Things to Do in Malta: Interactive Map

A natural flat-limestone pool with deep, clear turquoise water and low ledges for cliff jumping, a genuine local favourite over any sandy beach nearby. Busy on summer weekends but noticeably quieter midweek and out of season, with zero facilities so it never feels developed.

A small sheltered rocky cove with a natural pool and an adjoining cave, beloved by southern-village locals and by divers for the water clarity. No sand, so it is all about swimming and snorkelling straight off the concrete platforms and ladders.

The flat rocky shoreline along the Sliema front with metal ladders bolted into deep, clean sea, where expats and locals swim year-round including winter. No real beach, just rocks for a towel, but the most convenient proper swim in the urban core. By night the lido bar runs weekend live music.

Malta's most photographed sandy beach, a wide golden crescent backed by a hilltop hotel with lidos, watersports and sunset views. Genuinely nice but very crowded in peak afternoon, since the easy bus access fills it with day-trippers.

A crescent of ochre sand under red clay cliffs, right next to Golden Bay but far quieter because you have to walk down a long flight of steps. Undeveloped feel with just a small snack bar, and the water is as good as its famous neighbour.

Malta's largest sandy beach, with water so shallow you can wade 50 metres out and still be waist-deep, which makes it the default for families with small kids. More functional than beautiful, backed by the main road, and rammed on Sundays.

A mix of sand and pebbles below clay slopes, with a cluster of traditional luzzu fishing boats and boathouses that give it an authentic, un-touristy feel. Frequented mostly by Maltese families, and lovely at sunset when the cliffs glow.

A small, secluded sand-and-pebble bay on the northeast coast that most tourists never find, with clear shallow water good for snorkelling. The reward for the effort is often having close to the whole beach to yourself, even in summer. It sits on the quiet Selmun-Mistra walking coast.

A wild, pebbly bay under dramatic cliffs, one of the most remote and unspoilt swims on the main island, with almost no development and big open views. For confident swimmers who value solitude over comfort, and the setting is spectacular.

The postcard-famous shallow channel of electric-blue water between Comino and Cominotto, gorgeous in a photo but overrun in reality. In summer it is wall-to-wall boats, loud music and a ladder crush, so the experience rarely matches the image.

A quiet, tree-backed sandy bay on the far side of Comino from the Blue Lagoon, with shallow clear water and an actual relaxed beach feel. The local-in-the-know antidote to the lagoon chaos, especially calm in the mornings.

Gozo's biggest and best beach, a broad sweep of distinctive red-gold sand with clean, safe swimming and the Calypso Cave legend on the hillside above. Beautiful and family-friendly, though far from secluded in peak season.

A tiny red-sand cove often called Ramla's wilder little cousin, tucked below terraced fields and reached only on foot. Peaceful and gorgeous, with the steep access acting as a natural crowd filter.

A narrow sea canyon where a slot of bright green-blue water cuts deep between high rock walls to a tiny pebble beach, one of Gozo's most striking and sheltered swims. Superb snorkelling with caves and marine life, and a real hidden-gem feel.

A long, narrow fjord-like inlet with a small pebble beach, clear sheltered water and excellent snorkelling and diving, plus a well-known seafood shack at the head of the bay. Once a true secret, now discovered by mainland Maltese too.

A plain fortress-like facade hides one of the most overwhelming Baroque interiors in Europe, with a marble floor of inlaid knight tombstones and Caravaggio's Beheading of St John. The single most impressive church interior on the island.

Reopened in 2024 after a major restoration, with restored State Rooms, the only complete set of 18th-century French Gobelins tapestries in the world, and a world-class armoury of knights' armour. Heritage Malta's most visited site, finally worth the ticket.

The star-shaped fort at Valletta's tip holds the National War Museum, covering the Bronze Age to WWII, with the George Cross and Malta's brutal Siege history well told. Lots of steps and open ground, but excellent value and strong harbour views.

A walled medieval hilltop town of honey-coloured palazzos and quiet lanes, largely traffic-free and genuinely atmospheric, especially at night once the day-trippers leave. The cathedral and the bastion views over half the island are the highlights.

Malta's largest Roman-era underground burial complex, over 2,000 square metres of well-lit galleries showing early Christian and pagan tombs. A far cheaper, no-booking alternative to the Hypogeum, though after a few chambers the layouts feel repetitive.

A 5,000-year-old subterranean necropolis carved from living rock, the only prehistoric underground temple of its kind in the world and a UNESCO site. Genuinely unique and unforgettable, but access is tightly restricted to protect the ochre wall art.

