Four days in Malta: the length I'd recommend, day by day

When people ask how many days they need in Malta, I say four, knowing full well that three is what most people look for. The difference isn’t one more sight on the list. It’s a spare day for the things in Malta that hang on bookings and the weather, like the Hypogeum, the boats or a calm sea for Gozo, and the chance to see the Three Cities without watching the clock.

Day 1, the capital at your own pace

I’d give the first day to Valletta along the lines of my Malta in one day plan, with one advantage. Since you don’t need to fit the harbour in this afternoon, you can spend the last part of the day in the MUŻA fine arts museum or go down into Underground Valletta, the tunnels and shelters beneath the city, if you managed to get a slot. If you really only have Saturday and Sunday, the weekend in Malta squeezes these days into about €46 of tickets per adult.

Day 2, the Hypogeum and the far side of the harbour

This is the day that justifies the fourth. The Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum in Paola is a burial complex carved into the rock, which UNESCO says was in use from around 4000 BC and where the remains of roughly 7,000 people were found. Only 10 visitors go in at a time and there are no photos, and with that capacity the €35 slots disappear fast. I’d book it before the flights.

Afterwards, the Tarxien Temples are in the next village and, with the Hypogeum ticket shown at their desk, they cost you half. After lunch, over to Birgu, where the Order settled in 1530. Fort St Angelo, on the tip of the peninsula, and the old seat of the Inquisition are a short walk apart, and the €3 ferry takes you back to Valletta across the water. It’s all covered in my page on Birgu.

What if day two falls on a Sunday?

Then I’d set the alarm earlier. The TD10 runs to Marsaxlokk on Sundays, and an hour and a half at the fish market would be plenty for me. The Hypogeum fits in afterwards if your slot is at midday or later.

Day 3, temples, walls and cliffs

Day three is the south and the interior. I’d start at Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra at opening time, move on to Rabat to eat and see the catacombs of St Paul, wander Mdina in the late afternoon and finish on the Dingli Cliffs. It’s the one day on this trip where a hire car makes a real difference, and the timings are in my Malta 3 day itinerary, where it’s day two.

Day 4, Gozo to finish

On the last day I’d head to Gozo. If you fly home early the next morning, I’d take the fast boat from Valletta so you’re not relying on the bus back from Ċirkewwa. On the island, the Citadel in Victoria, Ġgantija and a swim at Ramla make a full day, and the Multisite Pass covers the first two.

What I’d still leave out with four days

Four days don’t cover everything, and I’d rather say so. Comino and the Blue Lagoon want a day of their own, since landing at the lagoon needs a free booking in one of three daily time slots and no more than 4,000 people are allowed at once. The beaches of the north, with Mellieħa, Golden Bay and Popeye Village, don’t fit either. If that’s what you most want from the trip, don’t shoehorn it in; add a fifth day, as in my Malta 5 day itinerary. With seven, the north and Comino get a base of their own in Mellieħa, which is how I set up the Malta 7 day itinerary.

For getting about, if there are two of you, look at Malta Public Transport’s 12-journey card. At €19 you can both use it, it runs out six months after you first use it and each journey includes two hours of changes. Airport Direct, mind you, uses up two journeys.

Why the Multisite Pass pays off over four days

Here I’d do the maths in favour of the pass. The palace, Fort St Elmo, Tarxien, Fort St Angelo, the Inquisitor’s Palace, Ħaġar Qim, the catacombs and Ġgantija come to €70 in single tickets, and the pass costs €60 for 30 days from first use. Add MUŻA or the Citadel and the gap widens. What it doesn’t cover is the priciest of the lot, the Hypogeum, so that one’s extra whatever you do.