|
|
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Get exclusive travel deals, trip reviews, and unique adventure travel ideas monthly.
|
|
St John's Co-CathedralCity/Region: Malta
Valletta's magnificent medieval cathedral is famous for the painting by Caravaggio, which hangs in its oratory, and the 369 inlaid mosaic marble tombstones that cover its floor. Each tombstone depicts the lives of the Grand Masters of the Order of St John, buried beneath. The façade is rather severe and militaristic, but inside the cathedral is lavishly splendid in the grandest tradition of high Baroque, with every inch of wall covered by carving, while the vaulted ceiling sports
paintings depicting the life of St John the Baptist, patron saint of the Knights.
Address: Republic Street
Phone Number: 2122 0536
Email Address: info@maltachurch.org.mt
Website: www.stjohnscocathedral.com
Hours: Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.30pm; Saturdays 9.30am to 12.30pm
Admission: Lm2.50 (adults)
Palace of the Grand MasterCity/Region: Malta
The Grand Master's palace, built around 1571, today serves as the office of the President and seat of the Maltese Parliament. The palace is a treasure house of art, from the unique collection of Gobelin Tapestries to frescoes depicting the Great Siege of 1565 by Perez d'Aleccio that cover the walls of the Halls of St Michael and St George. Visitors can also view the armory and state apartments, which are adorned with friezes describing the history of the Order of St John.
Address: Republic Street, Valletta
Phone Number: 221 221
Hours: Monday to Friday 8.30am to 4pm (October to mid-June); Monday to Friday 8am to 12.45pm (mid-June to September)
Admission: Lm1 (adults); under-19s and over-65s free
National Museum of ArchaeologyCity/Region: Malta
The archaeological museum on Republic Street is housed in one of the inns of the Knights of St John, the Auberge de Provence. The museum's focus on Malta's prehistory includes displays such as the reconstruction of prehistoric remains found at Hypogeum. Items such as pottery, sculptures, statuettes, stone implements and jewelry from the prehistoric, megalithic and temple-building periods are featured, as well as some Punic and Roman tomb furniture. All the exhibits were found on excavations across the Maltese islands.
Address: Charles Borg, Auberge de Provence, Republic Street, Valletta
Phone Number: 2122 1623
Website: www.heritagemalta.org
Transport: On all bus routes
Hours: Daily 9am to 7pm
Admission: Lm1 (adults), 25c (children 6-11)
Lascaris War RoomsCity/Region: Malta
Valletta suffered a great deal of damage during bombing raids in the Second World War. The Battle of Malta and other events involving the islands during the early years of the war are featured in a series of 17th century tunnels, which were turned into a military operations complex during the war. The complex has been restored and now acts as a museum, with charts, models and dioramas.
Address: Lascaris Ditch, Valletta
Phone Number: 2123 8396
Transport: On all bus routes
Hours: Monday to Friday 9.30am to 4.30pm
Admission: Lm1.75 (adults); 85c (children)
Malta ExperienceCity/Region: Malta
A dramatic presentation that illustrates the history of Malta, from Neolithic to modern times, can be enjoyed at the Mediterranean Conference Center at St. Elmo's bastion in Valletta. This building itself has been impressively restored, having been built by the Knights in the 1500s as a hospital. The wards, which are great sweeping halls with vaulted ceilings and marble floors, now serve as exhibition areas. A modern theater has been added where the Malta Experience audio-visual show is offered in 10 languages.
