Malta is a beautiful archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea with turquoise blue water and stunning coastline views. You will find Malta’s best places to visit on three islands: Malta, Gozo and Comino Island.
Malta and Gozo are regularly inhabited. Comino Island has a permanent population of only two residents.
A trip to Maltese Island is truly an unforgettable experience for any kind of traveler.
Whatever you are interested in history, night life, outdoor activities, or just want to relax on the beach and admire beautiful nature – Malta has it all.
Malta best places to visit
Good to know before your trip to Malta
We spent one week on this beautiful island and drove around in a rental car. You drive on the left side, roads are in good conditions, at least the main roads. We also drove on narrow roads in not such a good shape. The further you leave the touristic attractions, the worst the roads get.
There are no white sandy beaches, but you will find beautiful turquoise blue water.
Everyone speaks English but listening to the Maltese language was very interesting. Felt like hearing arabic.
Malta is a real film-location star. They shot movies like Gladiator, Troy, Captain Phillips and TV’s Game of Thrones.
There are over 350 churches. One church a day to be explored.
Malta best places to visit
How to get around
We did a road trip around the island and stayed in different places. You can either do it as we did or stay in one place the entire trip. It takes around 45min to get from one side of the island to the other.
If you decide to stay in one place, we recommend staying in Sliema. There is a ferry going to Valletta, and it is the best way to explore the capital city of Malta. Parking in Valletta is very limited.
There is also public transport, buses, which looked like it worked perfectly. There are bus stops at most of the touristic attractions. We have no experience with the public transport, but you can check the Malta Public Transport website.
How long to stay
First, it really depends on your budget and second, how much do you want to explore? We traveled slowly and stayed for one week. One week will give you the extra time to either revisit places or, in case the weather is not good, to have a spare day to see the attractions you missed. Or simply to enjoy a beach day.
Malta’s best places to visit are on all three islands. We recommend one day at Comino Island to enjoy the insanely beautiful turquoise blue water in the Blue Lagoon. We think Gozo is a truly hidden gem, therefor plan at least one night in Gozo.
Valletta is a perfect city for a weekend getaway. You could actually travel around Malta if you have only two nights. You will not get to see everything and you need to choose what to see, but a short weekend with friends sounds great to us.
Now it is time to dive into our Malta best places to visit guide.
Malta best places to visit
#1 Valletta
Valletta is a capital city of Malta and definitely is Malta’s best places to visit. The contrast of the beautiful golden buildings with colorful windows and balconies with the dreamlike blue of the Mediterranean Sea. The city is hilly, but all the major attractions are within walking distance.
Valletta is a historical town, and it became part of the World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980. Valletta is also called “the sunniest city of Europe” or “open-air museum”. In 2018, they chose Valletta as the European Capital of Culture.
The easiest way to visit Valletta is by public transport, either by bus or by boat. There is a ferry going between Sliema and Valletta. The return ticket for the ferry cost only 2,80EUR per person.
Read more of what to see in Valletta in our blog post (coming soon).
Our tip: Arrive early to beat the crowds. If you come earlier, it might surprise you how quiet the city is. You will see locals going to work and the city slowly waking up. Around 10am the city is awake and the energy changes. Stroll through the city, enjoy the colorful and playful balconies and enjoy the vibe.
#2 Marsaxlokk
Marsaxlokk is a small, traditional fishing village in the south part of Malta. And completely different compared to the capital city Valletta. For a little moment, you will feel like the time has stopped there.
The village has a beautiful harbour with traditional luzzu – traditional fishermen boats. In the village’s heart you will find the Santwarju tal-Madonna ta’ Pompe church.
The village is famous for the Marsaxlokk Market, offering a large variety of fresh fish and seafood. It takes place along the seafront on Sundays.
Malta best place to visit
Marsaxlokk is also famous for St. Peter’s Pool. It is a very popular natural swimming pool among tourists and locals. It is a horseshoe-shaped rock formation with clear water. When we visited, we could not swim in there as the sea was wild and stormy.
How to get to St. Peter’s Pool: either by car or by foot. There is a small parking lot and the streets are narrow. Afterwards you need to walk around 10min. You can also walk from Marsaxlokk. The walking tour takes around 50min.
St. Peter’s Pool is a nice place to hang out with good company. To enjoy a picnic and enjoy some beautiful coastline views.
Our tip: Watch sunrise from Munxar Path. It is a beautiful and easy walk along the coastline close to Marsaxlokk. It takes around 15min to walk from Ic Cimenta parking lots.
#3 Blue Grotto
Blue Grotto is one reason you are in Malta, right? It belongs to Malta best places to visit and yes; it is a touristic attraction, but you can not miss this spot. Don’t confuse this fantastic location with the stunning Blue Lagoon on Comino Island.
The Blue Grotto is a complex of six caves found along the coast of the island. The main arch is approx. 30m height and the view from the viewing point is spectacular.
You can also do a boat tour, if weather permits. We unfortunately missed that, as we arrived late and didn’t get a parking space. The best time to visit is in the morning, so take advantage of an early morning.
We stopped there for the second time, but the weather was not good. Windy and stormy and in these conditions, no boat tours operate.
