The best viewpoints in Malta, from Valletta to Gozo

Malta is small and its highest point is only 253 m, yet two things make it a country of lookouts. There’s a natural harbour ringed by fortifications, and a south and west coast that drops sheer into the sea. Add Gozo’s cliffs and citadel and you have views enough for a whole trip. These are the spots I’d seek out, in order, with how to reach each one and what it costs.

The Grand Harbour, seen from both sides

My favourite viewpoint in Malta is in the capital. Upper Barrakka Gardens lean over the Grand Harbour from the top of the walls, with the Three Cities across the water. Just below is the Saluting Battery, which still fires its gun at 12:00 and 16:00, and that’s the moment I’d pick. You can walk from the bus terminus or ride up from the waterfront in the Barrakka Lift. There’s more in Upper Barrakka Gardens.

The reverse view is every bit as good and far quieter. The Gardjola Gardens, at the tip of Senglea, look back at Valletta across the harbour, and Malta Public Transport describes them as a peaceful garden with views of the Grand Harbour. If you’re doing the Three Cities, I’d finish there. It’s all in Gardjola Gardens.

Dingli, where the island runs out

The Dingli Cliffs are the island’s other great lookout. The Spanish Foreign Ministry gives them up to 230 m above sea level, and on the edge sits the little St Mary Magdalene Chapel, which Malta Public Transport singles out for its panoramic views. They aren’t Malta’s highest point, which is Ta’ Dmejrek at 253 m, but they’re the most striking, because there’s nothing ahead but sea. They face the south-west, which is why I’d go there for sunset. Buses 52 and 56 drop you nearby, and Buskett Gardens are on the way.

A little further north, the Victoria Lines follow the Great Fault, the natural step that runs right across the island north of Mdina. From the lookout on Triq Tas-Salib in Mġarr you understand at a glance why the British fortified it. If you’re after scenery rather than panoramas, my picks are in the most beautiful places in Malta.

Which are the best viewpoints on Gozo?

On Gozo I’d start at the Citadel in Victoria, which crowns the island’s capital and whose walls are where people watch the Assumption fireworks each 15 August. Close by, the terrace of the Il-Ħaġar museum looks across to St George’s Basilica and the fortress itself. The visit is covered in the Citadel in Gozo.

To the east, Qala is Gozo’s easternmost village and has a belvedere beside the Madonna tal-Blat chapel, facing Comino. To the south, the Ministry for Gozo names Ta’ Ċenċ as the island’s highest cliffs, and they’re seen well from the Xlendi Walk. In neighbouring Munxar, Il-Pinnur, the high point of Sanap, looks out over Gozo’s south coast, Comino and northern Malta. Out west, the Wied il-Mielaħ rock window came into its own when the Azure Window collapsed in 2017, and you reach it by road from Għarb.

Two viewpoints hardly anyone looks for

The first costs €8. The full Mosta Rotunda visit takes you round the outside of the dome and onto an inner balcony, and it’s one of the few places in Malta where you can look out from a church roof with published hours and prices. Details are in the Mosta Rotunda.

The second is free and never shuts. The airport terminal has an observation terrace on level 3. If I were early for a flight, I’d wait up there rather than at the gate.

When to go so the view is worth it

My rule is simple. I’d visit the Grand Harbour viewpoints in the morning or at noon, for the gun, and the cliffs late in the afternoon. In high summer, with average highs of 32 °C in August, I’d avoid the middle of the day at Dingli and Ta’ Ċenċ, where there’s no shade at all. On Gozo, the Ministry recommends Ħondoq ir-Rummien bay for sunrise, as it faces east.