Six places to call home
Malta is small, but a twenty-minute drive takes you from a promenade of cafés to a village where everyone hears the church bells at seven. These are the areas we sell and let most often, as we see them. Prices are illustrative typical ranges, not quotes.
SliemaTas-Sliema, on the north harbour
The promenade runs from the Ferries to Balluta and fills with walkers at sunrise and swimmers by nine. Sliema is busy, convenient and international, with shops on Tower Road, rocky lidos along the front and a ferry that reaches Valletta in five minutes.
- Schools
- St Aloysius College, several church and private primaries; international schools 10 minutes away in St Julian’s and Pembroke.
- Transport
- Sliema–Valletta ferry every half hour, frequent buses along the Strand. Parking is the one thing it lacks.
St Julian’sSan Ġiljan, and our own front door
Spinola Bay is the postcard: painted luzzi under the restaurants, the church at Balluta, Saturday nights that carry on until late around Paceville. Up the hill, Swieqi and Pender Gardens are quieter and close to the international schools and the business district.
- Schools
- Verdala International School, St Edward’s College and QSI are a short drive; good state primaries in Swieqi.
- Transport
- Main bus routes to Valletta and the airport; most daily needs are walkable.
VallettaIl-Belt, the capital
A walled city of 6,000 residents that empties out after office hours and turns into the island’s most beautiful village. Expect stairs, stone, wooden balconies, and views of the Grand Harbour from rooftops you will never want to leave. Floriana, just outside City Gate, offers similar townhouses for less.
- Schools
- St Albert the Great College and state primaries in the city and Floriana.
- Transport
- The island’s bus terminus is at City Gate, with ferries to Sliema and the Three Cities. Cars are mostly kept outside the walls.
MellieħaIl-Mellieħa, in the north
A hilltop town above the longest sandy beach on the island. Families come for the space, the villas with pools and the slower pace; in July, half of Malta drives up for Għadira Bay. Comino and Gozo are a short boat ride from Ċirkewwa.
- Schools
- State primary and secondary in the town; private and international schools are 30–40 minutes south.
- Transport
- A car is close to essential. Buses run to Valletta and to the Gozo ferry.
Mdina & RabatL-Imdina u r-Rabat, in the centre
Mdina is tiny and silent, with fewer than 300 residents, and houses here change hands once in a generation. Rabat, just outside the gate, is a working town with bakeries, catacombs and houses of character at more ordinary prices, and the cooler air of the island’s high ground.
- Schools
- Several church schools in Rabat; the University and Mater Dei hospital are 15 minutes away.
- Transport
- Direct buses to Valletta and Sliema. Mdina itself is closed to most cars.
GozoGħawdex: Xagħra, Għarb and the villages
Greener, quieter and noticeably cheaper. Converted farmhouses with pools are the classic Gozo buy: Xagħra has the temples and a lively square, Għarb looks across the valley to Ta’ Pinu and out to the sunset at Dwejra. Many owners now work remotely from here.
- Schools
- State and church schools in Victoria and the villages; the Gozo Campus of the University.
- Transport
- Ferry from Mġarr to Ċirkewwa, 25 minutes, and the fast ferry to Valletta. A car is essential on the island.
Not sure which area suits you?
Tell us how you live, where you work and where the children go to school, and we’ll drive you round two or three places on a Saturday morning.