Mġarr, the rural village of the western temples

There are two places called Mġarr in Malta, and it’s worth not mixing them up. Gozo’s is the ferry port; this one is a farming village in the west of the main island, ringed by fields, which most visitors only pass through on the way to the beach. I think they’re missing out, because two of the UNESCO-listed megalithic temples are here, and you can see them in a peace you won’t find at Ħaġar Qim or Ġgantija.

A country village in the west

The NSO counted 5,373 residents at the end of 2025, 4,603 Maltese and 770 foreign nationals. The figure that says most about Mġarr, though, is its density, 333 people per square kilometre, the lowest of the six councils in the Northern district. Mosta, in the same district, tops 3,800. Heritage Malta describes it as a rural village with panoramic views over the countryside, and that’s exactly what it is.

That scale has its charm. This is a village where a bar sells tickets to a UNESCO monument, which tells you everything about the kind of place it is.

Two UNESCO temples in one village

Ta’ Ħaġrat turned up in 1917 in the village centre, while Skorba sits on the outskirts; both joined the megalithic temples of Malta listing in 1992. They’re not the most striking on the island, but each earns its place. Ta’ Ħaġrat keeps two buildings of hard stone, the bigger with a curved front and an imposing doorway. Skorba, dug by David Trump in the 1960s, is key to understanding how the temple builders lived, since it yielded their huts, their pottery and figurines of women.

All the detail, with seasonal hours, prices by age and the order I’d visit in, is on its own page, Ta’ Ħaġrat and Skorba Temples.

Tickets from the village bar

Here’s what I like most about Mġarr. Heritage Malta doesn’t only sell tickets online. You can also buy them at the local council office, open weekday and Saturday mornings, at the Mġarr Farmers Bar, which opens daily from six in the morning, and at the Il-Barri and Il-Gastronawt restaurants. If you turn up without one, there’s no need to head back to Valletta.

Żebbiegħ and the Victoria Lines

Skorba sits beside Żebbiegħ, a small hamlet Heritage Malta mentions when discussing ancient burials in the area, a hint that this countryside was busier than it looks. Further up begins the Great Fault, the natural barrier the British fortified in the 19th century as the Victoria Lines. UNESCO’s Tentative List places Binġemma fort at the western end of the line. If you like walking, it makes a good extra for the afternoon.

The Roman baths you can no longer see

On the road leading down from the village towards the coast, Roman baths from the late 1st and early 2nd centuries AD were found by chance in 1929, with a tepidarium, frigidarium, caldarium, a pool and a latrine for at least 12 people. After years of neglect, Heritage Malta almost entirely backfilled them in 2019 and 2021 to save them, and now lists them as permanently closed. It says a virtual visit is on the way. Don’t go looking for them.

The western beaches, close by

From Mġarr you can head down to Ġnejna Bay, a quieter sandy beach on the west coast, and to Għajn Tuffieħa, beside Golden Bay. My perfect day here starts with the temples first thing, carries on with an unhurried lunch in the village and ends with a swim on the west coast as the sun goes down.

Getting there

Route 44 links the capital’s bus terminus with Mġarr. In summer, the 101 connects the village with Ġnejna and, in the other direction, Golden Bay, Mellieħa and Ċirkewwa. Out of season, you’ll need a car or your own legs for Ġnejna. If you’re staying in the area, Mellieħa is the base with the most choice, and in season the 101 brings you straight here.