Valletta centres on the 16th-century St John’s Co-Cathedral
Tall baroque townhouses line narrow, stepped cobbled streets, and views sweep across saturated-blue Mediterranean Sea under periwinkle skies. The Maltese capital Valletta is a rarity, a great city that’s walkable, packed with amazing sights, sunny squares and vibrant street life, all just three hours from the UK by plane. As Malta is an English-speaking country as well as Maltese, you can move through Valletta without facing a language barrier. And with 320 historical sites, the city is dripping in culture – no wonder it’s a Unesco world heritage site.
Sleep in style
Valletta has a profusion of lovely boutique hotels, housed in the city’s grand mansions, where terraces and rooftop pools make the most of the glorious views. Choose from historical townhouses, such as Casa Ellul, where rooms have freestanding bathtubs in the glass-covered balconies, or Palazzo Consiglia and Palazzo Prince d’Orange, both in former aristocratic houses and each with underground spas.
A city of treasures
The Knights of Malta built Valletta as their capital after their victory against the Ottoman Turks following the siege of Malta in 1565. It occupies a narrow peninsula of land, and the knights’ city has remained remarkably preserved. The capital has retained its historic shopfronts and its heritage, yet had a huge makeover in the run-up to its year as European capital of culture in 2018, which saw museums added, restaurants and bars open, and new life breathed into this always beautiful city.
Valletta overlooks the huge loop of Malta’s Grand Harbour, which bobs with boats and yachts, and is ringed by forts, fine-art-filled churches and great museums. For views stretching across the brilliant blue sea, visit the Upper Barrakka Gardens – from here you can take a panoramic lift down to the water’s edge. It’s possible to take a ferry or a traditional boat across the harbour to the smaller Three Cities, which predate Valletta, and are likewise full of beautiful mansions, narrow golden-stone laneways, and packed with sights, from mighty forts to the recently added hands-on Esplora science museum and planetarium.
The architect Renzo Piano added a new architectural dimension to Valletta when he designed its striking modernist parliament building, city gateway and opera house, where there are regular concerts in what is now an open-air amphitheatre.
This dazzling 21st-century architecture is more than matched by the city’s baroque masterpieces. The city centres on the 16th-century St John’s Co-Cathedral, whose interior is a lavish symphony of gold and intense decoration, and houses the largest painting completed by Caravaggio – the only work the artist ever signed. Also extraordinary is the Grand Master’s Palace (Republic Street), the historic meeting place for parliament, where you can wander through its dizzyingly grandiose state rooms, the walls hung with sumptuous tapestries and lined by suits of armour.
Geek out on history
Valletta’s National War Musuem occupies the imposing Fort Saint Elmo, with superb audio-visual exhibits illustrating the islands’ warlike past. Not only was there the epic 16th-century siege, but also the second world war, when such was the islanders’ heroism that the entire population received the George Cross for bravery. Valletta’s National Museum of Archaeology is equally fascinating, showing artefacts found at the island’s prehistoric sites, huge, mysterious structures that predate the Egyptian pyramids. One of the most extraordinary of these is an easy trip from Valletta, the underground Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum, seemingly a temple dating to at least 3,300 BC, so well preserved that you can still see traces of prehistoric paint.
Eat and drink like the locals
Malta is not only a cultural powerhouse, but a foodie one too, and this year Michelin has added it to its list of restaurant guides for the first time. You won’t find chain restaurants and identikit places in Valletta, but venues full of charm, history and character. Choices range from fine dining to earthy trattorias. Much-loved local favourites include characterful Rubino, a landmark in the city, dating to 1906, with Maltese dishes such as stuffed sea bass, and Guzé Bistro. The latter, in a 16th-century townhouse, serves creative dishes using seasonal local ingredients, such as Gozitan sheep’s cheese with pomegranate and honey. Eat on the bastions of the city at Rampila, or overlooking the sea at the chic converted warehouse The Harbour Club.
Valletta’s nightlife has also undergone a renaissance, including in Strait Street, once the red-light district, which was frequented by the many sailors who passed through the busy port. So narrow that you could almost reach across between houses for a handshake, it’s retained its vintage signage, but now has a line of quirky, atmospheric bars, such as Yard 32, with its wide selection of gin and tapas. Other bars are dotted across the city, some with harbour views, such as the charming Bridge Bar (East Street), best on Friday nights, when seating is a cushion on the harbourside steps, and a jazz band plays on the bridge.
A city break here is guaranteed to be full of happenstance and contented wandering, and its balmy climate almost guarantees blue skies, with more than 300 days of sunlight a year. Don’t miss out: choose Valletta for your next city break, the unsung hero of Europe.
With more 300 days of sunshine a year, Malta offers more to explore