Address: Mediterranean Conference Center, Mediterranean Street, Valletta
Phone Number: 2124 3776 or 2125 1284
Website: www.themaltaexperience.com
Transport: Bus 98
Hours: Show times: Monday to Friday every hour from 11am to 4pm, Saturdays and Sundays 11am to 1pm (until 2pm from October to June)
MdinaCity/Region: Malta
Mdina, known as the noble city, was the original capital of Malta before the arrival of the Knights of St John in the middle ages. It was originally a Phoenician town but spent periods under Roman, Arabic and Norman occupation. The elegant walled city, with its suburb, Rabat, can trace its origins back more than 4,000 years, although today all that remains is the medieval town, which has been largely restored. It is situated on a rocky outcrop about nine miles (15km) west of Valletta. At the heart of Mdina is its landmark Baroque Cathedral of St Paul. Mdina has a conservative atmosphere, in keeping with its noble past. While the Knights reigned over Malta the city became the home of the Maltese nobility, who lived there under autonomous rule, not being deemed worthy to be invited to join the Order of St John. The descendants of some of these families live here still. Mdina and Rabat not only offer some fascinating and valuable sightseeing opportunities, but the old city is particularly inviting at night when it is lamplit and visitors can enjoy the ambience of restaurants tucked away in its bastions and palace courtyards. Motor vehicles are off-limits inside the city walls, and pedestrians have free reign to walk the streets and take in a glimpse of life in the middle ages.
Three CitiesCity/Region: Malta
Malta's main maritime towns have merged into a fortified conglomerate known as the Three Cities, resting on the promontories opposite Valletta. Walking tours of the area are popular. Vittoriosa is the oldest town in Malta after Mdina. It features plenty of historical architecture, including several of the Inns of the Knights of St John, as well as a hospital built by the Order in 1672, which is still a Benedictine convent inhabited by devout nuns. Fort St Angelo, the oldest fortified part of Vittoriosa dating from 1274, stands at the tip of the promontory, and the Museum of Maritime History is also well worth a visit. The youngest of the Three Cities, Cospicua, dates from 1717 and features some interesting churches, while Senglea, designed by Grandmaster De La Sengle in 1551, is an important place of pilgrimage. Senglea's parish church contains a statue of Christ the Redeemer that is said to have miraculous powers.
HypogeumCity/Region: Malta
The Hypogeum, just southwest of the Three Cities in the suburb of Paolo, is a labyrinthine complex of man-made chambers hewn out of limestone, extending about 36ft (11m) below the surface. Experts believe it was used as a burial site and temple by Neolithic man, who used antlers and stone picks to carve out the labyrinth in semi-darkness nearly 5,000 years ago. The site has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site. Archaeologists have recovered numerous statues, amulets, figurines and vases, many of which are on display in the Archaeology Museum in Valletta.
Address: Burial Street, Paola
Phone Number: 2182 5579 or 2180 5018/9
Website: www.heritagemalta.org
Hours: Daily 9am to 11am and 1pm to 4pm (only 70 visitors allowed per day)
Admission: Lm4 (adults), concessions Lm2. Advance booking required at Hypogeum visitor center in Paola or the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta, or online at www.heritagemaltashop.com
St Mary's ChurchCity/Region: Malta
The center of every Maltese town and village is occupied by a beautiful church. One of the largest in Europe is St Mary's in the central Maltese town of Mosta, with its glorious blue, gold and white dome. The church is regarded as having been the site of a World War II miracle: in 1942 while 300 people were praying in the church a bomb penetrated the dome and landed on the mosaic floor, but did not explode. A replica of the bomb is today displayed in the church sacristy.
Address: Rotunda Square, Mosta
Phone Number: 2143 3826
Transport: Bus 43, 44, 45, 47, 49, 50, 52
Hagar QimCity/Region: Malta
The prehistoric temple complex discovered in 1839 at Hagar Qim in western Malta dates from about 3,800 BC, and has the oldest known human structures in the world. The Hagar Qim and nearby Mnajdra ruins are close to the village of Qrendi, about nine miles (15km) southwest of Valletta. The megalithic temple complex carved from giant limestone slabs is adorned with carved animals and idols, sacrificial altars and oracular chambers, all fashioned with flint and obsidian tools. The largest megalith is 23ft (7m) high and weighs about 20 tons. Many of the relics recovered from the site, including the famous 'fat lady' statues, are on display in the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta.
