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The Maltese Islands.

malta map2


GETTING AROUND

The Maltese Islands are not very large, which makes getting around relatively trouble-free.

The public bus service on Malta and Gozo is a good way to get around as buses serve the major tourist areas, go practically everywhere and are cheap and efficient. The cost of a bus route ranges from €0.35 to €0.58 and the longest bus journey takes about fifty minutes; the average ride is between twenty and thirty minutes

Renting a car is a good option if you want to get to the farther reaches of the island. All the road signs are in English and driving is on the left.

Major and local car hires are located on Malta and Gozo with daily rates of €16 - €28. International and national driving licenses are acceptable. A number of internationally based car hiring firms as well as local garages also offer the services of chauffeur-driven cars.

Renting scooters, motorbikes or mountain bicycles is an option, but travel this way can be somewhat limited as not all roads are two-wheel vehicle friendly.

The white taxi service can pick up passengers from anywhere, except bus-stops.  Taxi services from the Malta International Airport and the Seaport Terminal to all localities in Malta are based on a fixed tariff.

A regular ferry service links Malta to Gozo, taking about 20 minutes each way. A sea plane service links Grand Harbour in Valletta to Mgarr Harbour in Gozo. There are also regular boat services between each island and Comino. A wtare taxi service using traditional Maltese 'dghajsa' boats is also available in Grand Harbour.


Courtesy of the Malta Tourist Board



Megaliths, medieval dungeons and Calypso's Cave - The Maltese Islands are positively mythic. The narrow meandering streets of their towns and villages are crowded with Renaissance cathedrals and Baroque palaces. As the countryside is dotted with the oldest known human structures in the world, the Islands have rightly been described as an open-air museum.

The Maltese archipelago lies virtually at the center of the Mediterranean, with Malta 93km south of Sicily and 288km north of Africa. The archipelago consists of three islands: Malta, Gozo and Comino with a total population of 400,000 inhabitants over an area of 316sq km and a coastline of 196.8km (not including 56.01 km for the island of Gozo).

Malta is the largest island and the cultural, commercial and administrative centre. Gozo is the second largest island and is more rural, characterised by fishing, tourism, crafts and agriculture while Comino is largely uninhabited.

With superbly sunny weather, expansive beaches, a thriving nightlife and 7,000 years of intriguing history, there is a great deal to see and do. With a little help from any guidebook, captivating places of interest are immediately identified - the world famous Hypogeum selected as a place of World Heritage by UNESCO, prehistoric temples and grand palaces are but a few.

The long relationship between the Islanders and the various nationalities that occupied Malta over the centuries has created a marriage of styles and traditions, giving the Islands a fascinating eclectic culture.