Malta Travel Forum

Hi!

My husband and I would like to visit Malta in the end of December. Shall we book the tickets for the Hypogeum on-line or can we buy them in the National Museum of Archaeology?

Thanks in advance, Anastasia

I think you can book them at the door. If you are in difficulty I can ask for you. I am from Malta .. see my website in my particulars. If you need anything please write.

Anton, thank you so much, but I have a lot of questions...

1. My husband is a fan of snorkeling. Can he swim in the end of December or diving suit is required?
2. He is also a fan of fishing. Where are the best places for fishing in Malta, (especially in this time)?
3. After all, he is a real fan of motorcycle. Can we rent a moto or scooter or car is preferably?
4. I hope, that 2 or 4 days we`ll stay on Gozo. Shall we book a hotel or can we find a room there?

Your site is very interesting. And I hope that we`ll visit Zejtun too.

Excuse me for so many questions.

Thanks in advance, Anastasia.

Malta is well served by buses. You can go almost everywhere by bus there. Gozo hasn't a good transportation system. So I advice you to rent a car or to stay there a couple of days in a hotel or guest house. See the Gozo page witten by VTer Xemx (my friend Anne). There are a couple of recomandations about hotels on that island.

Hi Anastasia

We always holiday in Malta for the first three weeks of November. Hubby snorkels but we take his wet suit with us. Although the water is not cold as such, you are in the water for quite a long time so tend to get colder. We take his wetsuit and flippers etc as 'sporting equipment' with a extra 15kg on top of our normal baggage allowance. The wetsuit also gives him protection from jelly fish, and sharp rocks, rather than having to lookout and avoid them, it doesn't need to be a thick wetsuit.

We don't fish so cant help you there, but there are 'local' fishermen out all over the place, when we are there, so if no one comes to your aid here, a quick chat to the locals should give him the info on where to go.

We stay in St Paul's bay and always hire a car to get to the out of the way places. Busses are fine, and must be used a few times for the experience! But we like the flexibility of the car. Off the main roads the roads a pot holey - I have heard that bike hire is not so advisable and car rental is cheep. We had a really naff car our first year booked through a travel agent, but we have subsequently sourced car hire in St. Paul's bay and been very happy with the service. A better car at a lower price!

You say you are going the end of December, well If you decide to stay on Gozo I would book in advance, especially if you end of December is over the Christmas period. Apart from the hotels we did not notice what we would call B&B's. As we have a car we usually do two day trips to Gozo as it is only a 20 minute ferry rather than staying the night. The ferry's are I think every half hour or 40 minutes or so, so you never have to wait long even if you have just missed one. We usually find out the times and plan to get there 10 mins before the crossing. You do really need a car on Gozo as others have said the public transport on Gozo is pretty poor compared to Malta.

Re your original question. The Hypogeum gets pretty booked up, but not too bad in the winter. We have previously booked from the Archaeology Museum on our first day trip to Valetta, (usually the second or third day of our holiday) I think we usually book for about 6 or 7 days later, so if you are there for two weeks, it should not be a problem. If you are only there for a week, I would definitely book online for peace of mind.

Hope that helps

Regards Trisha

If you are talking about the Hypogeum in Tarxien, then I would definitely book it online. I had to book about a month in advance for 4 people. This is because they only take about 10-15 people every visit. I believe once booking you can either receive the tickets by post or just present a print out or code of your confirmation at the front desk.

With regards to gozo, us Maltese like to rent a farmhouse during our stays in gozo - in December you can find a nice farmhouse perhaps with a fireplace where you can snuggle up - it will make for a change from your normal hotel. you will find plenty of these online if you google gozo farmhouses.

As others said, in Gozo you really do need a car as bus transport is very limited and stops at about 5pm. You can never get lost in gozo as all roads lead to the capital city Victoria/Rabat. So its always a nice drive wherever you go. Gozo is also fantastic for diving. You will find many diving shops which will take you out to good locations - namely in Xlendi or Marsalforn.

Enjoy your holiday!!