6 data plans · from $4.99 · one-tap install by email
Travelling as a group? Buy everyone an eSIM in one checkout and the discount is applied automatically — no code needed. See group pricing
5 GB
30 days
Maps, messaging, everyday travel
$6.99
$1.40/GB
Buy →
Connects automatically to the strongest signal across Vodafone, GO.
Setup
Set up your eSIM before you travel — it takes about a minute. Scan once, switch it on when you arrive, and you’re online.
On iPhone (iOS)
On Android
8 plans for Malta, from 3 to 20 GB. Validity runs from 1 day to 30 days. 8 of them run on 5G where the local network has it.
5 plans can be topped up without installing a second eSIM. Plans run on Vodafone, GO.
Counted from our live catalogue, not a marketing figure — the plan list above this section is the same data.
No regional bundle covers Malta — a single-country plan is the only option here, which is usually the cheaper one anyway.
A travel eSIM for Malta is a digital SIM your phone downloads — no plastic card, no airport pickup counter. You buy online, tap the install link we email you (a QR code is included too), and it installs a second line alongside your existing SIM. It stays dormant until you arrive in Malta, then connects automatically to Vodafone, GO on 5G where available and LTE everywhere else. Your home number keeps working for calls and texts; the eSIM simply carries your data.
Maps, messaging and rideshare apps are light — roughly 300–500 MB a day. Add photos, social and the occasional video and you’re closer to 1 GB a day. For a one-week trip a 5 GB plan is comfortable; for two weeks, sharing, or heavy use, choose 10 GB or more, or a reloadable plan you can top up on the go. Malta plans start at $4.99 across 6 sizes, with the per-GB price shown on every one so the right choice is obvious.
No. A travel eSIM for Malta is a local data plan, not international roaming — you pay the price you see up front, with no per-megabyte bill from your home carrier. Set the eSIM as your data line and switch data roaming off on your home SIM, and there are no surprises when you get home. Full refund any time before you install, so there’s no risk in buying ahead.
Pastizzi
Diamond-shaped flaky pastries filled with ricotta or mushy peas. The national snack, sold from hole-in-the-wall pastizzerias and eaten at any hour.
Pastizzerias anywhere; Rabat and Valletta both have well-known ones.
Rabbit stew
Fenek — rabbit slow-cooked in wine and garlic, the national dish, traditionally eaten as a shared family meal called a fenkata.
Mgarr and Bahrija are the villages associated with it.
Ftira
A ring-shaped sourdough flatbread, split and filled with tuna, olives, capers, tomato and Maltese oil. UNESCO-recognised as intangible cultural heritage.
Bakeries and kiosks across the islands.
Ġbejniet
Small sheep or goat cheeselets, eaten fresh, dried or peppered. Gozo's are the ones locals name.
Markets and Gozitan farm shops.
Lampuki
Dolphinfish, caught seasonally in late summer and autumn and baked in a pie with tomato, olives and capers.
Marsaxlokk and coastal restaurants, in season.
Bragioli
Beef olives — thin beef rolled around a stuffing of egg, bacon and breadcrumbs, braised in wine.
Traditional restaurants across Malta.
Kinnie
A bitter-orange soft drink made with wormwood, produced in Malta since the fifties and drunk everywhere. Distinctive rather than universally loved on first taste.
Any shop or bar.
Imqaret
Deep-fried date-filled pastry diamonds, sold hot from street carts.
Valletta city gate and festa stalls.
Aljotta
A fish broth with garlic, tomato, rice and plenty of lemon.
Fishing village restaurants, particularly Marsaxlokk.
Maltese wine
A small but genuine wine industry, including indigenous Ġellewża and Girgentina grapes found nowhere else.
Wine bars in Valletta; estate visits inland.
VallettaValletta
A fortified Baroque capital built by the Knights of St John, entirely UNESCO-listed and small enough to cross on foot in twenty minutes.
a day
St John's Co-CathedralValletta
An austere exterior concealing an overwhelming Baroque interior, with Caravaggio's Beheading of Saint John the Baptist — the only work he signed.
2 hours · book ahead
MdinaMdina
The former capital, a walled hilltop town of a few hundred residents, silent after the day-trippers leave. Known as the Silent City.
half a day
Ħal Saflieni HypogeumPaola
An underground prehistoric burial complex cut into rock, older than the pyramids. Entry is strictly capped at a small number of visitors per day.
2 hours · book ahead
Ġgantija TemplesGozo
Megalithic temples among the oldest free-standing structures anywhere, predating Stonehenge by a considerable margin.
2 hours
Comino and the Blue LagoonComino
A near-uninhabited island between Malta and Gozo with famously clear water. Extremely crowded in peak summer; early or late is a different place.
half a day · book ahead
The Three CitiesBirgu, Senglea, Cospicua
Older than Valletta and far less visited, across the Grand Harbour, reached by a short traditional ferry crossing.
half a day
MarsaxlokkMarsaxlokk
A working fishing harbour full of painted luzzu boats, with a Sunday fish market that is genuinely a local event.
half a day
Dingli CliffsDingli
The highest point of the islands, with a straight drop to the sea and no development. The best sunset on Malta.
2 hours
GozoGozo
The second island, greener, slower and rural, reached by a frequent ferry. Worth an overnight rather than a rushed day trip.
two days
Public bus
A single network covers both main islands from Valletta and the Gozo terminal. Buses are free for residents and cheap for visitors with a Tallinja card, or payable on board by card. Routes radiate from hubs rather than connecting directly, so cross-island journeys often mean changing.
very low
Gozo ferry
Frequent crossings from Ċirkewwa taking about twenty-five minutes. Foot passengers and vehicles both. Payment is collected on the return leg from Gozo.
low
Car hire
Driving is on the left. Roads are narrow, parking in Valletta is difficult and the island is small, so a car helps for the countryside and the west coast more than for the towns.
moderate
Harbour ferry
Short crossings between Valletta, Sliema and the Three Cities. Far quicker than going around by road.
very low
Walking
Valletta, Mdina and the Three Cities are all small enough to cover entirely on foot, and the hills are the only obstacle.
free
Ride-hailing
Bolt, eCabs
Both operate across Malta and are widely used. eCabs is the established local service; coverage extends to Gozo though with fewer cars.
Paying for things
Basics
| Feast of St Paul's Shipwreck | 10 February | Public holiday, celebrated particularly in Valletta. |
| Good Friday | the Friday before Easter | Solemn processions in many towns; a significant local event rather than a tourist one. |
| Freedom Day | 31 March | Public holiday with events at Birgu. |
| Sette Giugno | 7 June | National holiday commemorating the 1919 riots. |
| Feast of St Peter and St Paul | 29 June | Known locally as L-Imnarja, an agricultural festival at Buskett with folk singing through the night. |
| Assumption | 15 August | Major feast at the peak of summer; the islands are at their busiest and hottest. |
| Victory Day | 8 September | Commemorates the end of the Great Siege and the 1943 surrender; traditional regatta in the Grand Harbour. |
| Independence Day | 21 September | National holiday at the end of the high season. |
Recurring dates — the day these fall on moves year to year.