A Couple’s Escape to the Dreamy Seaside of Malta

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This couple’s guide to Malta will help you plan a romantic, relaxing, and budget friendly trip to Malta. It’s a place that is reasonably priced, an easy flight from Paris, and surrounded by the ocean’s sparkling torquoise water. We also wanted to travel to a destination where we could manage to site see without renting a car. Malta checked all of these boxes.

In this blog post, I will share our 3 day Malta itinerary. Day 4 was check out. We were there to take in a bit of culture and history, while also trying to slow down, and enjoy the sun. When we travel, we are usually trying to maximize our time. By this I mean, trying to see as much as we can with the time allotted at that destination. This trip was more about doing less!

Where To Stay:

I did quite a lot of research in trying to figure out which area to stay in when visiting Malta. There are several different options. Many people stay in Valetta, Saint Julians, Sliema, or the island of Gozo.

We decided to stay right on the edge of Saint Julians and Sliema for several reasons. Sliema is an easy boat trip to Valetta, has more reasonably priced hotels, and it’s right by the water.

The HOLM Boutique and SPA is the perfect location for a couple wanting a relaxing and romantic stay. We booked a deluxe room with our own personal patio and outdoor hot tub for just 100 euros per night!

Don’t forget your travel insurance! We recommend World Nomads. Make sure to have coverage that includes medical expenses, trip cancellations, and coverage for your belongings from theft or damage. If needed, you may also want to include car rental insurance as well.

Our 3 Day Couple’s Guide To Malta Itinerary:

Day 1: Arrive in Sliema

It’s about 20 euros for a taxi from the airport to the hotel.

On day one, we checked into our hotel and then went to check out all of the water views in Sliema. You can walk or bike along the path and there are plenty of bars and restaurants along the way. If you are visiting during the summer months, definitely take your swimsuit. There are stairs that will take you into these natural swimming holes.

Day 2: Valletta and Mdina

Visiting Valetta

We did a lot of sight-seeing on day two. Mdina was the original capital of Malta, but now it’s Valetta. We decided to see both locations in one day. You could definitely spend a whole day in Valetta! Mdina is more of a half-day visit. From the HOLM hotel, it is only a ten minute walk to the ferry. The ferry will take you over to Valetta. It comes every 15 minutes and costs 1.50.

The ferry is a quick 5-10 minute ride and then when you arrive to Valetta, you will see city tour buses, also known as tuk-tuks. Definitely pay the 5 euros for a ride if you want to save time and a lot of steep incline walking. It’s worth every penny!

Valetta is where a lot of the sites, souvenir shops, and restaurants are located. I can see the appeal of staying in Valetta, but if you prefer to be closer to the water, then you may like our recommended hotel location. While in Valetta, make sure to see the Upper Barrakka Gardens. Try to visit Barrakka Gardens at 12:00 to see the cannons in action. I believe there is also an evening time where the cannons go off as well. I recommend stopping in at LaTorre for a local Maltese spiced coffee or Nenu for a local Maltese glass of wine.

Other sites to see in Valetta:

Saint John’s Co-Cathedral

National War Museum

If it happens to be a rainy day, you may want to watch the Malta5D show. You can read more about it here malta5d.

Visiting Mdina

After visiting Valetta, we took a taxi to Mdina (cost was 28 euros). You can take busses around the city for cheaper, but we were willing to spend the extra cash to make things easier and faster. Mdina is known as the silent city of Malta.

I’ve never seen any of The Game of Thrones episodes, but Mdina is where a lot of it was filmed. It’s a beautiful fortified city. We watched a film at The Mdina Experience. It was 6 euros per person and a quick show about the history of the area. It’s an educational experience that will get you off of your feet for a little bit and a fun thing to do in Mdina. You can also have a little wine and cheese before or after the show.

Don’t miss Saint Paul’s Cathedral while in Mdina. Another site to see that is close by the area is the Dingli Cliffs. It’s a short ride and a great water view at sunset.

Day 3:

Spa Day

We used day 3 to enjoy the hotel premises. There is a rooftop pool and a large spa. You can book a couples massage and then enjoy the spa.

After relaxing at the hotel spa and pool, we explored Saint Julian’s to see what is was all about. It’s known as the party area of Malta. If you decide to check out Saint Julians area, don’t miss the Greek Restaurant by the waterfront on your way back! It is truly not to be missed. A true gem. I’ll link below. Marsaxlokk is fishing village full of these colorful boats. Even if you don’t visit the village, you will see these colorful boats along the Spinola Bay.

Another option for day 3 would be to take a boat tour to see the three cities. You can easily access the tours right by the waterway. We were planning to do this but it was extremely cold and windy on our third day so we cancelled that plan and just relaxed by the water.

Recommended Restaurants : 

The Barracuda Restaurant was our favorite restaurant in Malta. It’s is located directly across from the hotel. The building is a restored 18th century villa. It’s located right on the water with a view of Spinola Bay. It has amazing seafood, Italian pasta and wine.

Manakais is an authentic Greek Restaurant with a water view!

If You Have More Time In Malta :

This trip was short and sweet, so we did not visit the island of Gozo. We also visited during winter, so we weren’t able to swim at the famous Blue Grotto.

Popeye’s Village is another site to see in Malta. It’s where the film Popeye The Sailor Man was filmed. If you have children, I think it would be a must see!

I hope that you have enjoyed this couple’s guide to Malta. Do you have more time to explore Europe? If so, you may want to check out my Paris blog post. Thanks for stopping by!

Have you been to Malta? I would love to know in the comments below. Pin the image below to save it for later.