Latest Reviews for Valletta

Valletta is unique and a lot bigger than you give it credit for. The contrast between day and night in the Capital City of Malta is really striking. By day it is very busy as a place of work and by 9pm almost everything is closed and the streets are dead, with only a handfull of restaurants open. It is also very humid as the shelter provided by the tall buildings and rock means there is very little breeze. There are no beaches in Valletta and it is not at all a common saturated tourist resort. The benefits of Valletta include the bus terminus, 1 bus to everywhere on Malta, the shops on Republic and Merchants Street as well as the daily market and the various attractions relating to history. The Waterfront Development, where the cruise liners come into Port is also worth a look. If Valletta is somewhere that you have visited before, I really would recommend venturing off the main two streets of Republic and Merchants Street and exploring some of the quieter side streets. The difference and some of the things you notice is quite amazing. Two places worth dining out are LoSquero and La Vallette. LoSquero is situated next to the new Grand Excelsior Hotel on the Haywharf just outside Valletta. (Left at the Phoenicia Hotel, down Great Siege Road). It serves a range of quality Italian food, freshly cooked to a high standard by the Italian chef. La Vallette is situated on the left hand side, just down from Wembley store on Republic Street in Valletta and has two huge green doors. You can get a good, very reasonably priced snack during the day here and really you should not be put off by the fact that it does not look like a place that tourists should go. You really can not fault this place at all. Enjoy your visit to il-Belt.

The Osborne is located towards the end of South Street, nr the Fine Arts Museum, (Turn left on Republic Street at Wembley Store). Manager and Staff were generally excellent and very helpful. Breakfast was good with a wide choice of items. Hotel also has a bar/lounge and some great views of Valletta higher up. The rooms and public places were very clean and even the pool was checked regularly. This hotel is not really suitable for families because the pool is tiny with only 6 sun loungers + Valletta is too quiet at night. The hotel caters more for the older/explorers market. There is no point in hiring a car because there is nowhere to park it and a short walk away you can catch 1 bus to everywhere in Malta. We also managed to upgrade to a delux room for one night after the lock on our door broke, which was fixed by 8am in the morning. They are not worth paying the extra for as all you get is a more modern interior, which I found made it warmer than out standard room. Also note that if you are out late and return after 1am, then you will need to wake the night receptionist to let you back into the hotel. He is usually fast asleep in the bar area so wake him up by knocking on the window. Overall, very satisfied with this hotel and would stop there again without any hesitation.

A word of warning about Valletta, a city which I have fallen in love with, so take this as you will. It is a fascinating and intricate place despite being on a grid system.

We had three guide books (Lonely Planet, Rough Guide and the AA Essential Guide). As with any guide book there is always a chance that things will be out of date. It wasnÂ?t that exactly but a recurring theme in our 3-and-a-bit days in Valletta was so much was closed. For restaurants that wasnt so much of a problem because there was usually something around a few corners away (but be prepared to walk a bit) but for museums it was more of an issue. Both the War Museum (next to Fort St Elmo) and the War Rooms (in the bastion) were permanently closed as of May 2008. No indication of this before the holiday, and no sign at either place when (if) they would open again. The WWII museum (Malta at War) in Vittoriosa (yet more catacombs and a 1943 propaganda film with Laurence Olivier narrating) was open.

For restaurants it was annoying that recommended places were closed but either Valletta is well catered for, or we were lucky in the places we ended up, having found our intended place was not open. But book ahead! After the first night experiences we went to a place the night before and booked then. It worked out very well. Places we went and that I would recommend are (sory - limited to 2500 so)

Capistrano. A newly renovated place, very small but with great food and wine. We walked in without a reservation and got a table for three (about 7.45). Everyone who came in after us without a reservation (and there were about 5 couples or groups who tried) were turned away.