Address: West of the village of Qrendi
Phone Number: 2142 4231
Website: www.heritagemalta.org
Transport: Bus 35
Hours: Daily 9am to 5pm
Admission: Lm2 (adults), 50c (children 6-11)
Museum of ArchaeologyCity/Region: Gozo
A good place to begin exploring Gozo is at the Museum of Archaeology, found just inside the walls of the Citadel in Victoria behind the Old Gate, in a 17th century building that was originally the Town Hall. The museum illustrates the cultural history of Gozo from prehistoric times to the early modern era, presented chronologically from the Neolithic and Temple Period onwards through the Phoenician, Roman, Medieval and Knights of St John periods.
Address: Triq Bieb l-Imdina, The Citadel
Phone Number: 2155 6144
Website: www.heritagemalta.org
Hours: Daily 9am to 5pm
Admission: Lm1 (adults), 25c (children 6-11)
Ggantija TemplesCity/Region: Gozo
Two massive megaliths were carved into temples by the pre-Phoenician Gozitans somewhere between 4,100 and 2,500 BC, and now stand on the island as mysterious monuments to a bygone age. Legend has it that they were transported to the island by a giantess called Sansuna, hence the name of the site, Ggantija, which means 'giant'. Large stone balls in the area, however, have led archaeologists to conclude that the massive blocks were rolled into place atop these. The two temples have a common façade but each has a separate entrance; one is larger than the other. It is believed both originally had roofing made of wooden beams, and that sacrifices of animals were made in the temples during rituals. The temples, along with other similar temples on the main island of Malta, have been documented as the oldest free standing structures in the world.
Address: Temples Street, Xaghra
Phone Number: 2155 3194
Website: www.heritagemalta.org
Transport: Bus 64 or 65 from Victoria
Hours: Daily 9am to 5pm
Admission: Lm1.50 (adults), 50c (children 6-11)
Caves of XaghraCity/Region: Gozo
The alabaster caves at Xaghra feature stalactites and stalagmites, and have an important place in Greek mythology, particularly the Calypso Cave, overlooking the red sand of Gozo's best beach, Ramla Ihamra. Calypso cave is believed to be the one referred to in Homer's Odyssey as being where the beautiful nymph Calypso kept Odysseus as a 'prisoner of love' for seven years. Two other caves at Xaghra are Xerri's Grotto and Ninu's Grotto, both more impressive than Calypso, but lacking the love story. Below Calypso Cave are the remains of a fortification built by the Knights of St John as a defense bastion.
Phone Number: 2156 0572
Hours: Xerri: Monday to Saturday 9am to 6pm; Ninu: daily 8.30am to 6pm
Admission: Calypso Cave is free, but there is a fee of 75c for Xerri's Grotto
DwejraCity/Region: Gozo
Dwejra, with its secluded pebbled bathing pool and crystal clear water, is known as the 'inland sea' and provides the enjoyable experience of diving into the 'blue hole' near the Azure Window. It is an area with strange rock formations causing interesting swimming holes. It's most famous rock is Fungus Rock, which was apparently heavily guarded during the era of the Knights of Malta because a special plant with healing properties grew upon it, and stealing the plant was liable to earn the thief the death penalty.
Transport: Dwejra can be reached on bus 1 or 2 from Victoria
MarsalfornCity/Region: Gozo
The tiny fishing village of Marsalforn on the north coast of Gozo has become the island's most popular summer resort. It offers various spots for swimming and water sports, and is well supplied with restaurants, bars and accommodation establishments.
Transport: Bus 21 from Victoria
Next Page »
Word Travels is a comprehensive travel guide covering hundreds of cities and holiday resorts in more than 125 countries.
Related Malta Content
The Columbus World Travel Guide has been published for 26 years and is sold in over 90 countries worldwide.
|
|
|
Malta Community:
|
|
|
|
|
|
PlanetWare.com Guides:
|
|
|