The largest megalithic temple complex in Malta, famous for spiral-carved reliefs, animal friezes and the lower half of a colossal 'fat lady' fertility statue. Underrated and rarely crowded, and a natural add-on right next to the Hypogeum.

Two clifftop megalithic temple complexes from around 3600 BC, older than Stonehenge, in a dramatic setting above the sea. The stones are impressive though there is very little shade, so some find the fee steep.

A small free garden terrace with the best panoramic view over the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities. The Saluting Battery below fires a cannon at noon and 4pm daily, a genuine crowd-pleaser rather than a tourist trap.

The oldest of the fortified Three Cities across the harbour from Valletta, with Fort St Angelo, a yacht-lined waterfront and quiet medieval back streets. Every bit as dramatic as Valletta but far less visited, an excellent and cheaper half-day.

The commanding harbour fortress at the tip of Birgu that anchored the Knights' defence during the 1565 Great Siege. Heritage Malta has restored it well, and the ramparts give a superb angle back across the water to Valletta.

Gozo's fortified hilltop old town above Victoria, with restored bastions giving 360-degree views over the whole island and lanes barely changed in centuries. The free ramparts are the real draw, with several small museums and a cathedral inside.

Two of the oldest free-standing monuments on earth, dating to 3600 to 3200 BC and predating the pyramids, with a good modern interpretation centre. If you do one archaeological site on Gozo, this is the essential one.

The highest point on Malta, a run of sheer cliffs dropping to the sea with the islet of Filfla offshore. Wide, open and windswept, it faces west, so it is the island's classic sunset walk away from any crowds. The wild coast walk continues toward the remote bay of Fomm ir-Rih.

A distinctive red 1640s watchtower on the Marfa Ridge with Mellieha Bay on one side and Comino and Gozo on the other. The open plateau around it faces west across the channel, making it a reliable sunset spot with the islands silhouetted.

A collapsed sea cave on the north coast forming a deep circular lagoon with a natural rock arch, the water shimmering vivid blue when the sun hits at the right angle. A striking photo landmark and cliff-jumping spot rather than a swim-in beach.

Gozo's highest sea cliffs, dropping around 130 metres straight into the sea along the island's wild southern edge, and an important seabird breeding ground. An easy, mostly flat clifftop walk from Sannat delivers the best sunset on Gozo.

A natural limestone sea arch at the end of a valley on Gozo's rugged northwest coast, now the island's main surviving arch after the Azure Window collapsed in 2017. It sits over clear open sea and is far quieter than the old Dwejra crowds ever were.

The coast where the Azure Window stood until 2017. The arch is gone, but the lagoon-like Inland Sea, connected to the open sea by an 80-metre tunnel that fishermen row you through, plus Fungus Rock and Dwejra Tower, still make a dramatic west-facing scene.

A cluster of sea caves where sunlight turns the water vivid turquoise, viewable from a clifftop lookout or a short boat ride. The caves are beautiful but the boat trip is brief and cash-only, and the free viewpoint is arguably enough.

Valletta's old red-light lane reborn as a strip of characterful bars, wine cellars and jazz spots, drawing a mixed thirty-plus and expat crowd rather than Paceville teens. Best for conversation and a drink over bottle service, liveliest on weekend evenings.

A 400-year-old vaulted stone cellar just off Strait Street, running over twenty years, built around Maltese and Mediterranean wines with cheese and charcuterie boards. It draws an older, settled expat-and-local crowd who come to talk. Cosy and intimate.

A gin and tapas bar on Strait Street with well over 200 gins sorted by flavour profile and tapas ordered through a hatch in the wall. A relaxed thirty-something international crowd, and it works as a long grazing evening.

An institution below St Ursula Street where people sit on cushions on the stone steps with a drink and listen to live jazz. Low-key, atmospheric and mixed-age, more about the setting and the music than the bar itself.

The waterfront horseshoe below Paceville lined with bars and restaurants, an older and calmer scene than the clubs up the hill. Best for after-work drinks and dinner-plus-a-pint evenings with sea views rather than dancing.

A Prohibition-style speakeasy you enter through a vintage phone booth, serving proper crafted cocktails to a grown-up crowd wanting a break from Paceville shot bars. Intimate and dimly lit, this is where adults in St Julian's actually go for a good drink.

