Four days in Malta are enough to cover the essentials of the Mediterranean archipelago: from Neolithic temples that predate the Egyptian pyramids to the UNESCO-listed Baroque capital, taking in a near-deserted island with turquoise waters and limestone cliffs overlooking the sea.
In this article, I guide you through a four-day Malta itinerary, using Valletta as a base.
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Practical tips for visiting Malta in 4 days
What can you see in Malta in 4 days? Is it enough time?
Four days allow you to visit Valletta, explore a neighbouring island, discover Mdina and its surroundings, and travel the south coast. That’s a good amount, but you’ll still need to make choices!
Map of must-see attractions
To help you find your bearings while reading our itinerary below, here is our map of Malta’s main tourist attractions:
Getting around Malta
Malta’s bus network is reliable and reasonably dense: Valletta acts as the central hub, and most sites in the north and centre are accessible by public transport. For visiting the capital and its immediate surroundings, the bus is a perfectly suitable and economical option.
For days dedicated to Mdina, the southern temples or the Dingli Cliffs, however, I recommend renting a vehicle: distances remain short, but bus schedules are sometimes impractical for combining several stops in a single day.
Two important points: in Malta, traffic drives on the left, a direct legacy of the British period, and secondary roads can be quite narrow.
My tips for renting a car in Malta
- Compare prices on Discovercars, my favorite platform and one of the highest-rated
- Book your car early for more options and better prices
- Don’t rent a car that’s too big, as the roads are narrow.
Where to stay in Malta
Valletta and its surroundings offer the widest choice of accommodation, from small characterful hotels in historic buildings to upscale establishments overlooking the harbour. Sliema and St Julian’s offer a more contemporary atmosphere, convenient for quick access to beaches and nightlife.
Where to Stay in Malta – My Favorite Spots:
- Valletta – See best-rated accommodations
- St. Julian’s – See best-rated accommodations
- Victoria (Gozo Island) – See best-rated accommodations
My Top Picks:
- Cugo Gran Macina (5 stars) – see photos and availability
- The Gomerino Hotel (4 stars) – see photos and availability
See my article on the best places to stay in Malta (coming soon)
Our ideal itinerary: 4 days in Malta
- Valletta, the UNESCO-listed fortified capital
- Mdina, the Silent City, Rabat and the Dingli Cliffs
- 2 options:
Nature: Comino and the Blue Lagoon
Culture: Tour of Gozo - Prehistoric temples of the south coast and natural swimming
You can also build your own itinerary from our article: the best attractions in Malta.
Day 1 – Valletta, the Baroque fortified capital
Valletta was laid out from scratch in 1566 by the Knights of the Order of St John, following a remarkably legible grid plan: all streets slope down toward the sea, and views open up at every intersection. This urban rigour gives the Maltese capital a clarity that medieval cities simply don’t have.
It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980, and I was struck by its compactness: from one end to the other, it takes barely 15 minutes on foot!
Morning: St John’s Co-Cathedral and Caravaggio
Nothing in the façade of St John’s Co-Cathedral prepares you for what awaits inside. The exterior is deliberately plain: the Knights favoured a defensive appearance. Once through the threshold, the eye is drawn in by a Baroque interior of unexpected richness: a fully painted ceiling, gilded walls, and more than 400 polychrome marble tombstones identifying the knights buried beneath the building. Built between 1573 and 1578, the cathedral ranks among the most impressive interiors in the Mediterranean region.
The oratory accessible from the main nave houses two major works by Caravaggio, the 17th-century Italian painter, created during his stay in Malta in 1608: The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist, his largest painting, and Saint Jerome Writing. I recommend allowing 1 to 1.5 hours for the visit, more if you wish to linger over the works. You can book a guided tour to explore this monument in greater depth — see options.
Lunchtime: lunch and a stroll through the historic centre
Republic Street and Merchant Street form Valletta’s two main arteries: shops, cafés and restaurants line them in a lively Baroque façade setting. By contrast, the perpendicular alleyways that drop toward the harbour are often deserted in the middle of the day.
