Late April/early May is when I went to Malta and the weather was perfect. I only wore a light jacket in the evenings. Daytime was short-sleeved shirts.

Malta is not over-run with tourists. Book well ahead for the Hypogeum as each tour is limited to 10 people. The archeological sites are not very large and not much tramping around is required.

Is everything open? Yes. People live there and eat in the restaurants and shop in the markets.

I wrote a very long trip report. Click on my name to see it.

I have only been to Malta once, so am hardly an expert. It was during February, and even then, which was decidely the off-season, all of the sights I wanted to see (Malta Experience, museums, open air markets, etc) were open. I would assume they would be in April and May, which are more popular times to visit.

As for shops, they were all open, too. However, most shops in Malta close from 1-4 pm, and are closed on Sundays. The supermarket I went to was open all day.

This is the perfect time of year, and the one I've had relatives come over in. I live in Malta, so know exactly what each season brings. We're just having the worst (wettest and coldest) winter I can remember in my 18 years here. So don't even think of coming before end April - early May!

As others have said, you can feel comfortable in shirt sleeves and Ts, but will still need something lightweight to cover up in the evenings, to be on the safe side. I've know bubbly damp, misty-moisty days even early May.

Regarding what to do and what's open - everything is open all year round here; Malta's tourism is full on in shoulder months so you will find no problems with sightseeing. I would just add a word of warning about the Hypogeum. Recently, the main online ticket agency has been selling false tickets for this site. I recommend you contact Heritagemalta.org, the state-run entity in charge of sites and main museums, to see about how to buy legit tickets online. Booking for that site is imperative.

In the main tourism resorts (Sliema, Qawra, Bugibba, and the capital, Valletta) most shops do stay open all day.

I run Maltainsideout.com, a site with a lot of insider info about the country. You might find some more useful info there. Not tourism polish, but the grit on things! Hope this helps you plan.

Thanks to each of you for your great and helpful replies! I'm starting to get really excited about planning this trip.

Adrienne, I've not seen a trip report as long as your, so will need some time (probably on a weekend)to really read it through. Thanks for the link, and all the detail!

Walkabout, thanks again to you as well for the info. I was thinking there would be limited openings, and appreciate your experience.

I still would like to hear if it's really crowded on Malta/Gozo in early May.

LizziA, I SO appreciate your heads-up on the false ticket sales for Hypogeum, and would never have guessed it myself. I will definitely contact the link you gave. Also appreciate the global warming update on the weather possibilities. Am looking at the first 2 weekends in May now. Will it be hotter, do you think?

Paul, are you connected with the car company you mentioned?

<< Adrienne, I've not seen a trip report as long as your >>

I'm not the only wordy person on this board!! There's lots of us.

I've moved the photos to this site.

http://modigliani.shutterfly.com/malta2004

I believe Paul registered just to promote that site.

There are many car rental agencies on Malta but I recommend sticking to the buses. The best place to get them is from the large depot outside the Valletta gate.

Thanks for the heads up, Adrienne. On your last item, I actually was deciding that the buses really do not cover the sites I want to see in a very expedient way, if at all. Was thinking I'd really be safer to rent a car, and the rates seem remarkable compared with anywhere else in the world. Not to get side-tracked here, but what is the price of gas there right now in USD?

We had a wonderful trip to Malta and Gozo. I noticed the tip about using Mayjo car hire, we actually used them to hire a jeep on Gozo and then went on to arrange a transfer back to Malta airport. They were friendly, helpful and reasonably priced. If we ever return, we'd use them again. (We have no connection whatsoever.).

I also did a trip report but it was years ago. You could try doing a search on KayF and Malta. We went in Sept/Oct, also visiting Sicily during our month away. Valletta can be very busy when the cruise ships dock but apart from that it wasn't particularly crowded. We did a lot and managed on Malta just using the public buses.

Kay

KayF - you can access all your trip reports by clicking on your screen name. Then scroll to the bottom of the screen to see them.

plr - I thought driving on Malta was a bit tough and I had a navigator. Outside of the towns there are no road names or numbers - you follow the signs so you need a good idea of where you're going if you want to see the archeological sites. Many areas shut up in the mid afternoon so sometimes there is no one around to ask directions.

For the Hypogeum I have detailed directions in my trip report. I did drive to the town where it's located, parked the car and then walked. Perhaps the sign for the Hypogeum is better now than when I was there but it was very easy to pass it by. The sign was flush against the building rather than perpendicular so very difficult to spot.