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Valletta City & Central Highlights Tour

Valletta City & Central Highlights Tour

Discover Malta's capital city, Valletta. Learn about the Knights of Malta and explore Valletta's iconic streets. Enjoy some free time in Republic Square before visiting Mosta Dome church and the historic town of Rabat. End the day in Mdina, known as the Silent City, with its ancient buildings and stunning views.

8 hours/Full Day Tour
Starting at 0900hrs.

Scheduled to operate on Mondays


Tour Highlights
  • Maximum tour capacity is only 12 people
  • Accompanied by an English-speaking Licensed Tour Guide
  • Tasting experience, try Malta's favourite street food
  • Popular landmarks around Valletta, the Mosta Basilica and its iconic dome, the old town of Rabat, and a walking tour of the Medieval city of Mdina
  • Entrance fee included into St. John's Co. Cathedral and Mosta Basilica

Full description

Our tour starts near the Tritons Fountain, which is the main place for locals meeting friends before they enter the city, so an appropriate place to meet your guide for a brief intro before we enter into the city. During this tour you will learn about the Order of St. John, otherwise known as the Knights of Malta. In fact, most of the city was built by the Knights'. They were the planners of the auberges, palaces and the magnificent fortifications that you can still see today. We start our walking tour of Valletta at Parliament Square, here will see our modern Parliament building and the old Royal Opera House which was destroyed during WWII. We continue to Castille Place, and the Upper Barraka Gardens. These beautiful gardens offer amazing views of the Grand Harbour. Your guide will point important buildings along Merchants Street as we make our way to the iconic 'Is-Suq', which is the indoor market, then onto St. George's Square which is adorned by the imposing Grand Masters Palace. 

Our walking tour of Valletta ends with a visit to the most important historical monument in Malta, this is the amazing St. John's Co. Cathedral. This Cathedral was the conventual church of the Order of St. John and is a gem of Baroque art and architecture. It also features some works from the Italian artist 'Caravaggio', including his largest work 'The Beheading of John the Baptist', which is displayed in the Oratory. 

You will then have some free time for a light lunch/snack in Republic Square aka Victoria Square, here there are a number of cafes including the popular Cafe Cordina.  

After our lunch break we regroup and continue with our afternoon tour. The next part of the tour will take us into the very heart of central Malta. You will visit important landmarks and towns, learn more about the locals everyday life and important historical facts that have influenced the Maltese people to whom they are today.

We start with a visit to the magnificent Mosta Dome church. This is one of the most iconic buildings in Malta with its magnificent dome, considered to be one of the largest unsupported domes in the World. But Mosta Dome is known to locals as the miracle church! During one of the frequent WWII air raids, a bomb pierced the dome, falling inside the church during a service, but failed to explode. The locals hailed this as a miracle. You can see a replica of the bomb during your visit. 

Our next stop is the old town of Rabat. The history of Rabat is linked to the period of the Romans (218 BC to 879 BC) and Saint Paul, who stayed for a short period after being shipwrecked, whilst on his way to be tried in Rome. The locals claim the origins of Maltese Christianity started here when the saint preached to them. During our visit of Rabat your guide will walk you along the main street, which is adorned by typical village architecture. You will see quaint houses with traditional balconies and doors, small local shops, the band club premises and other important aspects of local village and town life. During our short walk your guide will include a brief stop at 'Is-Sirkien', which is the most famous pastizzeria on the island, you will have the opportunity to taste our favourite street food called 'pastizzi'. These are diamond shaped filo pastry parcels filled with mashed peas or ricotto cheese, they are delicous. 

And, as saying goes, "save the best till last". The medieval city of Mdina is our islands pride and joy!. It is built on a plateau in the centre of the island, the city's old Baroque buildings, cathedral and magnificent bastion walls dominate the rural skyline. Mdina, once the capital of Malta until the modern city of Valletta was built in 1566 has had many names including Melite (Roman occupation), Medina (Arabic occupation), Citta Notabile and Citta Vecchia (after Valletta was built). Today it is also referred as the Silent City, since it inspires tranquillity at any time of the day or night. The only way to really experience and enjoy this city is on foot, explore the quaint alleys, narrow streets, ancient buildings and incredible far reaching views from the high bastion walls.

At this stage our tour comes to an end and we make our way back to Valletta.


Tour itinerary and route map

0900hrs meet your guide

Waking tour includes...
Stop 1 - Tritons Fountain, Main Gate & Parliament Square
Stop 2 - Jean de Valletta Square and statue, Church of Our Lady of Victory
Stop 3 - Castille Place and Malta Stock Exchange
Stop 4 - Upper Barraka Gardens
Stop 5 - Auberge D'Italie, Merchants Street
Stop 6 - Palace Square/Grand Masters Palace, St. George's Square 
Stop 7 - National Library and Cafe Cordina, Republic Square
Stop 8 - Court House and St. John's Co. Cathedral, Republic Street

1100hrs internal visit of St. John's Co. Catehdral including Caravaggio's paintings
1145hrs free time for a snack/drink break
1245hrs departure point for the afternoon tour

1330hrs Mosta Dome Rotunda
1430hrs Rabat visit and tasting experience
1520hrs Mdina Medieval City

1630hrs depart Mdina
1700hrs arrive back in Valletta

Times are for guidance only


Meeting place/Departure point

This tour starts and ends in Valletta and details will appear on the confirmation which you will receive after booking.

If you are not staying in Valletta and would like to join this tour, we can arrange transport to bring you to the meeting point. Get in touch via our Contact Us page.


Good to know before you book

A Tasting Experience is all about trying local food and drink, so, modified versions of the food item are not considered as a genuine Tasting Experience. Therefore, unfortunately, we cannot guarantee that there is an alternative to what is offered. Tasting experiences are small tasting samples, such as a savory pastry, a scoop of ice cream, freshly baked local biscuits, etc... Tasting experiences do not replace what you would normally have as a lunch.

CHECK availability