Malta

I was late to get my COVID jab (had SO much on and worried it was going to knock me out – it didn’t) and was so busy that I made no plans to travel this year. However, mum & dad were going to Malta so thought I’d tag along 🙂

In all honesty, it wasn’t the most beautiful place in the world (quite barren land with ugly / unfinished apartment blocks), so this isn’t going to be the most exciting blog, but it was lovely to get away, eat some nice food and chill with a book in the sun.

Flights
Dad booked me business class flights from London to Valletta on points (legend) but you can get insanely cheap flights on Skyscanner (from £15!!!).

Accommodation
We stayed at the Intercontinental in Saint Julian’s. Nice hotel with a beach and 2 swimming pools, but if I were to go to Malta again, I’d definitely stay in Valetta as it’s much prettier – Saint Julian’s is good if you want to party!

Currency in Malta is the Euro – check conversion rates before you go.

Transport
We didn’t use public transport but taxis were cheap and if you book day trips / tours, the transport is taken care of.

What we did…

– Valletta
Malta’s beautiful fortified capital – a highlight of the trip. In comparison to most capital cities, Valletta is mini (1km by 600m) which means you can get around it pretty quickly.

Cool to enter the city through the imposing city walls. Fun facts my dad told me when we were there:

– the city is built like a grid for ease of movement when the city was under attack
– you’ll notice the doors of all the buildings are really large – it’s so soldiers could easily leave on horseback (although not sure where the horses were kept?)

We went up in a lift to the Barrakka Gardens and enjoyed gorgeous views across the water to Birgu. We arrived 11.40 which was perfect timing as every day at 12pm officials in full uniform fire a cannon at the Saluting Battery, a 500 year old time telling tradition. Also commemorates the forces who protected the city from enemies across the water.

A walking tour is always a good idea because you can learn so much more about the history of a city this way.

– Gozo
We went on a day trip from Saint Julien’s to Gozo. There’s the choice of guided jeep tours / quad bike tours / taxi tours depending on what you fancy. They’ll pick you up from your hotel in Malta and sort the ferry over to Gozo.

Some of the things we did:

– Blessed Virgin of Ta’ Pinu Basilica – religious landmark – they say miracles happen after you pray here and have rooms with letters / photos / casts of people who say a miracle happened to them – really interesting if not a little creepy
– Ramla Bay – beach stop
– Sanap Cliffs – pretty views
– Salt Pans – not that impressive

– The Citadel, Victoria
Super impressive with amazing views! Was a little cloudy when we were up there but still pretty.

– Saint Julian’s
This is the party place in Malta! Our hotel was right by the busiest strip of clubs / bars. Not my vibe at all but can imagine popular for stags / hens!

We also spent a lot of time sleeping and eating on the mini beach / by the pool.

Other things to do which we didn’t:

– Blue Lagoon – looks pretty but we were told it gets rammed with tourists which makes it not so pretty
– Mdina – another historic place to explore, similar to and smaller than Valletta so we didn’t bother

As I say, wasn’t blown away so if you’re looking to travel somewhere picturesque, perhaps check out some of my other blogs 🙂 xxx