family trips to malta
Malta isn’t just a holiday destination for me- but a place where I feel most at home. I’m part Maltese, and with my cousins we try to make it back to the island at least once a year. It’s become a new tradition.
Malta is the perfect mix of heritage, heat, and great energy. It’s small enough to explore top to bottom, and buzzing with so much life. For young people, especially, it’s a dream. Cheap, full of character, and bursting with places to swim, sunbathe and party (think wholesome Ibiza- there’s even a Pacha). The food is a perfect blend of Italian and local.
A day and night in the life:
Each day always starts on the roof top terrace enjoying breakfast, consisting of juicy melon, scrambled eggs and plenty of coffee! Then it’s either catching the bus to Golden Bay for a full beach day or exploring the streets and boutique shops of Valletta until we reach the sea, where we jump straight in to cool off… blissful!
Lunch is a ritual: a pastizzi (cheesy, flaky yummyness) and a can of Kinnie - the ultimate Maltese combo. Then it’s back to soak up the sun until it begins to set, when it’s either a Mediterranean cocktail at a beach bar or a cold beer back on the roof top.
The best part of the trip? The nights out. After dinner, it’s off to Valletta’s vibrant bars, the best I’ve experienced anywhere! Live music at every street corner and people chilling on street steps with views of the Grand Harbour. It wouldn’t be a cousin trip without ending up at Nordic Bar in Paceville and onto one of the sweaty clubs opposite (usually Havana). The night ends as the sun starts to rise (we have a pact that whoever is last home has to sleep on the airbed so I make it my mission to not be last)- and then we do it all over again.
What influence has Malta played on dear beany? Growing up surrounded by the romantic, effortless style of the women there- their soft fabrics, and the way they always dress up at night- shaped so much of how I think about clothes. There’s a kind of holiday glamour that never feels forced. And of course, i’ve learnt to be a creative packer- making sure every outfit fits into an easyJet carry-on, ready for the week!
