Are you on the run by any chance?
Relocating to Malta but you are only going to view the island for four days prior to you moving??

Strange request, but please bear in mind that Malta is a very small Island and you can get to anywhere from anywhere on the Island within the hour.

I would say that the only place that the majority of people are tourist is in the Buggiba/Qawra areas. Any where else and you should be ok. As for hotels well as expected they will have tourist around. As for your budget of £500.00 each you should have no problem.

Very limited availibility to go to Malta at short notice at Easter.All i can find are 7 night holidays with Chevron.

Flight Information (Outbound)
Thursday, 13 April, 2006 Air Malta - Departs Gatwick 11:55
Preluna Hotel and Spa in Sliema
4 stars half board
Total for 2 adults £858 including flight meals and transfers

http://www.chevron.co.uk

I would get in quick to get something booked as holidays are not gonna stay there for very long at Easter.

Hello David, Both Gzira and Ta Xbiex are not well known for there tourist destinations, both being more were the locals live and for there Marina's.
TaXbiex does have one hotel I know of called Grand Hotel Les Laplins a 4*
or on the boarder with Gzira and Sliema there is the Hotel Kennedy Nova 4*, I have been to this hotel and it does have good food with waiter service, with a few bars ether side but not on top of it. I am going to this hotel again this summer so I hope it is as good as it was last time.
http://www.kennedynova.com

or you could try on this site.

http://www.maltahotel.net

Hope this is a bit of a help to you and wecome to the Malta site, I am sure some of the other members may have more help to give.

Dave

m&n
Wavecrest might have a decent budget,but its the fact there isnt much availibility around to actually get to Malta on the dates he wants.

The Waterfront Hotel is also on the border of Gzira/Sliema.

Hi m&n, jojo, & The real holiday maker

Wow, 4 posts in the time it took me to make a cup of coffee.. Thanks for the info..

Firstly, No, not on the run. Well, maybe, yes. Running away from London as fast my my fat legs will take me. I am looking at a position in the Ta Xbiex/Gzira/Sliema areas, which is why we want to stay there. We are very used to island living (I married me a Caribbean island girl while living on a Caribbean Island).

Budget wise, we are willing to pay higher rates, and, knowing how last second this is, know we will probably have to. Since this is more of a fact finding mission that a holiday, we dont want to be stuck with the one million nine hundred and eighty seven thousand six hundred and forty three tourists is we can get away with it (ouch hand cramp after that)..

I will be hitting the agencies, sites and anyone else I can get my hands on tomorrow to secure all the bookings, and hopefully arrive on Thursday..

Enjoy whats left of Sunday

David
The Running man.. ok, ok, the SLOWLY running man...

Hi David,
Welcome to the forum, sounds like we have a couple of things in common. I was also on the run from a west of London village, married an islander and more than 20 years later I'm still on holiday here.
In case you haven't found a booking yet and are considering booking direct. These places are all Sliema/Gzira border, along the same Stand seafront, but say Sliema because it sounds more upmarket:
http://www.kennedynova.com/ (suggested by Dave)
http://www.waterfrontmalta.com.mt/waterfront/home.asp (suggested by jojo)
Bayview - closer to Gzira
http://www.holidays-malta.com/holidaysmalta/accommodation/hm227.htm
Milano Due
http://www.holidays-malta.com/holidaysmalta/accommodation/hm243.htm
Nice self-catering
http://www.115aparthotel.com/
Cheap & cheerful self-catering
http://www.mol.net.mt/pebbles/index.htm

The Les Lapins 4* at Ta Xbiex closed down a couple of years back, it was on my AVOID list anyway, there are no other hotels in Ta Xbiex.

Couple of nice restaurants at the Ta Xbiex marina sea-front:
GUZE- good value, big portions, but quite a smart place
MAMMA MIA - lovely seafront terrace and a vast menu. The food is well priced, but try and keep drinks at Mamma Mia to a minimum as they are a bit pricier than usual.

Hi All & ingliza
Again, thanks for your help. After trying to go through agencies and websites, I almost gave up. Then called Air Malta & The Preluna directly, and faster than you can say wham, bam, thank you ma'am, bookings made, done and confirmed..

We are coming to Malta, Yippee

Hi David, and welcome to the forum, if you are looking for a nice restaurant that is very clean and friendly with lovely fresh prepared Maltese food and fresh fish, pasta, and big juicy steaks then I highly reccomend Il-Merill on St Vincent Street in Sliema not far from where the Ferries leave for Valletta it's quite easy to get to from the Preluna , Mrs Sliema2 and I are back in Sliema as from Wednesday so who knows we may well bump in to you in Il-Merill.

Regards
Sliema2

Hi there Quote ", we dont want to be stuck with the one million nine hundred and eighty seven thousand six hundred and forty three tourists " Can you make that , we dont want to be stuck with the one million nine hundred and eighty seven thousand six hundred and forty ONE (!) tourists 'cause we won't be there this easter

Hello Charliegirl,
Sorry to hear that you won't be over in Malta this Easter
However one must look on the plus side and although you can't make it you will be pleased to know that we can

Hope I wasn't too cruel with that but I am really looking forward to next week. We shall raise a glass or two and wish everyone on the forums a happy easter

Hi M&N, we too are lucky enough to be back in Malta for Easter having never been at that time of the year before we are really looking forward to seeing the various traditions and parades etc, who knows we may even bump in to you and we can all raise a glass to our chums on HT

Regards
Sliema2

Thanks mates !!!

Oh, have a great time, (I suppose ) We have been there for Easter and I can't remember where the best Good Friday parade is, they have horses and the Church uses it's 'clackers' rather than the bels. Does anyone know where I mean?

Just got back from an absolutely FABULOUS holiday. Details :

The Flights etc : All fantastic. flights on time, food was good, stewards were friendly. My Taxi driver in london broke the land speed record trying to get us to Heathrow, but luckily we survived to get to Malta.
Picked up a Taxi at the airport, from the taxi counter. LM8.50 to get to the Preluna. Taxi driver tried to break the land speed record too, but no luck.

The Preluna : We had a suite, which was good. Not Great, but I would stay there again without a doubt. Younger travellers (i.e. under 35) be warned, average age of guests there is 87. Food was good (The calzones in the coffee bar were out of this world, wish I could get them in London).

Horse Carriages, took a trip, got ripped off but still enjoyed it. The driver did take care of his horse.

Shopping wise, my wife was happy, and that means there has to be serious shopping available.

We stayed in the Sliema area the whole time. Heard a lot of "warnings" before we left about how dirty malta was. Arriving there, we were shocked to find Sliema to be the cleanest city we have ever been to. The streets & pavements were well swept.

Playgrounds for Kids everywhere, so my daughter had a blast. The food we ate was always excellant. We found Il Merrill, but it is closed on Sundays. The locals were always friendly.

The best news is, found a huge apartment in Sliema, moving in in about a months time.. hehehe I cannot wait, and we will be hitting Il Merrill first chance we get..

Thanks for your very helpful advice, and I thouroughly recommend Malta as a vacation destination to anyone looking for something new.

Hi Wavecrest

Thanks for posting your trip report

If you'd like to post a review for the Preluna, please do so HERE.

Many thanks.

Pippy

does this mean we can all visit wavecrest free of charge at anytime?!?!

Oh thats an excellent idea

Beers & Coffee on me if you are in town..

Staying at my place might sound like a nice idea, but I am not the worlds greatest host. I have "issues", Lots of them.. Even my mom stays in a hotel instead of staying with me.