🇲🇹 Malta

10 best places in Valletta

Valletta is a Knights Hospitaller fortress on a promontory, where Baroque gold inside its churches meets bastions overlooking the Mediterranean, and the whole capital is a single UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sight

St. John's Co-Cathedral

A lavish Baroque interior holding Caravaggio's masterpiece 'The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist'.

Sight

Grand Master's Palace

The former seat of the Knights of Malta's grand masters, now home to the country's president.

Park

Upper Barrakka Gardens

A hilltop terrace over the Grand Harbour, famous for its midday saluting battery cannon fire.

Museum

Fort St. Elmo & National War Museum

The stronghold of the 1565 Great Siege, now telling the island's military history.

Museum

National Museum of Archaeology

Home to the famed 'Sleeping Lady' figurine and artefacts from Malta's megalithic temples.

District

Republic Street (Triq ir-Repubblika)

The city's main pedestrian spine, lined with shops and cafes down to a harbour view.

District

Valletta Waterfront

Restored 18th-century warehouses by the sea, now home to restaurants and cruise-ship berths.

Café

Café Cordina

Valletta's oldest patisserie, serving pastries on Republic Square since 1837.

Restaurant

Restaurant Nenu the Baker

Home-style Maltese cooking and wood-fired bread in the heart of the old city.

Market

Is-Suq tal-Belt Market

A restored Victorian covered market turned lively food hall.

FAQ

Best time to visit Malta?

April to June and September to October are the sweet spots: warm, swimmable and less crowded. July and August are hot, loud and expensive. Winter is mild but windy and wet, and much of the beach infrastructure shuts down.

How many days do you need in Valletta?

Valletta itself is tiny, and a day or two covers St. John's Co-Cathedral, the Grandmaster's Palace, the Barrakka Gardens and Fort St. Elmo. Most people use it as a base for the rest of the country - Mdina, the Three Cities, Gozo, the Blue Grotto. Budget four to six days for Malta as a whole.

Is Malta expensive to live in?

Malta is no longer cheap. Rent in popular areas such as Sliema and St. Julian's has climbed a lot in recent years and is the biggest line in most budgets. Food and services are moderate, but much is imported and getting around the island without a car wears thin. The currency is the euro.

How do you get residency in Malta?

Malta is in the EU and Schengen, and the routes include work, study, family reunification, the Nomad Residence Permit for remote employees and an investment-based residence programme. The citizenship-by-investment scheme has been contested for years and its status shifted after EU-level litigation, so do not build a plan on it without fresh legal advice. Thresholds and rules are revised often.