I appreciate this contrast between the bustle of the main thoroughfares and the quiet of the side streets. For a break off the beaten track, the Mysterium Fidei, a former monastery whose singular atmosphere is a sharp contrast to the outside world, is well worth the detour — book your entry.
Afternoon: the Grand Masters’ Palace
On Republic Street, the Grand Masters’ Palace has occupied a central position in the city since the 16th century — residence of the Order’s leaders, then the seat of the British Governor, and today the office of the President of the Republic. Some state rooms remain open to the public: monumental frescoes, Flemish tapestries and an armoury of more than 5,000 pieces tracing the evolution of military equipment from the 15th to the 18th century.
I found this tour remarkably dense; note that the palace is undergoing ongoing restoration and some rooms may be temporarily closed. Visit the official website for more information here.
Take advantage of the combined ticket with the Art Museum and the Archaeological Museum.
End of day: the Upper Barrakka Gardens
To close this first day, the Upper Barrakka Gardens offer from their elevated terrace a panoramic view over the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities. At noon and at 4pm every day, the Saluting Battery fires a cannon from the platform below. This is a ritual dating back to the 19th century that regularly draws a small crowd of spectators.
Admission to the gardens is free. I particularly enjoy this viewpoint in the late afternoon, when the light shifts on the ochre limestone façades of the opposite bank and the day’s activity begins to fade.
Day 2 – Mdina, Rabat and the Dingli Cliffs
This second day leaves Valletta for the island’s interior and a radically different setting. Mdina, perched on a limestone plateau at the centre of Malta, was the capital of the archipelago before the Knights founded Valletta in the 16th century.
I loved the particular atmosphere of this place: a still-inhabited city, frozen in its medieval and Baroque architecture, explored on foot in near-total silence. The neighbouring town of Rabat, its underground catacombs and the Dingli Cliffs logically complete the day, forming a loop through the inland and along the west coast.
Morning: Mdina and St Paul’s Cathedral
The best way to explore Mdina is simply to wander without a fixed route. The cobbled alleyways weave between weathered limestone walls whose tones shift from beige to golden in the morning light. Around every corner, a hidden courtyard or an unexpected viewpoint over the Maltese countryside.
St Paul’s Cathedral, built in the late 17th century, deserves a longer stop: its ceiling frescoes by Sicilian painter Mattia Preti create a striking visual perspective, and the adjoining museum displays silverware and illuminated manuscripts. Nearby, Bastion Square offers an open view over much of the island.
Afternoon: Rabat and St Paul’s Catacombs
Just outside the walls of Mdina, Rabat is a lively town whose atmosphere contrasts with the serenity of the neighbouring fortified city. Its main archaeological interest lies in St Paul’s Catacombs: an underground network carved out between the 4th and 9th centuries, among the most extensive in the Mediterranean. There you discover burial chambers, niches cut into the rock and stone tables — the agapae — used for ritual meals in late Antiquity.
I appreciated the informative panels, which allow you to understand these burial practices without needing a guide. Nearby, St Paul’s Grotto marks the spot where the apostle Paul is said to have taken refuge after his shipwreck on the Maltese coast in the year 60. Visit the official website for more information here.
End of day: the Dingli Cliffs
At the south-western tip of the island, the Dingli Cliffs rise to around 253m above the Mediterranean, Malta’s highest point. A path runs along the edge for several kilometres, offering unobstructed views of the horizon and the uninhabited islet of Filfla.
The small chapel of St Mary Magdalene, isolated at the edge of the plateau, serves as a landmark in this open landscape.
Access is free; bring water, as there are no refreshment points near the paths.
