Naxxar, a palace and garden on the village square

Naxxar is one of those large villages in north-central Malta that people drive straight through, and it has a very good reason to make you stop. On its main square stands an 18th-century palace with gilded salons and a walled garden you can visit, and where you can eat rather well too. To my mind it’s the perfect example of a single building justifying a detour.

A residential village with a palace on the square

The NSO counted 18,426 residents at the end of 2025, three hundred more than a year earlier, the great majority Maltese, 14,600 against 3,826 foreign nationals. This is a place of local life rather than tourism, centred on Victory Square, home to the palace that brings in almost every outside visitor.

Palazzo Parisio

The palace sums up three centuries of Maltese history in one building. It began as a Grand Master’s hunting retreat in the early 1700s, took the Parisio family’s name late that century, was put at Napoleon’s disposal during the French occupation and ended up with Marquis Giuseppe Scicluna, who in 1898 set about turning it into his own little Versailles with an Italian architect, Carlo Sada. The Sciclunas still own it.

Everything you’ll see inside, from the mirrored ballroom to the family chapel, is on my Palazzo Parisio page. For now I’ll just say that the garden is the highlight for me, and you can enjoy it without doing the full tour, over breakfast, lunch or afternoon tea in the Garden Restaurant.

The Salini Catacombs

Naxxar’s other quiet treasure is well away from the square, near the coast. Heritage Malta gives the Salini Catacombs a Naxxar address, in the Ta’ Latnija area, reached by a path across the fields south-east of the church of the Annunciation. There are more than 15 small hypogea, mostly cut into a quarry and decorated with elements of Christian origin. From their number, Heritage Malta concludes that a sizeable community must have lived nearby. In Roman times the Salina inlet reached further inland and served as a port of some importance.

Only three of the five largest hypogea are accessible now, and the site is closed to casual visitors. You go by appointment, accompanied by Heritage Malta staff, and a visit takes 30 to 45 minutes. I think it’s worth it if you’ve already seen the better-known catacombs in Malta at Rabat and want somewhere without the crowds.

Down to the coast

Heading down towards the sea, the coast road runs through Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq, served by the 222 and the TD13 on their way to Qawra and Buġibba. I won’t tell you which council that stretch belongs to, since I couldn’t confirm it from an official source, but it’s Naxxar’s natural route to St Paul’s Bay if you want to end the day by the water.

Walks with Heritage Malta

In 2026 Heritage Malta is running a series of guided village walks, «Mixja ma’ Mario Coleiro», and its calendar includes one in Naxxar on 13 December 2026. Should your trip coincide, that’s a fine way to see the village with someone who knows it well. Check the details and booking on Heritage Malta’s site.

Getting there, and what else to see nearby

Route 49 leaves the Valletta terminus and runs via Msida and Swatar. If you’re driving, don’t try to park on the square; the palace itself sends its guests to the nearby Trade Fair car park. I’d combine Naxxar with Mosta and its Rotunda, right next door, in one morning, and finish with lunch in the palace garden. With an hour to spare, Għargħur, right next to Naxxar, is a village of 4,059 people that you can see on a short stroll.