Full-Day Mosta, Mdina, and Rabat Tour from Valletta
Description
Today’s excursion takes us to the central part of Malta, dominated by the medieval fortified city of Mdina, Malta’s former capital city. The narrow, winding streets, dating back to medieval times, lead to the imposing bastions, commanding a magnificent panorama of the island. On the way there, you will discover different styles of architecture, including Siculo-Norman palaces and other baroque buildings of great historical importance. Time stands still in this ‘silent city’ which is a film-maker’s paradise. Leaving Mdina through Greeks’ Gate, we stop at one of the early Christian Catacombs in Rabat before proceeding to the cliffs at Dingli. After lunch we will visit the San Anton botanical gardens situated near the Presidential Palace, which you will be able to admire from outside. We shall also spend time at the crafts centre at Ta’ Qali. At the end of the tour, allow us to astound you with Mosta’s majestic dome, one of Europe’s largest.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Visit the Silent City Mdina, which has defence bastions dating back back to the 9th Century.
Before lunch you will be given free time to visit St. Tacaldus Catacoms. (Donation) After St Tacaldus you will have lunch in a typical Maltese Restaurant.
Watch local artisans at work, producing typical Maltese ware including glass, silver and filigree.
Mosta to visit the famous Dome, considered to be the third largest in the world. (Admission not included)
Visit San Anton Garden, located near the Presidential Palace, which we can admire from outside
Offering a spectacular view of the open sea and after lunch we proceed to San Anton Botanical Garden.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
8:30am is the first pickup. Please contact your local supplier to arrange a convenient pickup point and location. Hotel pick-up service starts prior to the booked start time.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Infant meals not included
- May be operated by a multi-lingual guide
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking
- Vegetarian option is available, please advise at time of booking if required
Reviews(30)
We were not picked up at the agreed meeting point. The meeting point was changed. We were not informed of the change.
A truly excellent day. The highlight of our stay in Malta and a great way to visit and experience a variety of sights on the island. John, our guide was extremely attentive to the needs of our large group and provided a relaxed, highly engaging, humorous and informative commentary to our tour.
Thank you for your feedback! We're happy to hear that you enjoyed the tour. We will make sure to pass your comments along. We always aim to improve our tours to better satisfy our clients.
DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY, THEY DON'T PICK YOU UP FOR YOUR TOUR AND NO EXPLANATION'S GIVEN. AVOID! AVOID! AVOID! Booked early for a trip to Valetta for the World War 2 history tour. (Money up front)THEY DIDN'T pick us up. This was an issue as they only have this trip on a Friday and we only spent 10 days here and flew home on the second Thursday.
Good Afternoon, could you kindly share details so that we may investigate please. Our email address is tours@sms.com.mt
Lack of information about how many participants would be on the tour, and that the first stop was to get people onto the bus that was in their language. Total chaos and time wasting. Time was short everywhere so we didn't see the real clift. Craft village does not live up to the description. The garden was not woth the trip, at least not this time of the year. A big busload of people is too much for a guide. Only those closest could hear anything. The tour is oversold. The driver sat and shouted and screamed at the other drivers when he wasn't carrying on a shouting conversation with the guide. Both on the way out and home. We sat in front and were finally going crazy listening to it. He flirted inappropriately with us. Probably meant as a joke. After all, we are in our early 60s but it crossed all limits in the end and we are not sensitive. In the end we had to put him in his place. There are better ways to solve the problem of which bus to change to. If each bus had a clear number and the ticket clearly stated that at the first stop you should either stay seated or change to bus no... and vice versa on the way home. Far too many people got on and off the same buses. It's a wonder you don't lose anyone - And it takes a hell of a long time.
We are sorry to hear that you did not enjoy the tour and that it was rushed. We will be investigating further to make sure that this will not happen again.
I’m sorry to say I was disappointed with this tour. It felt rushed, with very little free time to explore individually. There were some stops that were not listed on the original itinerary and I’m sure a visit to St Paul’s catacombs was on the itinerary but we went to some other catacombs instead. Visiting St Paul’s catacombs was the reason I chose this trip. So for me it wasn’t what I expected. Not money well spent spent.
We sincerely apologize that your experience on the excursion was affected by a descriptive error. The tour visits the St. Cataldus Catacombs, not St. Paul’s Catacombs as mistakenly indicated. Please accept our heartfelt apologies for this oversight. We will update the description promptly to ensure accuracy moving forward. We hope you continue to enjoy your holiday on our island. Regards
Enjoyed the tour a lot. Well guided and informative. I was expecting a rushed tour (read comments) but surprisingly, it was well paced.
Dear Renata, we're delighted to hear that you enjoyed the tour. We hope that you had a wonderful holiday on our island!
our guide Novka was late when she picked us up in Phoenician hotel. Then we stopped by for more pick ups. Our bus is quite full. We started with Anton gardens, Rabat, lunch, Mdina, Mosta church and some outlet shops. The guide was talking way too fast that it is hard to catch up. No one is smiling throughout the tour bec we feel her stress and she keeps on arguing with the driver. It's like she just wants to get the job done. At the last stop, i had to go to the toilet and i asked her so she pointed me to the cafe and direction to where she will go. But it was not clear and i kept in walking far and didnt find the bus. Had to walk back and thankfully bus passed by and i had to wave so badly else i miss the bus going home. Also, when you ask her about something, she sounds irritated. She's not happy with her job and not people-oriented. So, hopefully u get a better guide as the places are beautiful. Lunch was ok.
Dear Judith _A, We are sorry to hear that you did not enjoy the tour and that it was rushed. We will be investigating further to make sure that this will not happen again.
great tour loved mdina and Rabat, short visit to Mosta only to the church. Just wish more free time than to listen to guide at each stop could have been shorter. Especially in Mdina
Dear jiller420 Thank you for your positive feedback and hope that you will visit again Malta and join another one of our excursions
Sadly our tour was a very disappointing 'bait and switch' experience. Advertised as a max. 15 person group, we were merged into a 45 person tour about 1/2 hr into our trip with no explanation. When our tour guide arrived we were loaded into a large bus. And while Valentina was knowledgeable and engaging, we could only consistently hear her when we were on the bus, not at the locations. In addition we were rushed through Mosta Dome in approx. 10 minutes with no time to take photos. It seemed the tour's priority was sticking to the schedule and getting us to the next location. A 45 person group is ineffective and unwieldy. At a minimum, it warrants a portable microphone.
Dear Lynne_M We are sorry that you did not enjoy your tour. In Malta a guide can take up to 52 persons on tour. Please send us more details to investigate.
Would have liked to have spent more time in some of the sites. Did not enjoy being herded into the gift shops and would not do this tour again.
Dear 763jerry Thank you for your comments and we would pass on this to our supplier.