Day 3 – Nature Option: Comino and the Blue Lagoon
Between Malta and Gozo, Comino is an island of just a few square kilometres, with virtually no permanent residents. The boat trip from Malta takes around twenty to thirty minutes depending on the vessel chosen — Book in advance, as this is a very popular excursion! See options
Morning: the Blue Lagoon
The Blue Lagoon takes its name from the colour and clarity of its waters, framed by limestone rocks and the islet of Cominotto. In clear weather, the sandy bottom is perfectly visible from the surface, and fish swim freely through the swimming area. I found that the site fills up from mid-morning in July and August: to enjoy it in good conditions, it’s best to arrive on one of the first boats of the morning.
Sun loungers and parasols are available to hire on site, but they fill up quickly; bring your own snorkel mask, as the clarity of the water more than rewards the effort. Most excursions also include a stop at the Santa Maria Caves, cavities carved into the limestone rock on the island’s south coast.
Afternoon: the other side of Comino
Beyond the lagoon, Comino reveals itself as surprisingly wild. Paths run along the rocky shores toward far less crowded bays: Santa Marija Bay in the south is a good example. St Mary’s Tower, built in 1618 to watch over the strait, is easy to spot from the island’s heights.
I appreciated this raw and deserted part of the island, which offers a radically different experience from the bustle of the lagoon. Bring water, sun protection and suitable shoes: there is neither shade nor any refreshment point on the paths. The island can be covered in 2 to 3 hours on foot.
Day 3 – Culture option: Tour of Gozo
If you’d rather spend your third day on a cultural discovery rather than swimming, Gozo is a serious alternative to Comino. The second island of the archipelago is noticeably different from Malta: more rural, calmer, with a less hurried pace of life.
Most excursions to Gozo from Malta take in the Victoria Citadel — see options.
Alternatively, take the ferry with your rental car.
Morning: the Victoria Citadel
The Victoria Citadel dominates Gozo from its fortified promontory: a site inhabited since the Neolithic, reinforced by the Knights in the 17th century. Until 1637, the island’s inhabitants were required to shelter there every night to protect themselves from corsair raids. From the ramparts, the 360° view takes in all of Gozo, and on a clear day, Malta and Comino are visible. Access to the Citadel is free; inside, several museums (archaeology, folklore, former prisons) are ticketed, with a combined ticket available. Visit the official website for more information here.
At the heart of the Citadel, the Cathedral of the Assumption, built between 1697 and 1711, conceals a notable architectural peculiarity: its ceiling, painted in trompe-l’œil by Antonio Manuele, simulates a dome that the building does not actually have (funds had run short for its construction). The illusion is perfectly convincing from the centre of the nave. I found this detail emblematic of Maltese Baroque ingenuity, capable of compensating for a technical constraint with a visually sophisticated effect.
On the road: Ta’ Pinu Basilica
Crossing the island westward, a short detour leads to Ta’ Pinu Basilica: a major pilgrimage site on Gozo, this religious building stands alone in the middle of the countryside, in an open landscape. The stop is brief, but the site, isolated from any urban fabric, leaves a particular impression.
Afternoon: the Ggantija Temples
Located in the east of the island, the Ggantija Temples rank among the oldest freestanding structures on the planet, dating back to around 3600 BCE. That’s older than the Egyptian pyramids and Stonehenge! Their name comes from the Maltese word ġgant (giant): local legend attributed their construction to a giantess.
The outer walls, more than 5m high, are made up of limestone blocks, some of which weigh more than 50 tonnes. I found the site well presented since its recent renovation, and the adjacent museum, which displays objects found during excavations, provides useful insight into Neolithic construction techniques. Allow around 1 hour for the visit.
Most excursions around Gozo include a stop at the temples — see options.
Late afternoon: the Xwejni salt pans
Before leaving Gozo, the north coast has one last stop in store: the salt pans of Xwejni Bay. These geometric basins, carved directly into the coastal rock, have been in operation since Roman times; some families still carry on the traditional harvest of sea salt, particularly between June and September.
