Malta Recommendations:
- Don't bother birding outside of protected areas (and do go birding with Stefano during mitigation; he recommends April)
- Do make an effort to eat Maltese foods and drink Kinnie; we enjoyed the rabbit pasta at Tas-Soli, honey rings at Taste Malta, pea pastizzi everywhere (especially at Jeff's Pastizzeria) and anything with pistachio (particularly the croissants at Delicizie Sicilano). (For sit-down restaurants, it's wise to make reservations, to be sure they're open and you'll have a table). The local white wines are good if you like mineral-y, herbaceous flavors. We were less enthusiastic about the local liqueurs we tried, though the carob liqueur was fine in a Kinnie spritz.
- Do use the public buses, even though they're not perfect. Get a bus pass (12-ride or 7-day) to avoid tap-to-pay issues with US cards. Also, from Sliema, don't let long lines put you off using the traditional luzzu, since the former run much more frequently than the ferries (and cost the same, since the ferries aren't covered by tourist bus passes).
- There's a lot to see and do for such a small country. For us, the musts include St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta, St. Agatha's Crypt and Catacombs in Rabat, and Ta' Kola Windmill and St. George's Basilica on Gozo. (Don't expect churches to be open outside mass times unless they have an entry fee.). The neolithic sites (Tarxien and Ġgantija) were interesting but not highlights for us.
- Diving at Cirkewwa was better than we expected, but not amazing by Caribbean standards (we enjoyed it but wouldn't plan a week around it); Diveshack is safety conscious and has good rental gear, but make sure to confirm plans on advance as they can get busy.
- Do stay in Sliema (we had a good experience with 9 Lawrenz). It's convenient but less crowded than Valletta and (we're told) quieter than St Julian.
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