Malta at the end of Jan

neil40

Hi.Managed to get a cheap deal with Ryanair to Malta at the end of this month for my wife & i -it is our 8th wedding aniversary..i know, but we are on a bit of a budget just now.

Anyone got any advice on where to stay and what to do there at this time of year?- i know it wont be sun bathing weather.

Thanks...Neil

sueeve

I would recomend that you AVOID Paceville, unless you want noisy bars until 6 a.m. drunks, d..gs and so on - unless it has changed dramatically. Traffic can be very heavy and public transport slow, so if you want to get about I would suggest close to Valletta. The city has some wonderful places to visit, and the transport network meets there, so you need to go into the town, or at least the bus station, to get to many places. Mdina is fascinating, a trip to Gozo good (car a good idea). The old RAF aerodrome at Luqa has craft studios.

mandyc

sueeve wrote: »

I would recomend that you AVOID Paceville, unless you want noisy bars until 6 a.m. drunks, d..gs and so on - unless it has changed dramatically. Traffic can be very heavy and public transport slow, so if you want to get about I would suggest close to Valletta. The city has some wonderful places to visit, and the transport network meets there, so you need to go into the town, or at least the bus station, to get to many places. Mdina is fascinating, a trip to Gozo good (car a good idea). The old RAF aerodrome at Luqa has craft studios.

Sorry to disagree but in January I would suggest staying in St Julians or Sliema as the resorts in the north of the island will be very quiet with a lot of place closed for the winter.

The traffic will not be as heavy as in summer and the bus service is excellent and cheap.

Would definitely recommend a day trip to Gozo if you can manage it.

Grumpelstiltskin

In winter I would advise Sliema, it's close to Valletta and bus routes to all of the island.

The craft village ( if it's still there is at Tal Qali) Luqa is now the international airport.

Hiring a car I personally would be wary on a first visit, why?
Parking can be a pain and cars are towed away if you park where you shouldn't, and the standard of driving can be sometimes hair raising.

OK the buses can be slow and crowded but you are on holiday not rushing to get to work.

What to see?

Mdina, the old capital is a must, the Mosta church. ( both easily done on the bus)

A day trip to Gozo ( arrange it locally)

A stroll around Valletta and a walk up to the Upper Barraka gardens in Valletta, ( turn right just through the gate and keep walking) the view from there is breath taking if you have never been before.

dmg24

I'm going to Malta (also with Ryanair!) in Feb - it is my first trip so I can't advise on where to visit, but in terms of hotels I have narrowed it down to the Palace or the Intercontinental. There are far cheaper options available, but I'd prefer to spend a bit more to get something special. The Palace is around £170 for a double including breakfast for four nights when I am there, which is well worth it for the standard of accom.

coupleuk

If you are on a tight budget then I would suggest the Plevna Hotel in Sliema.

All inclusive options are cheap.

The hotel isnt the ritz but is perfectly adequate for a cheap break away.

Viking sell that hotel or you could email direct and ask for best deal (AI). When they reply, email back and offer them 40% less and see what they will do.

There will be a lot of brits there in january.

You could also try, travelrepublic, freshholidays, alpharooms but not sure if they all do it.

Goos luck - hopefully you will get some really nice sunny days when you go in Jan as we got 20c+ on many days. We did go for 6 weeks though and it did rain for half of it but they assured us that year was extreme.

There are also some great deals for Sharm el Shiekh Egypt on AI too.

Paul

zzzLazyDaisy

PARDON???? DMG is a respected poster! I don't always agree with her views, but she most certainly is not a troll!! I have reported your post.

OP Malta is lovely at that time of year. It is quiet and a lot of the bars/cafes/restaurants are closed so half board or all inclusive will be a good idea. It can be rainy so take a kag, but equally it can be sunny enough for shorts and T-shirts.

My all time favourite hotel is the fortina in Sliema, but its not cheap.

I also agree with staying in St Paul's or Sliema, but if you are into walking and don't mind it being quiet, the Mellieha bay hotel in the north of the island is also very nice

Have a great time

Daisy

Edited to say that I am pleased to see Devon's post above has now been removed.

DCFC79

zzzLazyDaisy wrote: »

PARDON???? DMG is a respected poster! I don't always agree with her views, but she most certainly is not a troll!! I have reported your post.

OP Malta is lovely at that time of year. It is quiet and a lot of the bars/cafes/restaurants are closed so half board or all inclusive will be a good idea. It can be rainy so take a kag, but equally it can be sunny enough for shorts and T-shirts.

My all time favourite hotel is the fortina in Sliema, but its not cheap.

I also agree with staying in St Paul's or Sliema, but if you are into walking and don't mind it being quiet, the Mellieha bay hotel in the north of the island is also very nice

Have a great time

Daisy

i was going to say maybe devon is just playing around but after reading some of his other posts he seems to be a windup merchant and calls other people trolls when hes a troll himself

do trolls not have anything better to do, do tehy not have toadstools to tend to

neil40

Hi and thanks to all for replies.I was looking at The Waterfront hotel in Sliema.It has good reviews and is only £124 b&b for 4nts.Like the look of either Sliema or St Julians as they are close to Valletta.Looking forward to it- never been to the Med in mid winter before so will be prepared for all weather!.

Cheers....Neil

coupleuk

I just put a week in from jan 26th and got some great deals

(I had put a !!!!!!! link for the results at freshholidays.com but it doesnt show)

So, visit freshholidays.com and do a hotel only search for Sliema - really good deals, as low as £36pp for a week (yes a week) on b&b.

The 4* Fortina is coming in at £248 All Inclusive for a week too.

Paul

zzzLazyDaisy

The Fortina will often up-grade couples to the 5 star part of the hotel for free in January. It is definitely worth it, there are lots of extras that the 4 star guests don't get. If you decide to go for the Fortina, it might be worth phoning them or e-mailing them ahead of time and telling them that it is your wedding anniversary, and asking for some wine to be put in the room on arrival (they will almost certainly do this for free anyway). That way they may take the hint and upgrade you without you having to ask for it outright.

As I said before, be careful with B&B at this time of the year - many eating places outside the hotels are closed.