Suggestions for Malta/Gozo

Justiceiro

Hey All,

I'm heading off to Malta at the end of the month, I'll be there for four days. At the moment I am torn between staying in Either Valletta or Mdina, but am considering Gozo as well. I understand Gozo is far chiller, and I want to get some local life shots of the Maltese islands, with as little tourist schlock as possible.

I know nothing about this place (picked it randomly from a cheap Lufthansa offer) other than the basics. Haven't been there, don't know anyone who has. So if anybody has suggestions for where to stay, what to do, what to shoot, etc. Let me now.

I knw the diving is superb, but I have no license nor the gelt for an ikolite case. I do however, have a cheap japanese underwater camera (35mm) Point and shoot that's good to 5-10 meters. So snorkeling is in.

Also, I want sheep. Lots and lots of sheep.

Thanks in Advance for the help!

cj99si

Cant help you with the sheep

I pulled into Malta for around 5 days(Ive been to a good amount of places and this is definitely one of my favorites). We tied up in Valletta. Skip mdina...... The forts in Velletta are amazing, Gozo was my favorite though. The arch, cliffs and fungus rock are amazing! (dont skip). I would stay in valletta though, Gozo is a simple ferry ride away.

Heres a terrible scan of a photo of me just before I jumped of the cliff by the arch on Gozo.

Scrubs

It's been around 23 years since I visitied Gozo So my memory is
a little hazy. But it was a lovely tranquil place as I remember.

Xlendi - being a fishing village there will no doubt be some opurtunitys
to shoot the local fishermen in action. In the village there are
some stone stairs (can't quite recall how many - But there were
a lot of them) may make another interesting snap and good
to be aware whether your accommodation is above or below
them as I had to make the walk up and down quite a few times
in a day tiresome if you are forgetful

Zeus1

I have been to Malta about 5-6 times for periods of 4 days up to 2 weeks.
My suggestion: stay in or near Valetta (most hotels lie to the West of Valetta in e.g. Sliema and St Julians). Public transport is superb (old but trustworthy buses, very cheap). Also car hire is not as expensive as in other European countries, but You have to drive on the left like in England. You need to spend at least 2 days in Valetta itself: the harbour cruise, the palaces of the Knights of Malta, the fortifications, the old backstreets etc etc.
Mdina and Rabat are also must-sees; these two sister-towns take one day. In the South-East, there is the fishing port of Marsaxlokk. Nearly every day, there are village festas with superb fireworks (one of the specialties of the islands).
There are about hourly ferries between Malta and Gozo, so it is easy to hire a car in Malta and head over for a day trip to Gozo. Gozo must be visited for its nature and cliffs. There are also bus services on Gozo, but I don't have any experience with them, so cannot advice about regular service etc.

Please feel free to visit my images on Zenfolio for a first impression:
http://hdemey.zenfolio.com/f541495194