Luqa, the village at the end of the runway

If you’ve flown into Malta, you’ve been to Luqa, whether you noticed or not. The international airport’s official address is here, and the local council puts it plainly, since it was built in 1937 the airport has been synonymous with Ħal Luqa. This page is about the village; for flights and terminals, see my guide to Malta airport.

A village hemmed in by runways and industry

The council describes Luqa as almost surrounded by industrial land and neighbours. To the north, the Marsa Industrial Estate; to the east, Paola, Santa Luċija, Gudja and Għaxaq; to the south, Safi, Kirkop and Mqabba; and to the west, Siġġiewi and Qormi. Within its limits there’s also Ħal Farruġ, a growing sub-locality.

The NSO puts the population at 6,911 at the end of 2025, around a third of them foreign residents. What stands out is the trend. A year earlier there were 7,128, and by my reckoning from the NSO table that 3% drop is the steepest of all 68 localities in the country.

What to see in the old core

Luqa keeps a historic centre of irregular streets with its 17th-century parish church dominating the square. That’s St Andrew’s, first built in 1670, and its story sums up the village’s. The airfield drew the bombing in the Second World War, very few houses survived intact according to the council, and the church was so badly hit that it had to be completely rebuilt between 1944 and 1962. Inside hangs the altarpiece by Mattia Preti, dated 1687.

The council mentions two more buildings. The St Vincent de Paul home of 1862, a residence for the elderly that could house 600 people, with a Sacred Heart chapel, and the wayside chapel of St James, first built in 1550 at Ħal Saflieni and moved here in 1613. I don’t have visiting times for either.

The airfield that survived the war

The council explains how the airport ended up here. Malta took to flying early, with British military aircraft from the 1920s, and Ħal Luqa was chosen as one of the sites for military airstrips. The other airfields were battered in the Second World War, and Luqa was the one that came through, which is how it became Malta’s airport. Building work turned up ancient tombs, and the council regrets that a set of Roman catacombs found in 1912 was sealed off by the 1989 extension. Even Heritage Malta’s wreck sites bear the airfield’s mark. Its page on the B-24 Liberator mentions Luqa in the story of a bomber heading back to Malta, a common refuge for damaged aircraft, whose ten-man crew ended up ditching in the sea.

Is it worth staying in Luqa?

In short, no, unless you’ve got a dawn flight. The MTA register lists no hotels in Luqa, just 14 holiday lets, and if you rent one, make sure it’s on that register. Valletta is far better placed for getting round the island, and I explain the options in Malta airport transfers.

Getting there

Route 74 from Valletta to Żurrieq runs via Ħamrun, Marsa, Ħal Luqa and Mqabba. The airport also has its own direct routes. If you’re heading south, Luqa is on the way to Żurrieq and the Blue Grotto, but I wouldn’t hop off here unless you want to see the church.