Malta Tourism Authority deplores false warnings on social media

THE #Malta Tourism Authority deplores the false warnings circulated on social media advising beachgoers against swimming at a number of locations due to allegedly dangerous sea conditions. These warnings, claiming to be issued by the St. John’s Ambulance, are an example of ‘fake news’ aimed at dissuading members of the public and tourists from frequenting local beaches and creating unnecessary fears.

This year, lifeguard services fully funded by the Malta Tourism Authority are provided at a number of beaches in Malta, Gozo and Comino by two organisations: A-Medical in Malta and ERRC in Gozo and Comino. This is part of the services, improvements and enhancements that MTA carries out every summer to make popular beaches around the Maltese Islands better organised, cleaner and safer. 

Actions include the engagement of beach supervisors, the provision of waste separation bins and bags, accessibility facilities such as ramps, hoists and beach wheelchairs, signage and more. 

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Light up the sky in Malta

THE 16th Malta International Fireworks Festival is organised by the Ministry for Tourism and the #Malta Tourism Authority. 

This years annual event takes place between Saturday April 22 and Sunday April 30 in three different locations around the Maltese Islands, namely Xagħra (Gozo), Marsaxlokk and the grand finale in Valletta's Grand Harbour.

The festival includes #fireworks displays designed by foreign pyrotechnic companies as well as some of the best local fireworks factories. The displays can be enjoyed by all free of charge. 

www.maltafireworksfestival.com

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Malta's Azure Window disappears

WHAT nature gave she also took away, on March 8 one of Malta's leading tourist attractions was destroyed in a storm.

The #AzureWindow a 28-metre-tall limestone natural arch on the island of #Gozo in #Malta was located in Dwejra Bay and was one of Malta's major tourist attractions. 

The arch, together with other natural features in the area, has appeared in a number of international films and media productions.

Will it be rebuilt as a man-made replica?

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Carnival in Gozo

CARNIVAL fever starts in #Gozo on Sunday February 19 with events planned in several locations over a period of seven days.

Malta Public Transport has said that it will be operating a special public transport service to facilitate travel and accessibility to those attending the Carnival in Nadur, between the 24th and the 26th of February.

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Picture Credit: Ivan Rigamonti 75409642@N06/22806219378 Fabulous creatures via photopin

Classics in the Med

MALTA and Gozo are gearing up for two major classical musical events next year: the Valletta International Baroque Festival (Jan 12-28), and the International Spring Orchestra Festival (April 28-May 5).

The baroque festival features 25 concerts in eight venues.  The spring festival will have a more intimate nature, with concerts in Valletta’s Teatru Manoel and Casa Pereira. 

They will include international ensembles, conductors, and soloists, culminating with a symphonic concert by the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra.

www.vallettabaroquefestival.com.mt
www.isofestival.com
www.visitmalta.com

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Picture Credit: R.I.Pienaar flickr.com/photos/44305407@N00/22279430295 DSCF1996 via photopin.com

Maltese Islands best in the Med for divers

THE MALTESE ISLANDS once again claimed third place in the category for 'Best Diving Destination' at the recent International Dive Show in London. The award places #Gozo and #Malta as the most popular #diving destination in the Mediterranean, as voted for by thousands of Diver magazine readers.

The Maltese Archipelago offers a diverse range of diving experiences to suit all levels, from beginners to experienced divers. The islands have a varied marine-life, a choice of submerged wrecks, and almost 50 professional diving centres.

Malta Tourism Authority CEO Paul Bugeja said: ‘The reasons for Malta's popularity are many: the clean and clear waters that surround our islands, the diversity of underwater experiences, and the sterling work carried out by the local diving community in improving the products and services offered. The award continues to prove that Gozo and Malta are must-see diving destinations.’

First place and second places in the DIVER Destination of the Year award went to Egypt and the Maldives respectively.

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Picture Credit: underwater scenery</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin

Revealed – Malta's most popular tourist attractions of 2015

#MALTA'S top tourist attractions in 2015, according to TripAdvisor, was St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta. 

The Silent City of Mdina comes second in the rankings, ahead of #Gozo's world-famous Azure Window.

TripAdvisor ranked the Upper Barrakka Gardens in fourth position, with the Lascaris War Rooms in Valletta at number five. The museum consists of an underground complex of tunnels and chambers that housed the island’s defence headquarters during the Second World War.

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Picture Credit: Malta 230915 St John's Co Cathedral by Oren Rozen - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

Gozo escapes

#GOZO – Malta’s little sister island – is a #holiday option for people in search of peace and quiet, and perhaps some rural hiking, swimming, and scuba-diving. 

A #self-catering accommodation option on Gozo could be a restored farmhouse. 

Doris and Julian Sultana who run Pergola Farmhouses have 11 of them in and around the village of Ix-Xaghra (pronounced Shara) on a hill in the north-east of the island and just a few miles from the its small capital town, Rabat.

Pergola Farmhouses was founded in 1995, when Doris took charge of the holiday bookings and managing the properties while her husband concentrated on renovating houses for the rental market.

There are 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6-bedroom houses, all of which have private swimming pools.

