The best way to spend 2 days in Malta.

You know those people you see on social media that have bought a Mystery Holiday Deal for only £99 and somehow got to go to Dubai? (WTFFF!). So you think surely everyone that buys a voucher gets a place like Dubai…right!?

Well, my boyfriend and I thought so…so we bought one…

…and we got Malta!

While it wasn’t quite the £99 winter getaway to Dubai, Thailand or New York we were SO hoping for (I mean, did that guy actually get Dubai for £99???), we both hadn’t been to Malta and were excited for a new place to explore.

We received our flight details through and they were…shite.

We got given a flight from Manchester (we live in Glasgow), on a Wednesday morning in November, and then a flight home on the Friday at lunchtime…so we had less than 48 hours in Malta.

Yes, I know…you get what you pay for.

While this was starting to feel like more effort than it was worth, we realised complaining wasn’t going to get us anywhere (and was ungrateful) and planned for our trip.

…and we had a fantastic time!

One major highlight for my boyfriend and I was when we realised so many places across the island were regularly used as locations in Game of Thrones ! (we may or may not have been those people who woke up at 5am to watch the finale before work…)

In this post, I have pulled together a brief outline of what we did, that meant we got to see so much of what Malta has to offer in just 2 days.

Day 1 – Valletta and Sliema

Valletta

We arrived around lunchtime and decided to head straight to Valletta, the capital of Malta. The bus station is just outside the airport terminal, and with pretty easy to understand maps and info, we learned the best way there was to get the X4 bus. A one way ticket cost 1.50€ (I believe it’s 2€ in peak season), and it only took 25 minutes! This was definitely the first time we realised just how small Malta actually was…our experience was that it cook take around only 30 minutes to get from one side of the island to the other by bus.

We got off the bus where it terminated, at the main bus station in Valletta. We found somewhere to grab a bite to eat, and ordered some Rabbit Stew, a local delicacy. I’m still not 100% sure I liked it…but glad I tried it.

We then just followed the map in our Lonely Planet Malta Guidebook to get us around Valletta (I’m sure you could also pick up a free map at the bus station if you don’t have a guidebook). It really is a super small place, so as soon as you had finished looking at one beautiful building, you would turn the corner and already be at the next place on your tour!

My highlights from Valletta:

1. Upper Barrakka Gardens
   • With panoramic views of the harbour, these gardens are a must see. Situated at the far end of the harbour, you walk through a beautiful garden, with the most colourful flowers you will ever see, and make your way to one of the many view points in the grounds. Whether you are looking out to the harbour or the vastness of the Mediterranean Sea, the views are just stunning – I could have sat there for hours.

2. The Waterfront...at night!
   • I’m not really talking about a specific area in Valletta here, just the waterfront in general. Definitely best seen at night, it’s quite a dramatic scene. With lots of spotlights along the Fort walls, it really lit the place up against the pitch-black, starry sky. The best view we got was on the quick ferry between Valletta and Sliema, where we were heading for dinner, with the picture below showing what we were looking back on as we left the port.

Sliema

After a long day of travelling, we were excited to head for some dinner and drinks. We jumped on a small ferry from Valletta and went to Sliema, which we had read had lots to offer of an evening. You could have walked, but the ferry was much quicker, and seemed like the done thing.

Sliema is definitely a lot more modern and ‘resort like’ than Valletta, with some high-rise apartment blocks along the front. Quite an affluent area, it is now one of Malta’s main hubs for visitors, with lots of shops and restaurants to keep you busy. I can’t comment to what it is like during the day, but there were plenty of places to eat and drink that looked busy (or as busy as you might expect on a cold Novembers night).

We ended up eating in a really nice, quite casual, tapas place called La Vida, pairing our food with a delicious jug of Red Wine Sangria. The staff were super nice and there was a really nice vibe.

After dinner, we headed for a few more drinks in an outdoor waterfront bar called Il Gabbana and were fortunate enough to grab a seat under a heater…with blankets! We sat for a few hours just looking out to sea, with the moon so close it felt like we could touch it. It felt pretty romantic…but I know my boyfriend will cringe at me saying so.

