After celebrating its 450th anniversary in 2016, Valletta will be the European Capital of Culture in 2018, becoming more than ever a must in Europe. However, this superb Mediterranean city, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is not only an open-air museum. It is constantly reinventing itself and is now a trendy city where culture is constantly being renewed

A museum city listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Valletta is rich in 320 monuments, concentrated on an area of 55 hectares, making it one of the most historic places on the planet. The Maltese capital has a multitude of architectural and artistic treasures that earned it a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. The recently restored Co-cathedral of St. John, built between 1575 and 1577, is one of the highlights of this incredible heritage. Beyond its sumptuous interior with sculpted gilding, it has the particularity of sheltering in its oratory, the painting La Décollation de Saint Jean-Baptiste, a magnificent and famous work of Caravaggio

Another superb and emblematic building in Malta, the Auberge de Provence, where some of the French Knights of the Order of Malta lived... It now houses the National Museum of Archaeology. It contains an impressive collection of prehistoric objects, including the famous statuette of The Sleeping Woman. This sculpture representing the goddess of fertility, comes from the hypogée of Hal Salfieni, a major Maltese prehistoric site also inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List

Other monuments not to be missed in Valletta are Fort Saint-Elme, which has just been restored to house an interactive war museum, and Fort Saint-Ange (Burgu), which will soon reopen to the public after extensive renovation work

But Valletta owes this incredibly rich heritage above all to the Knights of the Order of Malta. Driven out of Rhodes, the Knights of the Order of St. John chose to settle in Malta in 1530 and built Valletta in 1566 under the direction of the French knight, Jean de La Valette, who gave his name to the city. This honey-coloured city was conceived, from the beginning, as an impregnable fortress, hence its ramparts and walls, still visible today. But the construction of Valletta was also very avant-garde for the time because it was one of the first cities in the world to have been designed to plan. The grid pattern of the streets of Valletta dates back to its foundation and has not moved since

Valletta, a lively city all year round

The Maltese capital is not only a magnificent museum city, it has also undergone a real transformation in recent years. For a long time, Valletta, very much alive during the day, died in the evening. At nightfall, the streets were deserted by tourists who preferred to go and have fun in the festive district of Paceville in Saint Julian's. But times have changed a lot, thanks to the tourist boom of recent years but also thanks to the new cultural infrastructures, set up for "Valletta 2018", which create a real local dynamic. Jazz concerts often liven up the alleys in the evening. Others are held at Teatru Manoel or in new cultural venues such as St James or the Mediterranean Conference Center. The cinemas - Complex Embassy and St James Cavalier - have even made their comeback after a few years of absence. And, without warning, nightlife has regained its nobility. Bars are more numerous and remain open late at night, even during the week. Here, we address a clientele eager for chill out over a good glass of wine or a cocktail. Nothing to do with Paceville's festive madness. The City Lounge is very popular for its designer rooftop terrace, and the Trabuxu Bar is famous for its good bottles of wine, not to mention the Django Jazz bar where concerts are held regularly

The Maltese capital is also home to a large number of festivities all year round, or almost all year round. This trend is expected to accelerate in 2018, the year in which Valletta is the European Capital of Culture. Every year, it hosts the jazz festival in July or the superb international fireworks festival in the Grand Port at the beginning of May and the very lively carnival in February. Other more recent festivals have appeared in the capital, such as the International Baroque Music Festival, the All-Nighter in October, etc.

Charming accommodation and delicious cuisine

Valletta is one of the European capitals to concentrate the largest number of charming quality accommodations at more than affordable prices. The city has a large number of boutique hotels, most of which are located in magnificent Baroque palazzi whose structure has been preserved. This is the case of the Valletta Suites apartments, the Palazzo San Pawl or the Trabuxu Boutique Living hotel, to name but a few. These establishments are located in superbly restored buildings with all the modern comforts for an average price of 80 € per person

Valletta also has a large number of good restaurants where you can discover the famous Maltese gastronomy. It is easy to taste a typical Maltese dish such as rabbit stew but also to discover a more creative local cuisine, with Mediterranean roots. The refined setting of most of these gourmet restaurants offers an often intimate atmosphere. Maltese cuisine is typically Mediterranean with some English influences. Dishes in sauce are recurrent with many vegetables or stuffed seafood such as qarnit mimli (stuffed octopus). The typical Maltese accompaniment very often contains garlic, the famous English garlic, and tomatoes. Fish have a privileged place. Lampuki, a fish from the Maltese coast, close to sea bream, is often served with a tomato sauce with capers or prepared as a pie. But the Maltese star dish is rabbit stew with herbs and garlic, fenkata. Finally, due to the Italian influence, the Maltese love pasta and especially timpana, a macaroni pie with minced meat, grated cheese and eggs. As for sweets, imqaret is the great specialty of the country; it is a doughnut doughnut filled with dates that delights young and old.

2018, the year not to be missed in Valletta

In 2018, Valletta will be the European Capital of Culture. It has therefore implemented several major projects. The Fine Arts Museum will move to the magnificent Auberge d'Italie and become the Museum of Art or Muza ("muse" in Maltese). A design district is also in the process of being finalized. It will be installed in former slaughterhouses in Valletta, which will be renamed "design cluster Il Biccerija". Nightlife will also benefit from this cultural influence. Strait Street and its adjacent streets, where sailors used to crowd in, have been upgraded with the opening of several trendy bars and restaurants. The other flagship project is the restoration of the Merchant Street covered market, which is expected to become a new cultural site.

2018 will also be particularly rich in festivities. The year will begin with a grand opening ceremony and will be closed with a grand end-of-year celebration. The same will apply to the traditional festivals in the villages of Malta and Gozo, which take place from May to September, they will also have a stronger cultural resonance directly linked to 2018. In short, a stay is essential!

Smart info

When? When? All year round! The climate is Mediterranean, i.e. mild in winter, hot and dry in summer.

Getting there. It takes about 2 hours and 45 minutes to fly

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Useful. To prepare your trip as well as possible

OFFICE NATIONAL DU TOURISME DE MALTE - More information on the website

FONDATION LA VALETTE 2018 - More information on the website

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