The site is both photogenic and steeped in a long, unbroken history. I loved the shifting reflections in the basins depending on the angle of the sun, and the limestone rocks in the background. The place is quiet, free to access, and a perfect way to end the day away from the tourist bustle.
My favorite activities in Malta:
- Boat trip to Comino Island and the Blue Lagoon – see options
- Kayaking excursions – see options
- Culinary tours – see options
- ATV tours – see options
Day 4 – Prehistoric temples and the south coast
For this final day, the itinerary heads south, where Malta’s oldest heritage is concentrated. There is a particular travel logic to this: ending on the oldest sites, those whose construction predates the Egyptian pyramids by several centuries.
Morning: the Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra Temples
Listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra Temples stand on limestone promontories overlooking the south coast. Ħaġar Qim, whose construction dates back to 3600–3200 BCE, impresses first by the scale of its blocks: some measure more than 5m in length. Mnajdra, a few hundred metres below, has a notable astronomical interest: its orientation is such that sunlight penetrates directly inside at the equinoxes and solstices.
I recommend starting with Ħaġar Qim to understand its structure, then walking down to Mnajdra. A path runs along the cliffs between the two temples, with views of the Filfla islet. The interactive museum at the entrance puts everything in context; allow 1.5 to 2 hours to see it all.
If you’d rather not drive, organised excursions will take you there — see options.
Afternoon: the Blue Grotto
The small harbour of Wied iż-Żurrieq, nestled between cliffs, is the departure point for the boats serving the Blue Grotto. These sea cavities, carved by erosion into the limestone rock, are visited on an excursion of around 25 minutes. The light inside shifts constantly: blue and green reflections depending on the angle of the light.
Departures are cancelled in strong wind or rough seas; in this case, an overhanging viewpoint still offers a view of the natural arches. The stop is worth it even without taking a boat — see excursions.
Late afternoon: Saint Peter’s Pool
To finish on a high note, Saint Peter’s Pool is a natural swimming hole carved into the limestone rocks near Marsaxlokk. The water is a deep blue and remarkably clear; the flat rocks around it form a natural relaxation platform that regular visitors return to again and again.
Access is free and without facilities: no showers, no toilets, no parasols. The path from the car park takes around 10 minutes on foot along a dirt track. Bring suitable shoes for the rocks and everything you need to get comfortable, if you plan to stay a while.
Plan your unforgettable trip to Malta!
- maps to help you plan
- handpicked beautiful spots
- Practical information, including GPS coordinates
- photos to help you choose
COMING SOON
Alternative: with more museums in Valletta
Art, culture and architecture enthusiasts can extend the first day or replace a half-day by exploring more of Valletta’s museums, whose concentration is remarkable for a city of this size. I particularly recommend:
- Fort St Elmo, at the tip of the peninsula, which traces Malta’s military history and houses the National War Museum.
- MUZA (National Museum of Fine Arts), whose varied collections occupy a former palace in the heart of the city.
- The National Museum of Archaeology, which displays remarkable pieces from Malta’s prehistoric temples.
- The Mysterium Fidei, a former monastery with a singular atmosphere — book your entry.
Alternative: the Three Cities and military heritage
Vittoriosa (Birgu), Senglea (Isla) and Cospicua (Bormla) make up the Three Cities, situated opposite Valletta on the other side of the Grand Harbour. Older than the capital, they were the first place of settlement for the Knights of the Order of St John in Malta in 1530.
I found the atmosphere different from Valletta: more local, less touristy, with a strong neighbourhood feel. The crossing by dghajsa — the traditional Maltese boat — from Valletta is a lovely way to arrive; the ferry from the Waterfront is a more practical alternative. Book a guided boat tour.
Fort St Angelo (Forti Sant’Anglu), at the far end of Vittoriosa, is one of Malta’s oldest fortifications; it played a central role during the Great Siege of 1565. The route through its bastions and medieval chapel takes 1 to 1.5 hours, and the view from the ramparts over the Grand Harbour and Valletta is particularly striking.
