Malta in February, between the wind and carnival

February has a reputation as a grey month across much of Europe, and Malta plays by different rules. It is the islands’ coolest month, but with an average of 12.6°C (55°F) and afternoons that have topped 20°C in recent years. Two things really define it, the wind and carnival.

What is the weather like in Malta in February?

February’s norm is 12.6°C, 69 mm of rain and about 187 hours of sunshine. The sea bottoms out at around 15.3°C (60°F). The records show the range. The February high is 26.7°C, from 1960, and the low 1.7°C, from 1956.

Recent Februaries have been mild. 2024 averaged 14.3°C, and that winter, at 14.8°C from December to February, matched 2007 for one of the mildest winters the Met Office has logged. In 2026 February came in at 14.7°C, 2.1 degrees above normal, with a high of 20.4°C on the 6th.

A month of wind and one-off storms

Wind is what I’d keep front of mind. The February norm is 9.4 knots, and in 2026 the average was 12.8, with a 52-knot gust on the 12th. Rain, on the other hand, arrives in bursts. February 2022 had just 4 mm, one of the driest on record, and a year later, on 9 February, Helios emptied 140.4 mm over the airport, double what normally falls in the whole month. On the 23rd, helped by fields still saturated after the storm, thick fog blanketed the islands.

A normal February brings about three thunderstorms. In 2026 there were none. In 2025 there were three, with hail on two days. It isn’t a month for fixed outdoor plans, but it is a month to keep a museum morning up your sleeve for when the sky closes in.

Carnival, the big date in February

In 2023, 2024 and 2026 Maltese carnival fell in February, and it’s the reason I’d pick this month. The 2026 edition filled Friday 13 to Tuesday 17 February, and the Met Office even published a special carnival forecast, with a red wind warning until 06:00 on Friday the 13th. Tuesday the 17th, the day of the grand finale parade, was expected to be partly cloudy.

Gozo has two carnivals. The official one, centred on Victoria, and Nadur’s, which Visit Gozo calls spontaneous and satirical, with no programme and tied to the night. The weather has the final say, mind. In 2024 carnival Saturday, 10 February, had not a single hour of sunshine and brought hail, while in 2023 the last day of carnival was the sunniest of the month. Floats, parades and dates are in my guide to Malta carnival, worth checking because the 2027 dates hadn’t been published by late September 2026. If you’re tied to school holidays, check your half-term dates against the carnival ones as soon as they’re announced.

St Paul, museums and closures

10 February is a public holiday for St Paul’s Shipwreck. In 2026 Heritage Malta marked it with a Mass and visit, “In the Steps of the Apostle”, at San Pawl Milqi. The same calendar offered a mask-making workshop for carnival at the Inquisitor’s Palace and listed the Phoenician exhibition on Tas-Silġ from November to February.

February is the last month of winter hours. Through February 2027 the big sites shut at 17:00 and the smaller museums stay closed on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Wednesday the 24th, visitors can only get into the Grandmaster’s Palace State Rooms from 13:30.

The sea and the countryside in February

The water is at its coldest of the year, with a norm of about 15.3°C, although in February 2023 it measured 16.3°C, a degree warmer. Swimming is for the hardy, and there are no lifeguards. For birdwatching, BirdLife’s Għadira reserve by Mellieħa Bay lets you in free on Saturdays and Sundays, ten till four. For coastal walks, I’d wait for a day without a wind warning, since in a gale the Met Office asks people to keep away from exposed coasts. Pack a proper waterproof rather than an umbrella, which the February wind makes fairly pointless.

Few tourists and winter prices

Malta International Airport counted 560,553 passengers in February 2025, only just ahead of January. The bus stays at €2 and the Gozo ferry keeps its night fare, handy if you’re heading to Nadur’s carnival. If you’d like slightly milder weather and longer museum hours, see Malta in March. To compare, go back to Malta in January.