Malta

We will be docking in Valletta and plan on going to Mdina for several hours and then back to Valletta. Should we take the local bus or the HOHO bus?

The regular bus is cheaper. Several hours in Mdina might be too long. But be sure also go to the Roman Villa that is just outside the main gate to enter Mdina. Its a lovely place, with many of the mosaics still in spectacular condition.

While the regular bus is cheaper, I would recommend the hoho bus. We were pleasantly surprised how interesting Malta was & you may enjoy some sightseeing besides Mdina.

Would you suggest the north or south route? Do you need to get your tickets in advance?

Would you suggest the north or south route? Do you need to get your tickets in advance?

I am wondering the same thing. I've not been able to locate a good map of Malta and/or the HOHO routes. So I'm bumping this thread up to the top!

If your goal is to just go to Mdina (a pretty good goal) then it makes little sense to shell out the bigger bucks (or Euros) for the HoHo. Just go up to the top of the hill (there is an elevator that helps), walk over to the bus station and take the next local bus that goes to Mdina.

That being said, DW and I really enjoy the island of Malta (and nearby Gozo) and recommend that those with the time explore the island. Our preference is to simply rent a car and drive since we can then stop when and where we please without being concerned about HoHo bus schedules (which are often at least 30 minutes between buses). But we would also mention that driving within Valetta is a pain in the you know what.

Hank

Thanks Hank. This is our situation:

We are in Valetta port all day and overnight. The next day (I presume the ship moves in the early morning) we are in Mgarr from 8-5. I was just about to ask advice on whether or not to visit Gozo which I understand is a separate island but part of Malta.

Could you tell me a bit more about Gozo? Are there bridges or do you need to go by boat? What is there that you enjoyed?

Back to Valetta - what did you enjoy most there? Is the grotto worth driving by (I'm a bit physically challenged when it comes to steps, etc) or does one need to see it from the water? Since we have all day, we can take our time. But I believe the HOHO bus said it leaves every 60 minutes which would make for long waits. Rather than renting a car, I'd prefer to get a group of 4-6 people to join us on a guided tour of the island highlights. Still, I need to know what the highlights are!

Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts.

sansterre -

check this website:

http://www.guidedtoursmalta.com/

We are booked with them this Summer. Have had wonderful response and very accommodating. Excellent reviews.

We are following her "drawn up itinerary of Malta", but we are visiting Hagar Qim instead of Tarxien (HQ is more scenic).

She will give you quotes for various numbers of people, so you can plan when you want to cut off your group.

Mgarr is actually the port city on the island of Gozo! Some of the Maltese refer to Gozo as the Green Island or tranquil island. It is pretty rural (except for Victoria), pretty, green, and a laid back island. When we were there 2 years ago we rented a car and had a nice day just driving all over the island. We especially enjoyed some the coastal areas (especially around the Azure Window area).

While Gozo is only about 5 miles from Malta (as the crow flies) it is longer from the port of Valetta to Mgarr (I think 15-20 sea miles). There are frequent ferries between the islands which are not connected by any land route. Your ship will likely leave Valletta early in the morning and be at Mgarr in less than 2 hours. There is not a lot at Mgarr and its merely the port village for the major Gozo city of Victoria. When we rented a car, the rental car company sent a van to pick us up and take us to their Victoria office where we got our car. We rented from a small local company called Mayjo Car Rental and paid only 35 Euros for the entire day (which included transfers to and from the port).

Hank

Marazul and Hank - Thanks so much. You both have provided valuable port information. I've contacted Amy's tours as I don't see us doing the actual driving, but might consider it on the rural island of Gozo.

Thanks again!

If your goal is to just go to Mdina (a pretty good goal) then it makes little sense to shell out the bigger bucks (or Euros) for the HoHo. Just go up to the top of the hill (there is an elevator that helps), walk over to the bus station and take the next local bus that goes to Mdina.

 

That being said, DW and I really enjoy the island of Malta (and nearby Gozo) and recommend that those with the time explore the island. Our preference is to simply rent a car and drive since we can then stop when and where we please without being concerned about HoHo bus schedules (which are often at least 30 minutes between buses). But we would also mention that driving within Valetta is a pain in the you know what.

 

Hank

Hank

Does the local bus go to the caves. Could we do both caves and Mdina in an afternoon.

Our first visit to Malta we did the HOHO bus (North Island); our second visit to Malta we hired a private guide and shared her between a group of 10 (from our CC roll call). As we split the fee between 10 people, it wasn’t much more money than the HOHO and we had an extraordinary day.

My review of that visit is here:

https://baskeytravels.wordpress.com/malta/

For those wanting an excellent and in-depth tour of Malta and Gozo do contact Amy Pace at http://www.guidedtoursmalta.com (also mentioned above by marazul). We spent two days with Amy two years ago as cruise ship spent a day at each island. Definitely sign up for Amy as your guide if she is available.

Now, we are taking a similar cruise and plan to take the HOHO bus to get a quick reminder of the highlights on both islands. Depending on the weather, we may not got off the bus. There was so much to see on both islands; I look forward to our second visits.

We will be in port from noon to 8 PM on a Monday. Will the South route run during that time? I can't figure it out from their site.

see my post on Malta buses.The HOHO is more reliable than regular bus but only marginally and can be anything up to two hours betweenbuses not recommended for a port stop.

We will be in Valetta in mid November and I had checked out a few guides for out-of-town trips but couldn't find anyone else who was interested. So today I looked at the HOHO bus which would take us to the places I wanted to see, but given comments about unreliable times, I think we'll just hike up to the top and walk around ... it's not our first time there.

For newcomers, if you can get tickets for the Hypogeum, for me this is something NOT to be missed. And walking around the Mdina is very interesting.

Mura