yes we were disappointed.. our driver told us traditional Maltese was 20 ways to cook a rabbit... and we did not see it on a menu anywhere

Sorry, but my questions are coming thick & fast now Shall I take all currency, travellers cheques, or are there a few ATM's in Sliema please?

Helen

At home hubby likes to drink Guiness, Dark, traditional Ales or in a push lager. What would you reccomend him to drink

That is very similar to my preference, there are no dark Real Ales as such, the 2 that I tend to like most are Farsons Blue Label & Hopleaf both redily available, not so easy to find but well worth trying is Farsons Lacto Milk Stout, think a stronger version of Mackeson Stout, oh and you can get Guinness

This will give you an idea http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/maltbrew.htm

Shall I take all currency, travellers cheques, or are there a few ATM's in Sliema please?

Plenty of reliable ATM's in Sliema and in nearby Valletta, HSBC, Bank of Valletta, Lombard Bank also ATM's in some hotels and shopping centres etc

Thanks Graham - I'm sure there'll be plenty more questions over the next month

the sterling/euro cash rat was bad last week [around 1.1] we got 1.185 2 days before we left, For real ale drinkers i didn't find any what i did find was the nitro keg version of Wells Bombardier around 3 euro pint

Bus to Marsaxlokk from Bugibba/Qawra - update

Just returned today 2nd March from our visit since 26th Feb.

There's 2 ways to get there....

You can take the X3 from the bus station and change at Paola to either the 81 or 82 which will take you to Marsaxlokk.
The alternative is the number 12 to Valletta then pick up the 81 (it was at stand number 11 when we went that way).

The bus to Valletta takes around an hour which is much longer than usual as it now takes the long way round to Sliema (it's a bendy bus on this route so the bus is much larger than the old traditional bus and doesn't fit down the streets on the old route).

The X3 cuts out a lot of the journey and eventually ends up at the airport but they run every 30 minutes from the bus station. The number 12 runs about every 10 minutes or so. The 81 from Valletta to Maraxlokk takes around 40 minutes.

It was a nice day when we went although the wind was cold (am I surprised?), the wind is always cold in Malta!

On Wednesday morning, we took the bus to Sliema and went on the 90 minute harbour cruise on one of the traditional boats rather than the larger Captain Morgan boat. It was an excellent trip (toilet left a lot to be desired onboard) and we had some fab waves and much splashing on the way back as we headed out to sea from leaving the Grand Harbour to get back to Sliema

The price started at 16 EUR per person but came down to 10 EUR per person as we walked along the seafront... If you buy the hop on, hop off ticket (think it's 15 EUR per person) you get the harbour cruise free.

Thursday was a beautiful day with wall to wall sun and no wind Good day for us, we spent it on the roof by the pool with a book and got sunburned!

Flew back home to Cyprus this afternoon. Weather here has been very weird while we've been away and they had snow in almost all districts of the island on Wednesday rather than just on the mountain. That's pretty much unheard of for Cyprus and certainly something we haven't seen in the 8yrs we've been living here....

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

We did the harbour trip Shell and what a frightening experience when you go on the sea between the two harbours it was very windy when we went and got soaked. We paid 15 euros for the hop on hop off bus and got the harbour cruise free. It was difficult finding the bus to St. Pauls Bay in Valetta there are so many bus bays it's unbelievable and it was chaos as people were telling us all different bay numbers.

We just asked one of the Arriva uniformed guys at Valletta and another day at Sliema as the bus no longer goes to Sliema and back to Bugibba bus station - it continues into Valletta.

The 81 in Valletta went from bay number 11 when we took it.

We did the harbour trip Shell and what a frightening experience when you go on the sea between the two harbours it was very windy when we went and got soaked.

I hope you weren't the couple on the same boat as us on Wednesday 29th February! The waves splashed up over the front of the boat onto the top of the cabin roof, the poured off onto a couple who were sitting on the front bench seat (right hand side). He had a yellow kagoul on and she had a blue/green windjammer/anorak.... Photos will be uploaded to my blog soon along with a short video clip

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

Thanks for that info Shell

We are staying in Marsaxlokk in May/June this year. Are we going to be able to get around the Island ok as we'll be exploring Malta or is it going to be a little difficult for us?

We are staying in Marsaxlokk in May/June this year. Are we going to be able to get around the Island ok as we'll be exploring Malta or is it going to be a little difficult for us?

Glynis,
Malta is very easy to get around - it's only a tiny island. The longest journey will take around an hour in any one go....

There were a few bus stops in Marsaxlokk but unfortunately, we didn't check where the other bus routes went to. But certainly, you can get to Valletta in about 40 minutes and from Valletta well - the island is your oyster.

I've put my photos up now which include Marsaxlokk, Qawra and the 2 Harbours cruise around the Grand Harbour of Valletta and Sliema harbour.

You can find them here: http://flic.kr/s/aHsjz1Y7fk

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

Thank Shell- I'm off to take a look now

It was the end of January when we went Shell but we sat on the exact front bench seat on the right hand side the captain said the people on the front would have a shower and we certainly did we were drenched.

Glynis you'll have no problem getting round Malta by bus and if you get a 2.60 euros ticket you can use it all day and once you get into Valetta or Sliema you can go anywhere. It's interesting going over to Gozo and doesn't cost much on the ferry.

Some lovely pics Shell -thanks for sharing them.

Thanks for the photo's Shell

Thanks also for the bus information. Is there a weekly ticket so we don't have to bother buying one every day as we'll be out and about most days?

Hi

There is a weekly saver ticket which we saw advertised from around EUR 7 but think those are only for Malta residents.

I've found some prices on the Arriva website: http://www.arriva.com.mt/fare-information?l=1 and it looks like a weekly ticket is EUR 12 per person, which is still a good saving if you plan on using the bus at least 4 or 5 times in a week.

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

Thanks Shell

Any tips as to what to pack for this time of year please? It doesn't seem that warm there at the moment, and I'm totally flumoxed, as to what to take. We usually go places where it's either really warm or really cold

Hi Helen

After being used to Cyprus temperatures usually being a few degrees warmer than Malta when we go in February, we just stick with our usual Winter clothing - jeans, t-shirts, fleece, a jacket to keep the cold wind out, boots/trainers.

But, to those who are there on holiday from UK and cooler climes - they don't seem to notice and as soon as the sun comes out, so do the arms, legs and swimsuits.

See for yourself in this photo below.... No need to guess which one is me! The wind was cold that day



Shell
Limassol, Cyprus