We only viewed it from the viewing point above the Blue Grotto. You can park there if available and it takes only two minutes to walk.
Our tip: There is a small “village”, where you will find restaurants and parking. From there, you can also get on the boat tours.
#4 Xaqqa Cliffs
This amazing place is on the south coast, and the view is breathtaking. When you see the view, you realize how turquoise blue water is around the Maltese Island. This beautiful rock formation will leave you speechless for a while. It looks like a dinosaur.
The place is accessible only by car or if you are hiking around Malta.
Our tip: Leave your car on the side of the road and then jump over the small wall (that is allowed). Watch your steps as you get closer to the edge. We saw mountain climbers training there.
#5 Dingli Cliffs
When you drive along the south coastline, it is hard to miss Dingli Cliffs. It is a scenic, towering cliff offering panoramic views.
To be honest, I think there are more impressive coastline views on Gozo Island than the Dingli Cliffs. The place is really beautiful, but it gets very crowded. There was a bus stop filled with many people.
There are only a few spots where you can hide from the sun. So come early, before the crowds arrive and before the sun is too strong.
Our tip: Dingli Cliffs Window is a shorter walk from the main street and offers you to view the coastline through a window. Funny thing is, that people passed that window and didn’t even notice the great views. Don’t miss it.
#6 Mdina
In many tour guides, you will find it as THE ULTIMATE Malta best places to visit. It took us two visits to see the beauty of Mdina town.
Mdina is the former capital city of Malta and also called “the silent city”. There is no silence as all the tourists wandering around. Very few cars are allowed to enter the city walls, and the businesses here have strict noise regulations.
Mdina is one of Europe’s finest examples of an ancient walled city and extraordinary in its mix of medieval and baroque architecture.
For fans of Game of Thrones, this place is a must visit. The gate of Mdina was filmed right here.
Our tip: We visited twice, once on a busy Sunday, and the second time was early in the morning during the week. Mdina is more enjoyable early in the morning when the town is slowly waking up. It does the justice of the nickname “silent city”.
There is a panoramic viewpoint over Malta. The views of Malta are really incredibly beautiful.
#7 Għajn Tuffieħa Beach
Beach with darker sand, coastal walk, stunning views and turquoise blue water. Għajn Tuffieħa and Golden Bay are only two of the few places with a sandy beach on Malta.
Għajn Tuffieħa is a must go place when in Malta. You can snorkel, swim in the sea, hike around the coastline or simply enjoy a beach day.
The path from the parking lot to the other side of the bay is an easy 15min walk.
Golden Bay is right next to Għajn Tuffieħa and if your time permits, do the scenic walk between these two beaches. This beautiful cove offers fine sand, rocky cliffs & shallow water.
Our tip: We came early in the morning, around 8am and we had the place to ourselves. It was an amazing experience with a beautiful coastal view. We have a few videos/reels on our Instagram from this place.
#8 Popeye Village
They built this famous village only for the musical ‘Popeye’ from 1980. Now it is a theme park village with boat rides and turquoise blue water.
The colourful village with amazing views of turquoise blue water is a great place to spend an afternoon with your family.
Our tip: If you don’t want to visit the village itself, do not miss the view from above. There are enough parking spots for a short stop. The views are truly amazing.
Malta best places to visit
#9 Comino Island
The Comino Island is a small island between Malta and Gozo. It is interesting to know that the island has a permanent population of only two residents. The favorite spot to visit is the famous Blue Lagoon with turquoise blue water.
Blue Lagoon is right between Comino Island and Cominotto Island. You can see the turquoise blue water from Gozo. We have a video about the Blue Lagoon on our IG. Watch it here.
Our tip: There are many companies offering a day trip to Comino Island together with a visit to Gozo. We recommend booking the tour which offers only Comino Island. You will have around 4 hours to swim in this crystal blue water and time to explore the island too. It is a favorite spot, so it will be full of tourists, but you can use your ferry as a base camp.
#10 Gozo
Gozo has its own character, and it is truly Malta’s best places to visit. You can either book a tour to visit Gozo or, like us, spend a night. Maltese people come here to spend summer here as it is less busy than Malta.
You can get there by the ferry which goes between Malta and Gozo and it is easy to do so, even with a car.
Read more about what to see on Gozo Island in our blog post.
Our tip: We highly recommend spending at least one night on Gozo Island. You will enjoy the character and the vibe which the island offers.
Malta best places to visit
Malta truly is a beautiful island in the Mediterranean Sea, and it is still underrated. It is an affordable destination with many sunny days.
The beautiful part of visiting Malta is that you can either travel around and spend every night in a new place. Or you can book one accommodation and travel around. Everything is within short driving distance.
And if you don’t rent a car, you don’t feel you would miss a lot. The public transport works fine and brings you to all the major touristic areas.
Get in touch with us
We hope our Travel guide: Malta best places to visit inspires you and you will fall in love with this Mediterranean island as much as we did.
Are you planning a trip to Malta and you are not sure what to see or where to go? Get in touch with us, we will gladly help you.
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We are looking forward to hear from you.
With love, Teri and Felix
Great article!