Howard,<BR><BR>The next time I go to Malta I plan to go to Tunisia. What kind of rate did you get for your 4 days/3 nights in Tunisia? Was this through Amelia Int'l? <BR><BR>Marge20, I did see several beaches in Malta, but being from San Diego I don't consider the beaches to be Malta's strong point. They are located on the many small bays on the island. Many are just rocks; some are simply stretches of land just yards from a main road. My recollection is that most were toward the northern end of the island, i.e., Sliema and northward. <BR><BR>In Sliema people sunbathe literally on the rocks. At White Rocks there is a Splash and Fun Water Park which claims to be the largest seawater swimming pool on the island. There is also a Mediterraneo Marine World. A couple of miles away is the Suncrest Hotel, which faces Salina Bay. Bugibba is on the other side of the peninsula. It doesn't have a beach per se, but people sunbathe along the seafront.<BR><BR>There is a sandless beach at St. Paul's Bay, but if you continue on around to Mellieha Bay, you will find the longest sandy beach in Malta. You can go parasailing, windsurfing, and water skiiing there. There are also beaches along Marfa Ridge. Slug Bay is along the south, facing Mellieha; it's very small; Armier Bay, Ramla Bay and Paradise Bay are along the northern edge of the Ridge. There are also beaches along the northwest end of the island, for example, Golden Bay and others.<BR><BR>I can't personally recommend any beachfront hotel because I stayed along the waterfront in Sliema. If you like large resort-type hotels, the Suncrest Hotel and the Paradise Bay Hotel are along the beach. You can see these and others at www.maltahotel.net and www.gomaltatravel.com. Also, the websites that JudyC listed are excellent for info regarding Malta. <BR>

Are there still numerous religious processionals with members of the church or guild marching with decorated statues and other religious icons? 30 years ago when my husband was in the navy his ship was in Valetta for a month and so we rented a flat there. The thing that stands out in my mind the most was the number of holy day processionals we saw in that time. there seemed to be one every coupe of days.

To: Howard: as several threads mentioned before, Castile Hotel is a nice 3* hotel, excellent located with friendly staff. I had a room on the 4th floor, overlooking Grand Harbout,the sunset was incredible. The restaurant on the roof offers good value fixed menu. For light meal, the cafe at the basement is not bad; I enjoyed the cafe at St.James the Cavalier(just cross the street)very much.<BR><BR>If you plan to visit Hypogeum,make sure buy the ticket as soon as possible(they don't accept reservation). Early March was low season, but I had a ticket for 3 days later. Hypogeum is near Paola(sp?)Square,don't miss the church by the bus stop, its interior is really joyfully airy.<BR><BR>The airport transfer is quite easy, the bus stop is outside the departure side. #8 bus( cost 15 cent) leaves every half an hour. <BR><BR>I am sure you will enjoy Tunisia, I spent 15 days (including 3 days desert trekking)over there last November,still missed many great sites.<BR><BR>To:Marge20, as Walkabout mentioned, there are quite a few pebble beaches in Malta. There are several sand beaches in Gozo. I have walked by GoldenSand Beach(supposed the best one),but I am afraid it's not as expansive as those in Brittany or Cornwall.<BR><BR>To:Julies, Maltese still celebrate festivals in summer.

Regards Marge20's question,Malta is a small island,so you'll find sea all round.Some sandy beaches to mention are: Golden Bay,Ghadira,Pretty Bay, Gnejna,Paradise Bay.Then rocky beaches: Ghar Lapsi,Wied iz-Zurrieq,Marsascala, Qawra ect... Regards Julie's question, from mid May till the end of September, you'll find a feast in every town or village in the Maltese islands. And sometimes,even 2 feasts at a weekend. And to mention all, on the 15th of August,there will be the feast of St.Mary in 7 villages.

Hello again!<BR><BR>Judy - Thanks for the additional information about the Castille and about visiting the Hypogeum, which definitely is on our list to see. I expect in will be much busier in early June than when you were there. We will be in Malta for a day and a half, then go to Tunisia for the three nights, then back to Malta for 6 full days. Perhaps we can get Hypogeum tickets on our first full day, for a visit the following week.<BR><BR>To walkabout - Amelia did have a package for thefour days/three nights in Tunis - at either a 4 star or 3 star hotel. For the three star, the price was $299 per person, including air/hotel/transfers. The hotel for the 3 star was the Omrane, in downtown Tunis. To save some money, we booked on our own. The flight was $189 per person, and the Omrane was $45 per night ($22.50 per person). So our total for the 3 nights will be about $256 without the transfers (transfers in package were in Tunis only). Was able to book the hotel and air online. <BR><BR>In Tunis, we plan to visit Carthage and Sidi Bou Said for a daytrip. Probably the rest of the time in Tunis, though I would like to visit Kirouan, about 2.5 hours away - we will play that by ear - see how interesting Tunis is.<BR><BR><BR>Before Malta, we are stopping over in London for about 5 days. We have tickets to the Chelsea flower show on day two and tickets to a Bruce Springsteen concert on our last night in London. Planning maybe one day trip - leading candidate is Cambridge.<BR>

Thank you Angelo and JudyC and Walkabout for the beach information - a new trip to Italy is beginning to form in my mind that starts with 5 days in Malta!

Howard,<BR><BR>Thank you very much for the info on Tunisia. A short trip there from Malta is not as expensive as I thought it would be. Thank you again, and I hope you have a wonderful trip.

Quick update - I had been planning to stay at the Castille, but I now have noticed that the Le Meridian, jsut outside the city gates of Valletta, has come down greatly in price since I first checked a couple of months ago. It is now jsut a little bit more expensive than the Castille. This is for the internet rate only. <BR><BR>The Meridian has the added bonus of a pool, and some other recreational facilities. We are going primarily for sightseeing, but it will be nice to be able to relax by the pool at times. The Meridian has an advantage from my perspective because it is both in a historic area and has pool, etc.<BR><BR>

Howard - Alas - I was going to wax euphoric about the Castille. Loved the old-world charm &amp; front desk's aid in securing Gozo reservs.

Rhea - Thanks for your input. I was thinking that we mighjt give up some &quot;charm&quot; and personal service in switching from the Castille to Meridian. I think the Meridian should be helpful in logistics, but maybe since it is larger, it won't be as personal (e.g. staff would not as readily remember room number when picking up room key from front desk). However, I think (hope) we are getting more comfort, and of course those rec. facilities. If the Meridian were just a big boxy bldg, I might not have switched, but it also looks like a nice place with &quot;character&quot;.<BR><BR>We were in St. Louis last summer, for a long weekend vacation - again mostly for sightseeing. The entire weekend had perfect weather, and the place we were staying had a pool. Each day would be be out for most of the day, but return to the hotel about 5 PM, and swim/sit around the pool for an hour or 90 minutes before dinner. It was very enjoyable. The weather in Malta should be nice in early June, so I am thinking we can do pretty much the same thing at least of some of the days we will be there.

Howard it's a good trade-off since the<BR>pool is important to you. Pls. do post a post-trip report for the rest of us to savor.<BR><BR>

Rhea - Will do a trip report when I return (June 8). On the same trip, we are going to London for 5 nights - have tkts. for Chelsea flower show and Bruce Springsteen concert, and to Tunis (if things are ok) for 4 days/three nights. Looking forward to all of the stops.