Malta — where to go and when
1 destination covered
You can cross Malta by bus in about an hour, which changes how a whole trip is planned: there is no need to move base, and everything becomes a day out from one room. Valletta is a fortified sixteenth-century grid on a peninsula, built by a military order and barely altered since, with honey-coloured limestone, steep stepped streets and harbour views at the end of most of them. The island around it is dense, bilingual, Catholic and layered with Phoenician, Roman, Arab, Norman and British traces. Costs come in close to a fifth cheaper than France on our index, with the saving clearest in food and transport. Malta suits travellers who like walking on stone, swimming off rocks rather than sand, and visiting places that were built to be defended. It does not suit anyone expecting wilderness: this is one of the most densely populated countries in Europe, and the coastline is built on almost everywhere you look.
When to go
The usable stretch is long, running from April to June and again from September to November, and it brackets a hot, bone-dry summer that peaks at 32.9 °C. Winter barely counts as one, with the coolest month still reaching 16.6 °C by day, which makes the island genuinely viable out of season. Rainfall totals 368.7 mm over 51 rainy days a year, almost all of it between autumn and early spring, so the summer months are effectively rainless.
The places we cover, side by side
| Place | Favourable months | Warmest month, avg. high (°C) | Coldest month, avg. high (°C) | Rainy days a year (≥ 1 mm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valletta | April, May, June, September, October, November | 32.9 | 16.6 | 51 |
Figures measured at the weather station nearest each place, then averaged over the warmest and the coldest months of the year — not over a fixed calendar season. Each destination page carries its own month-by-month table, its station and its sample size.
Getting around
There is no railway, and the bus network is the whole system: routes radiate from a single interchange just outside the capital, so most cross-island journeys involve one change there. Ferries cross the harbours and run to Gozo, which is the standard day trip. Valletta itself is walked, steeply. The airport lies 6 km from the capital, close enough that airport transfers stop being a planning question at all.
Budget
Country price level compared with France : −19 %
Price index for restaurants and hotels, France = 1000, from European purchasing power parities. It is a country average: it says nothing about one hotel in particular.
Destinations in Malta
Frequently asked questions
Where should I stay on Malta?
Almost anywhere, because the island is small enough that location barely constrains the itinerary. Valletta is atmospheric but quiet at night and limited in rooms; the resort strip nearby has more choice and more noise; the older inland towns are cheaper and better connected than they look. Pick on price and bus route rather than on map position.
Is Gozo worth an overnight stay?
For a week-long trip, yes. Gozo is slower, greener and emptier than the main island, and the last ferries make a day trip feel rushed at both ends. One or two nights lets you see the citadel, the salt pans and the coast without watching a timetable. On a short break, keep it to a single day.
Updated on 21 September 2026