Malata. Republic Square I think. Anyway opposite the Grand Masters Palace. Very busy and alive with excellent caricatures of, we presumed, Maltese politicians and celebrities. Food superb and service great. But, and this is a general rule, be prepared to sit back and wait every now and again. They have live music occasionally.

Leglinin tapas bar. Now if you can go here! Leglinin is in a basement: five tables (about 18 people) and the kitchen is a two hub gas stove and microwave right in the corner of this small basement room. Sounds awful but I tell you that we had the best food here of all and we had not been disappointed in any of the previous places! Chris is the chef and prepares everything as you ask for it and in full view. Amazing what you can do with a two hub gas stove and microwave!

We stayed here 8-11 May 2008. It is a good hotel with friendly and helpful staff and with a good bar and restaurant.

Two things to note which may or may not affect you: the first is that my room had a connecting door to the next room (114 to 112 should it matter). My first night when my neighbour came back from, obviously, a very good night out, I could hear everything that he did: from the sighs to the bumping into furniture.

He was not being loud at all he tuned the telly on quite low but I could still hear everything. I am sure he would have heard me too as I walked around.

The second thing which again may be just my room was the noisy air conditioning. I had turned it off because it was too distracting when trying to get to sleep but in the end it came to my rescue as it covered over the noise of the telly from next door.

So, it worked out I had a very enjoyable stay after that first night. But it could have easily gone the other way no sleep or air conditioning for three nights!

The only meal we had in the hotel was breakfast which is buffet style and self service. Selections of hot food (sausages, eggs, bacon, waffles, baked beans, grilled tomatoes etc) and cold (cereal, yoghurts, cold meats, dried fruits etc) and a toasting grill. The breakfast staff will come round and provide coffee or tea and juices. This was all very fine.

The bar is small but very well stocked with beers, wines and especially spirits including some local varieties which I would suggest you try! Staff here are friendly without being intrusive.

The hotel does host weddings and other big events (there was one while we were there) but besides the occasional roudy guest these do not get in the way. Only word of advice is if you want to try the brasserie then book ahead �¢���� but again, they were fully booked the night we tried, but offered to fit us in nonetheless if we could be very early (i.e. right at opening time at 6.30). As it happened that didnt suit us but it shows that the hotel does have its heart in the right place.

We found staying in this newly refurbished 15th century house, having a great kitchen to cook our own meals much more personal than staying in a hotel. This was our second visit to Malta and would recommend it highly. The owner's father Victor came to pick us up at the airport and saw us off again at the end of our stay. A friend of ours recommended it to us and directed us to the website (www vallettahouse com)

We found the neighbours extremely friendly and helpful, sometimes almost embarrassingly so. The small shops in the area were a breath of fresh air compared to our UK supermarkets. The grocer would even reserve the milk for us. It was a great base from which to experience the city of the Knights. The Casa Rocca, a beautiful museum house, was right up the street as was St Elmo and the Malta Experience multimedia show. It would have been great if Valletta streets were kept a bit tidier - it seems the Maltese aren't so keen on tidyness!

The attention to detail in the Valletta House is fascinating, the kitchen in the cellar atmospheric while the luxurious bedroom we found stimulating. The selection of books related to the island and the cable TV/DVD were helpful when I had to stay in with flu.

We where not dissapointed with our first visit to Malta, the hotel was warm and friendly. The food was a delight both at breakfast and evening meal times.

I read on this site that a family had been back a few times and made a comment about not getting there eggs cooked as they liked the last time (2003) well you can have them any which way that you like with a resident cook on hand.

The sites on Malta are very good and easy to get to using the local transport, yellow buses fully airconditioned (if the windows are open) and fully sprung seats (provided they had been repaired) but with all of that and buses which must be over 30 years old, who needs comfort when most of the destinations are less than 30 minutes away. What a delightful way to travel.