Malta's dense club strip, loud, cheap-drinks, packed and heavily skewed to 18-25 tourists and stag groups. Notable venues are Sky Club (the largest), Havana (three floors, often free entry) and Hugo's for pool parties. Expats tend to dip in occasionally.

A sleek rooftop lounge-club on the 22nd floor of the Portomaso Tower with panoramic Mediterranean views, a premium crowd and a strict dress code. The polished, older, dressed-up end of the St Julian's scene, more table-and-cocktail than mosh-pit.

Malta's flagship beach club on St Paul's Bay with an infinity pool, sun loungers, DJ sets and a strong sunset-into-party scene. A mixed twenties-to-forties crowd for day-drinking that rolls into evening; polished, expensive and see-and-be-seen.

A shaded reggae garden and beach bar by St Thomas Bay in the quieter southeast, running since 2011 with a proper live-music programme through summer. A laid-back, alternative, mixed local-and-expat crowd well away from the tourist strips.

A legendary hole-in-the-wall pastizzerija open since the 1940s, famous for pastizzi, the flaky ricotta or pea pastries that are Malta's national snack. Cheap, unglamorous and open almost round the clock, and locals rate it the best on the island.

A tiny family bakery down a Nadur side street baking the definitive Gozitan ftira in a wood-fired oven since the 1930s. The ftira is a flat sourdough base loaded with potato, tomato, onion, egg and gbejniet, closer to a rustic pie than a pizza.

An unfussy village restaurant in the farming town of Mgarr, widely called the best fried-rabbit (fenkata) spot on Malta, with everything cooked from scratch. A full fenkata runs spaghetti in rabbit sauce followed by the fried rabbit, and it is superb value.

A working fishing village lined with painted luzzu boats, best known for its Sunday market and waterfront fish restaurants like La Capanna. Genuinely photogenic and one of the most alive spots on the island, though the market has drifted toward souvenirs.

A casual Valletta institution built around a restored wood-fired oven, serving Maltese ftira topped and folded to order plus rabbit stew, bragioli and gbejniet at fair prices. The easiest place in the capital to eat properly Maltese without a fine-dining bill.

A cluster of workshops on a former WWII airfield where you can watch glass being blown and filigree silver and Malta lace being made, then buy direct from the artisans. Entry is free, and the Beehive confectionery here does traditional Maltese sweets.

A 350-year-old chessboard of salt pans carved into the flat coastal rock west of Marsalforn, still worked by a handful of Gozitan families through summer. One of the last living salt harvests in the Med, free, low-key and genuinely photogenic in late afternoon.

Malta's first national park, protecting more than 6km of undeveloped northwest coastline next to Golden Bay. Well-marked trails cross rocky plateaus and garigue that erupts with wildflowers in spring, ending at quiet rocky swim spots. The most accessible proper nature walk on the main island.

A 19th-century British defensive wall running roughly 12km along the natural fault ridge that splits Malta in two, now the island's signature long-distance walk. You follow the wall past derelict forts and through valleys, with countryside on both sides.

Malta's only real woodland, a shady valley of pines, oaks, citrus and olive planted by the Knights below Verdala Palace. On an island with almost no trees it is a genuine novelty, good for a cool 4km loop, a picnic and birdwatching.

A 110-metre former oil tanker scuttled off Wied iz-Zurrieq in 1998 as an artificial reef, now one of Malta's signature wreck dives. It sits upright on sand from about 15m to 36m and split in two in a storm, which added dramatic swim-throughs.

Malta's most famous dive site, a natural limestone tube in the rocks at Dwejra beside where the Azure Window collapsed, repeatedly voted among the best dives in the Mediterranean. You drop into the sinkhole and swim out through an archway into open blue.

A 90-minute scenic cruise from the Sliema waterfront around Marsamxett and the Grand Harbour, taking in Valletta's bastions and the Three Cities from the water. The easiest way to grasp why the harbour made Malta strategically priceless for centuries.

Guided half or full-day sea-kayak tours paddling the cliffs and hidden sea caves around Gozo and Comino, reaching bays and arches the tourist ferries cannot. Operators cater to complete beginners with a quick briefing first.

The colourful wooden film set built for the 1980 Popeye movie, tucked into pretty Anchor Bay and now a small family theme park with shows, a museum and a sheltered swimming cove. Kitschy for adults, but a solid half day with young kids.

A roughly 3-hour guided walk through Valletta's backstreets stopping at family-run spots to taste pastizzi, ftira, local wine and Maltese sweets, with a licensed guide weaving in the city's history. A good first-day orientation that doubles as lunch.