Taken from our Sept 2010 trip review:

"As we had booked the flight and hotels ourselves, we didn't have any included transfers so we pre-booked 12 days car hire including airport drop off at a cost of 220 Euros through Ray Bezzina Car Rentals (http://www.raybezzinacarrentals.com/index.php). We found the drop-off driver easily at the airport but the car itself was a bit of a wreck - we couldn't open the boot, the air-conditioning was ancient and the wing mirrors were hanging on by a thread. We had also paid 4 Euros for a road map which turned out to be a hand drawn tourist map so we ended up having to buy a new AA one as well. The car was generally fine for the price though so we would probably use them again - a lot of firms seemed to be charging double what we paid! "

We paid extra for a second driver but I can't remember what happened about petrol. We had our own excess insurance already and weren't pressurised to take theirs instead. The pick up and drop off were fine - our main complaint was the state of the car but this seems par for the course in Malta! Hope that helps.

Hi

My personal opinion only would be to take a transfer to and from the airport if this is your first visit to Malta.

I'm going on Saturday for a few days and this will be my 5th or 6th visit and even now I don't have a clue how to get from the airport to Bugibba/Qawra and we go to the same location/resort every time I find it the most confusing island as you seem to traverse it getting from A to B.

Considering it's such a tiny island, the roads don't seem to go in any logical direction and the driving in Malta is worse than the ones we experience on a day to day basis living in Cyprus!

We generally book a private taxi through Star Tourist Services who are based in Bugibba and our return journey is usually 34 Euros. I will be travelling alone on this occasion so have booked a shared minibus transfer with my accommodation provider at a cost of just over 9GBP for the return journey. I'm only going for 5 days this time and will be staying in the Soreda Hotel in Qawra. My parents are already there on holiday for 3wks before going to their timeshare apartment at the Salina Wharf and they don't know I'm coming

Public transport is very easy and cheap as are the hop on hop off tourist routes. Certainly, some of the cars we've seen leave a lot to be desired so if you're intent on hiring one, I would wait till you're in the resort and then choose from what you can see at the time.

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

Hi Shell

You seem to be the bringer of advice whenever I have any questions!!

We had come to the conclusion that your advice is what we were going to do. We realised that we wouldn't need a car on the first or last day and at least one day we said we were going to use the famous buses. We have found in the past that you can invariably get a better deal face to face so will hire when we need.

We were about to book a minibus shuttle transfer through ResortHoppa (who we have booked through all over the med) at a cost of £9-80 each, return, when a message came up on screen to say that we could upgrade to a private taxi transfer for an additional £1-45 each. As we had a 10% off voucher the actual cost of a return private taxi is £20.25.

I have heard it is a strange place to drive - but I'm getting used to the weird driving styles in the Med.

BTW - I found them quite subdued drivers in Cyprus - especially compared to Rhodes - although that could be because the Cypriots drive on the correct side of the road

Dave

I would also be wary as parking places might be few and far between. Isn't there almost as many cars as people?

Whilst my husband doesn't mind driving in many other countries he absolutely hates driving in Malta. Maps are almost useless, cars not in brilliant condition and Maltese drivers not the best! On our last visit we had a taxi from the airport to Mellieha village and then just used the buses - resulting in a more relaxed husband!! The buses are so cheap and whilst not the cleanest they get you from A to B very efficiently.

Pippa

Hi Dave

I'm glad to hear I've been able to help in the past with my answers.

I've just returned early this evening from Malta back home to Cyprus. Malta is a hive of activity just now due to the conflict in Libya and there are certainly a few different sights to see from the harbour in Valetta and a lot of military planes at the airport.

BTW - I found them quite subdued drivers in Cyprus - especially compared to Rhodes - although that could be because the Cypriots drive on the correct side of the road

Any side is the right side of the road in Cyprus - no matter what direction you may be travelling in

Very interesting thing I noticed was our Maltese minibus driver had some kind of an alarm system that sent out a beeping noise when he was getting close to traffic cameras.

Enjoy!

Shell
Limassol, Cyprus

Avoid Ray Bezzina car hire / rental in Malta. They appear cheap but have lots of hidden extras to pay. Use someone more reputable.