I would definately recommend the Pheonicia Hotel

We have found a wonderful hotel with all the character and charm of days gone by. Situated just outside the City Gates, La Phoenicia became our oasis of peace and calm during our holiday. An elegant lounge area leads to a lovely dining room with terrace overlooking the hotel grounds and the harbour in the distance. The rooms were spacious and well furnished, and we had a wonderful, large bathroom too - complete with towelling robes. Our room also had tea and coffee making facilities which was a treat.

The food at La Phoenicia was truly excellent. Breakfast of fresh fruits and yogurt through to sausages, eggs done any way you can think of, the omlettes and fried eggs freshly cooked for you. Bacon, tomatoes, hash browns. And there was more and more with lovely breads, rolls, pastries too. Even Bucks Fizz should you need it! Dinner from the a la carte menu was such a treat. Wonderful setting, friendly staff, superb flavours, what more could we want?

The staff at La Phoenicia are courteous, efficient, and very very kind. They obviously enjoy their work because they made us feel at home, and very happy. Nothing was too much trouble for them.

The gardens were lovely - with a wonderful walkway to the swimming pool.

Our compliments to the management and to the staff of this hotel - they have achieved a great standard.

We spent ten days in this hotel during April of 2003, a period of time which included both the Maltese general election and Easter, both of these events proved to be experiences not to be missed. We chose this hotel because we wanted to spend a reasonable amount of the holiday exploring the Valletta itself and the location was perfect. The hotel is situated literally just outside the gates of the city and right next to the main bus park which was very convenient for the island public bus service. The hotel, which was built just before the last war, can simply be described as grand, and it is difficult to fault both the facilities and the service. We had deliberately chosen a five-star hotel because we were looking for a really comfortable break and in this instance the hotel certainly lives up to its five-star rating. Our room was spacious and comfortable containing all mod cons including a safe, trouser press, cable TV, coffee making facilities and minibar. We had a room with a balcony and an excellent view of the part of the harbour. The room was kept impeccably clean.

We had chosen half board accommodation which enabled us to use either of two restaurants within the hotel. A bistro style restaurant offering excellent quality meals but in a lighter atmosphere and a formal restaurant with live entertainment most evenings. The food could not be faulted although after ten days we were going through the same items on the menu which could have been a little longer giving more choice.

The hotel's heated outdoor swimming pool was perfect for relaxation in April with the temperature of the water complementing the spring warmth. The pool was a short walk from the main hotel complex through the well tended hotel gardens.

Overall and excellent break which we would recommend to anyone looking to explore Valletta or using as a base to explore the island in general.

Once again we returned to Malta this February, staying at The Phoenicia for the third time. We were unable to get a package this time for the dates we wanted - decided to have 10 days this time - so booked our flights and hotel direct.

We got off to the worst possible start. Having booked our flights online with Travel Select, the tickets hadn't arrived 10 days before we travelled. Despite assurances by phone and email that we would be able to pick them up at Stansted, we had to pay for them again at the airport as Travel Select had failed to issue Air Malta with a bond of indemnity. However, we have now received a refund and £30 compensation - the battle over a refund for the three hours holding on their customer service line continues ...

Arrival at the hotel was wonderful as always. We love the harbour view rooms and the welcome was warm, although it was nearly midnight. Our first breakfast was a disappointment as you no longer appear to be able to have your eggs cooked as you watch, the rest was just as good as we remembered though.

The concierge organised a hire car from JS for us - it had only 8k miles on the clock and cost less for 10 days than we had paid for 7 from Hertz the previous year.

We were a bit more adventurous with eating out this time and discovered the wonderful Gianninis in Valetta. Amazing food and a view to die for - you do need to book in advance for a window table.

We also ate at the Xara Palace at Midina which was overpriced and pretentious, don't recommend this unless you have more money than sense. A bill of £80 for two, plus the £6 taxi each way made this a very expensive evening.

Despite the weather which was much windier, colder and wetter than we have had previous years, we had a wonderful restful break. The staff at the hotel once again recognised us and made sure we had a great stay. Roll on next February!