Ix-Xaghra is best known for its Neolithic sites – the Ggantija Temples date from BC3600, making them older than the Pyramids of Egypt – and it’s short drive to beaches, bays and coves. Nothing on the island is more than 20 minutes away by car.

https://govillasandcottages.co.uk/property/9077084077053077081061061/pergola-farmhouses-xaghra-marsalforn.html

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See Gozo by Segway

KEVIN GRECH has hit upon a fresh way to show holidaymakers the best of what his island – #Gozo – can offer. Last year he started island tours by Segways, those eco-friendly, two-wheeled, self-balancing, battery-powered vehicles that might also be called electric scooters. This year, his #GozoSegwayTours has been ranked the island’s No. 1 activity on TripAdvisor.

Eleven guided tours – plus customized tours – are available, ranging from easy to adventurous and taking visitors to scenic coastlines, archaeological sites, and the hidden attractions that only a local can know about.

The Segways are easy and safe to drive, and able to tackle steep hills and off-road terrain. The maximum Segway speed for beginners is 6 mph, while for experienced riders its 12.5 mph.

Tour prices range from €15 to €60, depending on the distance and whether lunch or refreshments are included.

Reservations are required, tours operate come sunshine and rain, and tour guides speak English and Italian, and a ‘little’ German and French. The tours operate in groups of between two and six people per guide. The minimum age is 12 years, and riders under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

There are weight restrictions, and because of health risks, pregnant women are not permitted to participate on the Segway Tours.

For full details, go to www.gozosegway.com or call 00356 9944 8901/00356 79778901

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Picture Credit: www.gozosegway.com

Tourist ‘tax’ for Malta hotel guests

GUESTS at hotels in Malta and Gozo will have to pay what is described as an ‘environmental contribution’ of 50c (£0.36) per head per day up to a maximum of €5 (£3.66) from next April. 

Visitors under 18, and language students, will be exempt.

The revenue generated by the levy – a total of €6 million (£4.39 million) – will be supplemented by the National Development Fund and the money will be used by a foundation which will be set up with the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association for the maintenance of tourist zones.

#Malta and #Gozo residents will also have to pay the levy when staying at a hotel.

Meanwhile, tourism police will undergo a course at the Institute of Tourism Studies aimed at helping foreign visitors during their stay in a more effective manner. Additional police officers will be assigned duties in tourist areas.

Go Holiday editor David Kernek comments: It’s impossible to argue against charges like this, especially as people who’ve paid out for a holiday in Malta will hardly have trouble finding an extra 36p a day. What’s profoundly annoying, though, is the refusal of politicians and bureaucrats to call a spade a spade: this ‘environment contribution’ is in plain Anglo-Saxon a tourist tax.

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Picture Credit: Stjulians-hilton-yachts-cannon by Thyes - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

A bridge too far for Malta & Gozo

A BRIDGE linking #Malta to its neighbouring island, #Gozo, has been ruled out by the country’s government, which thinks that a sub-seabed tunnel is the more economically and environmentally sensible option.

Geological studies are being planned.

It’s been estimated that a link would reduce the crossing time for cars from 25 minutes to eight. Earlier studies identified four potential tunnel alignments, ranging in length from 3.7 miles to 6.2 miles.

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Picture Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11433049@N02/3383580818">Azure Window, Gozo</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">(license)

Gozo to get silver screen fame

MALTA’S sister-island, #Gozo, will get worldwide exposure later this year, when By the Sea starring #BradPitt and #AngelinaJolie is set for release. The movie was shot entirely on Gozo.

'#ByTheSea has given Gozo a great deal of international media exposure,’ says Malta’s tourism minister, Edward Zammit Lewis, ‘and it augurs well for the film and tourism industry on the island.’

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Picture Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/59005593@N05/6860795060">MGARR IX - XINI</a> via <a
href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)

How many tourists do one job make?

A COMMON question asked in many countries is: how many jobs does the tourist industry sustain? 

But a report commissioned by Malta’s government puts the question in a slightly different way: how many tourists are needed to maintain one full time tourism job?

The answer, in Malta, is: an average of 83.

The study looked at the contribution of the tourism industry to the Maltese economy in 2014. It found that tourism was directly responsible for 20,500 full-time equivalent jobs, approximately 11% of the total. But it is also indirectly responsible for an additional 7,300 jobs.

On average, the report found, every €10 million (£7.36 million) in tourist expenditure sustains 137 jobs – roughly €73,000 (£53,700) per job – while every 10,000 visitors sustain 121 jobs.

The report shows that tourism is responsible for one-in-seven jobs in Malta, but the proportion goes up to one-in-five jobs in Gozo.

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Picture Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/97108771@N00/60497345">Malta 100</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">(license)

Cruise terminal & resort plan for Gozo

MALTA’S government is looking at designs for a €300 million (£215.5 million) #cruise terminal and leisure resort to be built on the site of a former limestone quarry on Gozo’s east coast.

The scheme features a cruise terminal building, yacht marina, residential apartments and #villas, and a luxury hotel.

Work is expected to start in 2016 and be completed in 2022.

