| Home | June 12th, 2004
Blue Grotto
The South

the arches of rock to the Blue GrottoFebruary 21st, 2004
In order to get to the Blue Grotto and the sights in the south it takes a longer bus ride. First we went from Bugibba to Valetta (0,18 Lm) and from there by bus No. 138 southwards. The Blue Grotto got its name from the counterpart on Capri where the sea offers in the sunshine a pretty play of colours in different shades of blue.

cliff cavesBy a fisher boat you get through a more than 20 m high arch into the 50 m long grotto. From the bay of Wied-iz-Zurrieq the boats leave (not before 9.30 a.m.) to the grotto and to a few more caves in the cliffs.opening in the rock The boat tour takes half an hour and costs 2,50 Lm for adults and 1,25 Lm for children (3-10 years). When the sea is rough the fisher boats however stay interesting coastline in the harbour. That happened to us. The wind was too strong for a boat trip. So we just walked along the cliffs to get one or the other risky view of the caves and arches below. That was also very nice.

play of rock and waterjagged coast

 

From the cliffs we walked theHagar Qim two kilometers to the prehistoric temple complexes Hagar Qim and Mnajdra, which belong to the most impressive the entrance of Hagar Qim sights of Malta. Mnajdra is about 500 m away from Hagar Qim toward the coast. In reality the sites are not as impressive and monumental as at the pictures that we had seen before. If you like to visit both sites you have to pay for each 1 Lm per person. We think the price is quite high for that what you get to see. In the temples you can only walk in the middle aisle.temple complex MnajdraThe side aisles are closed to visitors with ropes. But you can even understand that if you know that Mnajdra was closed for visitors in 1994 because it had been in danger of collapsing and that it was reopened quite recently. If you are someone who is not very interested in history and culture, it is in our opinion enough to have a look at the sites just from outside. Despite the high fences, taking pictures and video recordings with a good lens and zoom is no problem.

temple complex Hagar Qim

carnival procession in ValettaIf you don´t like to walk so much, you can get the bus No. 38 from Hagar Qim to Valetta (0,40 Lm). For walkers the 2 km to Qrendi are no problem. At the church the bus No. 35 to Valetta stops (0,15 Lm). Being back in Valetta, there was a lot of action - the city was preparing for the carnival procession. We liked watching the colourful hustle and bustle for a while before we went back to Bugibba.

Our Tips


Those who are as unlucky with the weather as we were, that the boats cannot start to the Blue Grotto because of the rough sea, we recommend to walk along the cliffs. There´s nothing secured, so you need to be cautious! But you can walk without any restrictions. The views of the bay are spectacular.

Hagar Qim and Mnajdra, probably the most well-known temple complexes of Malta, can be visited for 1 Lm per site and person. The admission fee is only worth it when you have a special interest in the cultural history of Malta. Otherwise you can also have a look at the sites from behind the fences. The fences are in fact high, but the holes are big enough for taking pictures and video recordings without problems.

Valetta & CarnivalPopeye Village / The West