Valletta

Valletta, Malta’s island capital, is in the middle of the Mediterranean and it’s a World Heritage Site, the first ‘planned city’ ever built in Europe.  Small in scale and easy to explore, it offers stunning coastal views and gorgeous architecture, from renaissance palaces to the 21st century City Gate. Its history is fascinating too, especially the inspiring stories of how Malta triumphed during the Great Siege of 1565 and why the island was awarded the George Cross during World War II.

The 8 episodes in our City Break Valletta series bring you all the background history and culture you need to fully understand this unique city. In short, here is all the research you’d do yourself if only you had the time.

Each episode centres around a podcast, available here or on all the usual providers.  The blog posts here on the website include a summary of the main information, plus pictures, useful links and ideas for further reading.  So, let’s go.  How to say that in Maltese?  Maybe ejja mmorru.

Valletta is our current our current series and will run until February 2025.  A new episode will come out every two weeks.

vALLETTA : HISTORY & CULTURE

City Break Valletta Grand Palace

Episode 1: Introduction to Valletta

Merħba il-Valletta: welcome to Valletta.  The capital of Malta, Valletta is a World Heritage Site, small in scale and easy to explore.  It’s known for its stunning coastal views and its gorgeous architecture, from renaissance … Read more
Valletta Street Scene 3 Walks Around Valletta

Episode 02: 3 Walks around Valletta

Valletta is a very walkable city. All three of our walks around Valletta could be done in a day if you want to see all the main sights quickly. Or you could spread them out, … Read more
Valletta statue and Our Lady of Victory Church

Episode 03: Finding the Knights of Malta in Valletta

Where to find the Knights of Malta today? In fact they’re everywhere, not least in all the souvenir shops where you can buy little models wearing armour and tabards decorated with a Maltese Cross. You’ll … Read more
Valletta War Memorial

Episode 04: Finding World War II in Valletta

World War II in Valletta, now there’s a subject you will keep coming across as you tour the city. This post begins with a little history from the period and explains why the island of … Read more
Valletta Quirky

Episode 05 Art, Architecture and Archaeology in Valletta

This is a pot-pourri episode, beginning with a look at Valletta’s art scene: the National Art Gallery, 3 artists linked to the island and the oratory where the 2 most famous paintings are hidden away. … Read more
Maltese Platter

Episode 06 Maltese Food and Maltese Festivities

Maltese food, Maltese festivities, these are going to be some of the highlights of your visit. Malta has more public holidays – 14 – than most other European countries, plus a whole range of other … Read more
Vittoriosa / Inquisitor's Palace

Episode 07 Days out from Valletta

Here are our ideas for easy days out from Valletta to see some of the rest of Malta. We start with the two most popular day trips, to the 3 Cities and to Mdina and … Read more

VALLETTA: links and reading

Two useful websites for tourists
Visit Malta
Malta Uncovered

3 Guide Books
Pocket Rough Guide to Malta and Gozo
Lonely Planet Malta and Gozo
Eyewitness Top 10 Malta and Gozo

3 History Books
The History of Malta by Nuria Rehn
Fortress Island Malta by Peter Jacobs
Ladies of Lascaris by Paul McDonald

2 Books on Daphne Caruana Galizia’s Story
A Death in Malta by Paul Caruana Galizia
A Sunny Place for Shady People by Ryan Murdock

Maltese Cooking
Taste of Malta by Anton B Dougall

2 Novels set in Malta
The Kappillan of Malta by Nicholas Monserrat
Secrets of Malta by Cecily Blench

PODCASTS to get you started

OTHER CITY BREAK IDEAS

LATEST ARTICLES

GALLERY