Further along, the Inquisitor’s Palace is one of the few Inquisition palaces open to the public in Europe. Senglea, for its part, has the Gardjola Gardens, which offer a panoramic view from its pointed position overlooking the harbour. Cospicua, the largest of the three, is surrounded by the Margherita and Cottonera fortification lines.
Alternative: beaches and water activities
Malta doesn’t immediately present itself as a beach destination, yet the archipelago has several coastal spots well worth visiting. Sandy beaches are relatively rare, as the coastline is mostly rocky, which makes them all the more sought after in season. In high season, it’s best to arrive early to find a good spot.
- Golden Bay, on the north-west coast, where golden sand is framed by clay cliffs.
- Mellieha Bay (Għadira Bay), Malta’s largest sandy beach.
- Paradise Bay, accessible via a staircase carved into the rock, with a direct view of Comino and Gozo.
- Balluta Bay, which pairs the beach with an interesting architectural setting.
On the water activities side, Malta’s waters are among the clearest in the Mediterranean, with underwater visibility regularly reaching 30m. Scuba diving is one of the archipelago’s specialities, with several particularly renowned sites: the wreck of the MV Karwela off Gozo, the Blue Hole at Dwejra and the underwater caves of Comino. Sea kayak excursions also allow you to explore coves inaccessible by road — see options.
Alternative: with activities for children
Besides beaches and forts, Malta offers several family-friendly options:
- Popeye Village (Sweethaven Village), a film set built in 1979 for Robert Altman’s film — book your entry.
- The Malta National Aquarium — book your ticket.
- The Playmobil FunPark — see the website here.
- Splash & Fun Water Park, the island’s largest water park — see the website here.
Alternative: food tour and Maltese gastronomy
Malta has a culinary identity shaped by centuries of diverse influences: Phoenician, Roman, Arab, Norman, Spanish, French and British. This historical layering is directly readable in local products and dishes. Try the pastizzi — flaky pastries filled with ricotta or peas, sold for a few cents in pastizzerias —, the ftira (a filled Maltese bread, similar to a focaccia), braised rabbit (fenkata, the national dish) and ġbejna goat’s cheese.
You can join a food tour in Valletta to understand these influences and refine your palate — see options.
Good to know for your stay in Malta
The weather in Malta
Spring (April–June) and autumn (September–November) offer the best conditions for a four-day stay: pleasant temperatures ranging from 20°C to 28°C, moderate crowds and more accessible accommodation. Summer (July–August) is hot — often above 35°C — and popular sites such as Comino’s Blue Lagoon are packed from midday. Winter (December–March) is mild (12°C to 18°C) but some days can be rainy and windy; on the other hand, it is the quietest season for visiting historical sites without dealing with crowds.
Crowds in Malta
In high season (July–August), the most popular sites — Blue Lagoon, Valletta, northern beaches — can be very busy. Spring and autumn remain the most balanced periods for combining pleasant weather with reasonable crowds. If you visit Malta in summer, remember to book your accommodation several months in advance and to visit popular sites early in the morning. I also recommend booking tickets in advance for Comino excursions and the most popular museum entries.
Adapting your itinerary when it rains
If rain sets in during your stay, the archipelago offers plenty of sheltered alternatives. St John’s Co-Cathedral and the Grand Masters’ Palace in Valletta are good options in bad weather, as are the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum or the Rabat Catacombs. The Lascaris War Rooms, located beneath Valletta’s ramparts, are also an interesting discovery.
Plan your trip to Malta!
- Best things to do in Malta
- Best things to do in Gozo
- Most beautiful churches (coming soon)
- Rent a car in Malta
- When to visit Malta (coming soon)
- Where to stay in Malta (coming soon)
- Itineraries: 1 week
Plan your unforgettable trip to Malta!
- maps to help you plan
- handpicked beautiful spots
- Practical information, including GPS coordinates
- photos to help you choose
COMING SOON