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Picture Credit: Golden beach Gozo by Olavfin - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Green light for cruise casinos

CRUISE liners in Malta and Gozo harbours have been given permission to open their on-board casinos between 6pm. and 6am, in return for a license fee paid to the government.

Said Stephen Xuereb, chief executive officer of Valletta Cruise Port: ‘These regulations make Malta a more attractive proposition for cruise liners, particularly those which call at Malta for an overnight stay. This is undoubtedly an incentive to encourage cruise liners to include both Malta and Gozo in their Mediterranean itinerary.’

The all-night casinos will be open only to cruise passengers.

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Picture Credit: Queen Elizabeth, Cruise Terminal, Liverpool by El Pollock. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons 

Fests in the Med … Coming up in Malta & Gozo

Malta’s International Arts Festival (July 10 to August 3) features local and international artists and performers, workshops, and masterclasses in Valletta.

This year’s highlights include classical pianist and Debussy specialist Noriko Ogawa from Japan, and from the Czech Republic, the Talich Quartet – one of the world’s finest string quartets. www.maltaartsfestival.org

On Gozo, the Victoria International Arts Festival (June 10-July 13) offers 33 concerts by musicians from nearby Sicily to far-flung South Korea and Australia.

A special feature is the inclusion of a five-day mini-festival of Baroque music within the larger programme. www.viaf.org.mt

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Picture Credit: Valetta by NoFear0710 - Steven Cogburn. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons, Orquesta de camara Sibeliusby Jlpeli - Own work. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Islands in the bays

MALTA’S government wants to build floating islands for swimmers and sunbathers, one in St Thomas Bay, Malta, and the other at Marsalforn, Gozo.

At 4,300 sq. ft., they will be connected to the shore by a floating walkway. 

They will have diving boards and mooring facilities, there will also be nets to keep jelly fish away from swimmers.

The government hopes to have them in place by June.

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Picture Credit: "Malta - Marsaskala - Secca il-Munxar" by Frank Vincentz - Own work via Wikimedia Commons

On your marks for the Gozo Hellfire Trail

THE Gozo Hellfire 55k Ultra Trail for runners and mountain bikers takes place on May 2. 

It’s Gozo’s toughest race, and one of the Mediterranean’s most scenic. 

The course –. Which has a total elevation of 3,200ft. – circumnavigates the island, including cliff-edge single tracks, valleys, water courses, salt pans, and beaches. It has a total elevation of 3,200ft.

The organizers say bikers will need to carry their bikes over some parts of the course.

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News snippets from Malta & Gozo

• Good year for Gozo tourism ...

FOREIGN tourist arrivals on Gozo in 2014 were up by five percent on the 2013 total, reports the Malta & Gozo National Statistics Office. 

The number of domestic tourists was up by 3.4 percent. These figures are based on hotel and guest house stays, and do not include bed-nights in the farmhouse and apartments self-catering sector.

• Roman finds in Malta ...

A ROMAN tomb, vine trenches, and the remains of a late Roman structure are among the archaeological finds revealed during road widening work in Malta.

Fifty new archaeological sites have been uncovered, and as a consequence the Area of Archaeological Importance around Rabat has been substantially increased.

• Malta celebration for easyJet ...

EASYJET has celebrated carrying its two millionth passenger from Malta.

‘It is a pleasure to commemorate the milestone of two million passengers carried by easyJet to Malta,’ said the country’s tourism minister, Edward Zammit Lewis.

‘This is a remarkable achievement considering that easyJet operations to Malta started only in 2008 and have been expanding in an organic manner both in terms of the number of services and the territories served. Malta has embarked on a strategy of increasing airline routes, the results of which have been impressive, as tourism volume, overnight stays, and expenditure grow consistently year by year.’

easyJet expects to celebrate carrying its one millionth passenger on the London Gatwick to Malta route.

• Movies on Malta ...

THE Valletta Film Festival in Malta runs from June 15 to 21.

It will present progressive and innovative independent cinema, including feature length documentaries.

• And later in the year …

Queen Elizabeth II will visit Malta and attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Valletta (November 27-29). Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall will also be in the royal party. 

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Picture Credit: "Gozo-mgarr-harbour-60" by Myriam Thyes - Own work via Wikimedia Commons; "Main mosaic of the Domus Romana (Roman House) at Mdina, Malta" by Sudika (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons

Up in the air … Malta & Gozo

• TRANSAERO AIRLINE is to launch weekly Moscow-Malta flights in April. It is the fifth airline to start services to Malta this year, joining Finnair, Jet2.com, Swiss, and Aegean. Tickets are available on sale at the airline’s website – www.transaero.ru/en – at its ticket offices, and at travel agents. 

• MALTA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT hosted 208,896 passengers in February, an increase of 8.1 percent over the same month in 2014, suggesting that Malta is becoming more popular during the winter season.

Said the airports CEO, Alan Borg: ‘This is another reminder that the passenger growth we are seeing in Malta is steady, consistent, and year-round. This is what all stakeholders have been working towards and it is encouraging to see such excellent results being registered month after month.’

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