might not be convenient. We were at the Golden Sands and drove a lot (note they drive on the left), but a few nights we just ate at restaurants in the strip along the beach there.

My wife and I were thinking about going. My wife did some stuff with the Malta Prime Minister’s wife, so she has a standing invitation to visit and get shown around, etc.

I’m not sure it would be on my radar otherwise. None of this is any help. Sorry.

Bump. Have a work trip there in January, so would appreciate any more advice.

Malta was very mixed bag for us. We stayed in Valletta for 6 nights and were glad we did, because of the main bus terminal and the fact that it’s really peaceful at night to walk around. The downside is that your money won’t go very far. It seems like prices for hotels and Airbnb has shot up dramatically in Valletta. Be prepared to be disappointed in the quality of the lodging at all price points. It’s hard to get around the island by bus. It takes forever to get to places like Comino, Golden Bay, or Marsaxlokk and sometimes the buses are packed like sardines, which isn’t fun standing on a packed bus for 1.5 hours. We usually don’t stay at Airbnb, but we did in Malta as the decent hotels were priced outrageously. However, there is not 1 real supermarket within walking distance of Valletta, and absolutely no place to do laundry or hire someone to do it. The maltese restaurants we tried weren’t anything special, but there has been a huge influx of southern Italians to work in Malta. We ended up meeting a few Italians that were vacationing and they gave us recommendations for dinner. There are a lot of quality Italian places at all price points. I realize this isn’t ideal when visiting Malta, but it is what it is unfortunately.

Now the good. There is a very distinct and original vibe in Valletta, Three Cities, and some of the smaller villages, which was great. The Maltese are some of the most genuine and friendly people that I have met. I read about this before going, but was still surprised at how helpful the people were even in the cruise/tourist centers. I know you are going in January, but I’ll mention this for others. There aren’t a lot of beaches, but there are a few that are elite. The Blue Lagoon on Comino was unreal, and highly recommended. But it gets super crowded with the type of tourists we usually avoid like the plague. Therefore, I’d go extremely early or latter in the afternoon and hire a boat to take you back to the mainland after the last ferry leaves. But one of my favorite beaches in world was Gran Tuffieha. We actually went twice. The Hypogeum was also amazing and worth the early booking that you need to make months in advance in high season.

An interesting note is that certain areas seem like a giant playground for 18-25 year olds “learning english” in Malta. There is nothing wrong with this, but it’s definitely the type of environment we’d normally try to avoid and another reason Valletta worked for us.

I went for a long weekend in 2005. I found it to be relaxing and would love to go back.