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- Feb 6, 2025, 5:57 PM
- ⛅ 14 °C
- Altitude: 38 m
MaltaSaint John35°54’16” N 14°28’39” E
St Julian and Sliema

We enjoyed the large breakfast buffet at the hotel. It was a lovely sunny day but quite a brisk breeze, so you were hot in the sun but cold in the shade. Afterwards we explored the hotel grounds, going around the outdoor pool and down to the seaside terrace (closed in winter) before walking through to the Casino grounds and up close to the former palace. Lots of views out over the sea and along the built up coastline. We walked back down to St Georges Bay to see the beach in the daytime, and found a model shop for David which turned out to be only a toy store. We cut through Paceville again to reach the coast and started following it all the way along. First we went into the very prestigious Portomaso Marina, full of super yachts and lined with hotels and expensive looking condos and restaurants. We climbed back out of that and found our way down to Spinola Bay, where there were some colourful Maltese Luzzu fishing boats in the water and pulled up at the sides, plus lots of cafes and restaurants. We stopped into the Dubliner pub for a cup of tea and a sitdown, before continuing on our way past the Carmelinte Church and around the coastline into Balluta Bay. Another bit of sandy beach and more cafes and restaurants. Also here is the large Balluta Buildings apartment block, the best example of Art Nouveau architecture on the island but currently undergoing a massive renovation so mostly covered up. We could walk through the seaside Independence Gardens as we made our way up the side of the bay, with more sea views. We passed a medieval watchtower built in the days when Mdina was the capital, and continued along the coast. We were hungry so stopped into a seaside restaurant and had a table right on the edge of the terrace, where we enjoyed having a Kinnie (the local soft drink that tastes like orange marmalade with a bit of licorice in it) and a nice lunch. Heading onwards, we cut through some streets to arrive at Sliema Harbour where we were last year. We walked along a fair way to see the Parish Church of Sacro Cuor but it was closed. All the back streets around it were just lined with the old Maltese houses with their amazing covered balconies. With the help of Googlemaps, I worked us through the back streets back to Balluta Bay and then a more direct route back to our hotel. We stopped on the way to pick up some bottles of Aperol Spritz. Back at the hotel, we braved the outdoor pool (completely empty) as we had been told it was heated. Despite the strong breeze, it was in fact quite pleasant so we had a nice swim with it all to ourselves. Then we went back into the room and got ice from the machine for our Aperol Spritz and climbed into our private hot tub on the terrace for a very enjoyable soak. Eventually we headed out to a large supermarket we had spotted, and bought ourselves a tasty picnic supper to enjoy in the room.Read more