We finished up and grabbed a fairly quick bus to Buġibba, where we were staying.

Day 2 – Buġibba, Mdina and Saint Julian

Buġibba

Our hotel in Buġibba was nothing to shout about, so I won’t go in to any detail. It definitely felt like a hotel you and your mates had pushed on you by a travel agent when booking your first gals holiday. There were 2 single beds and a bathroom…so it did the job (and meant for once my boyfriend didn’t steal the covers)

I’ll say it again though – you get what you pay for.

If I’m honest, I’m not sure I liked Buġibba. I don’t think I had quite realised the British influence, which unfortunately meant lots of ‘Union Jack’ style bars. In fact, on our hotel’s street alone, there was one bar with a picture of Diana out the front, and another that was called ‘Churchill’ or something like that! It turns out Malta has quite a big British expat community, with around 5,000 Brits currently there (with the entire country’s population being just over 500,000).

This particular aspect was not my scene.

Mdina

With day 2 being our last day, it of course meant getting up super early. We decided to head to Mdina, which is in the middle(ish) of the island.

Most exciting for us was learning that Mdina was the setting for quite a few Game of Thrones locations, including the square in front of Littlefinger’s ‘pleasure house’ where Jaime Lannister fought Ned stark, with the walled city also doubling up as King’s Landing in Season 1!

Walking around Mdina, I felt like I had been taken back in time. Sitting high on a hill, the fortified city, with its sand coloured buildings and pavements, just looked so clean and untouched – like it had just been sitting there, waiting for us to visit.

Mdina itself is absolutely STUNNING, however I am sooooo glad we were there in November, when it was quieter. The streets are really narrow, so I can imagine in the height of summer it might feel a bit claustrophobic if really busy.

We stayed for a few hours, just walking in circles around the streets, discovering another hidden building with each turn. Small churches seemed to be around each corner, with unbelievable architecture that stopped us dead in our tracks. There were a few cafes/bistros within the city walls, with some places having panoramic views across Malta and out to sea. We ended up in a family run restaurant called Coogi’s, grabbing a table on their roof terrace, with an unreal view across Malta.

St. Mary Magdalene Chapel

Our final daytime destination was the St. Mary Magdalene Chapel, which sits high on the cliff edges, to the West of Mdina.

Without a doubt, this was my favourite part of Malta.

The tiniest little building, it sits alone, looking out to sea. I would really recommend going around sunset, which is what we did. It was honestly so peaceful and calm.

Slowly walking by other visitors, there seemed to be a mutual understanding that this was no place for shouting, no place for loudness…just a place to be still.

We grabbed a seat on a bench looking out to sea, and sat in almost complete silence for about an hour, with the winter sun beating down on us, until it disappeared beyond the sea. It was unbelievably relaxing.

…so relaxing in fact, that my boyfriend fell asleep and woke himself up by snoring.

Saint Julian

We ended our whirlwind trip to Malta with a night out in Saint Julian, the heart of Malta’s nightlife and home to some of the islands most exclusive hotels.

Split in to a few different districts, each offers something different in terms of restaurants, bars and….strippers. Paceville in particular is the major nightlife spot, packed with nightclubs, pubs, and restaurants – all within a few feet of each other.

Walking along the strip in Paceville, we noticed that what at first glance looked like lots of different bars, actually all had the same name, or variations of the same name.

Hugo.

It turns out that a huge chunk of Paceville real estate itself was owned by entertainment mogul Hugo Chetcuti, who was actually killed by a former employee outside one of his own establishments in 2018.

Although it was low season, it was actually quite busy – and I can imagine during the summer months it has a really amazing vibe!

Time to go…

Early the next day (with a killer hangover), it was time for us to head home.

Hopefully this has given you some insight in to what you could do with just 2 days in Malta. There’s tonnes you can fit in, in a short space of time, so make sure you plan before you go to make the most out of your trip!

Cara.