Welcome to Valletta

Valletta, like much of Malta, has a sub-tropical Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot summers. The summers are dry with the occasional cold winds in spring. January averages around 20C during the day while summer sees average temps of about 28 - 34C. Perfect beach weather all year round!

Cheap, expensive and everything in between.

The food in Valletta is an agreeable combination of southern Italian, rustic Greek and fresh seafood. You'll find some fab (and expensive) restaurants here the equal of many in mainland Europe. But by and large, they're all decent with middling prices.

The budget options - check out the bustling Cafe Jubilee on St Lucia St, Valletta. It does the whole cheap and cheerful thing very well. There's a cafe / bar thing going on during the day with plentiful snack-type food. At night it has a more restaurant feel, with food ranging from tasty wraps to traditional pastizzi and pastas and so on.

Mid price options -Trabuxu is on Strait St, Valletta and is set in a cool, vaulted cellar in an old Valletta townhouse dating back to the 1700's. It's actually a wine bar, so the selections are startlingly good, but the real treasure lies in the homemade food - simple and inexpensive.

Splurge - too easy! Rubino is on Old bakery St in Valletta and serves traditional Maltese cuisine in an old shop front. It's just off the main square, so easy to find and serves 'real Maltese food like mama used to make.' (Think rabbit.) So be it, but it's absolutely delicious. So hop along.

Valletta  - bigger and more fun than you think!

The main street of Valletta is called Republic St, which gives a clue to the political sensibilities of many Maltese. They've certainly seen their share of foreign invaders. That said the invaders did leave a legacy of quite spectacular architecture dating back to the 16th century. The Old City is unique and glorious. Roaming the alleys lets you escape the summer heat and throws up many a quirky little shop or boutique.

Republic Street  - here's where you'll find many of the more classy shops in Malta. It's a busy street so ideal for a spot of people watching and you'll find plenty of cafes and bars to rest your weary feet.

Walk the waterfront at night- the restaurants are of very good quality in Valletta and after a night of fine dining, stroll the waterfront area and enjoy all the different shops and watch the locals at play.

St John's Co Cathedral  - is an incredibly ornate building on the inside. The ceiling is one gigantic fresco and as you walk around staring up at it, you're walking on the marbled grave sites of ancient knights. It's quite incredible.

The Cathedral Museum  - incredibly there are two Caravaggio's in here. The Master was himself a Knight at one stage.

The must see - Fort St Elmo was built in the 1500s and was the scene of desperate battles against the Turks. It's a working building still and is open only on weekends.