cigalechanta

Someone posted on another forum that while they were in Malta, there was the filming of "Troy" Your report will make the viewing more interesting.

adrienne

Mimi - I can't wait to see the movie, especially after visiting Malta.

nancy

Gotta jump in here. Adrienne did a tremendous amount of work putting this trip report together (after reading other reports she had written I elected her to do this report with only a small amount of editing from me). Adrienne very kindly put my name on it but I now know why she took all those notes on our tours. You hardly need a guidebook. I had wanted to go to Malta for several years and Malta was every bit as interesting as I hoped, along with Adrienne being a great (and patient) traveling companion - I'm always in favor of people who can laugh their way thru a trip. Don't let an opportunity to visit Malta slip by. Thx, Adrienne

Beatchick

Adrienne & Nancy:

I found the website for your favorite Maltese cafe:
http://www.vol.net.mt/caffecordina/
The photo shows a lovely outdoor setting!

Noting the prices you listed - Malta is CHEAP!!

From your report I am reminded of Paul Theroux's almost-thwarted attempts to find ferry tickets in his book "Pillars of Hercules."

I always love hearing/reading about the real places on the Mediterranean that inspired Homer's The Odyssey.

You've made this place sound so gorgeous, especially Gozo. Thank you for sharing this trip report with us!!

I must say, though, that you had quite an adventure driving around in a place with no discernable road signs. You're much braver than I!!

cigalechanta

topping for Patrickparis.

adrienne

Mary - thanks for finding Caffe Cordina web site. It was lovely sitting outside, especially since the weather was perfect.

I'm putting the Theroux book on my list.

vhayes

Did you look at other tour companies before your selection(Acedemic, Amelia). Do you have any idea how the weather is in November?

Beatchick

You're welcome, Adrienne!!

A very good friend of mine recommended it to me. He has excellent taste. And it was a perfect selection for me. Not only do I love the descriptions of the landscapes, people, architecture & culture but I love the references to some of my favorite writers sprinkled throughout like Henry Miller, Graham Greene or the Beats (Burroughs/Ginsberg)! I think you'll enjoy it, too, Adrienne.

adrienne

Vhayes - I didn't look at any other tours except Grand Circle. I normally don't use escorted tours but have friends who have been on many GCT tours and they thought highly of this organization (so do I after taking the Malta tour with them). There have been other posters here who have used other tour organizations. A search on Malta will bring up other trip reports and postings.

You could very easily do Malta on your own. If I went back I would stay in Valletta. If you're looking for more activity at night, choose St. Julian's. And, I would spend more time on Gozo, at least 2 nights.

According to the Rough Guide the average temp in November is 62F, 17C. November is much wetter than April/May - 77mm of rain in November vs. 24mm in April and 9mm in May. I'm not sure how many inches that is. The wet months are October, November, December.

The weather was perfect when we went, summers are very hot and I'm told humid. We had almost no humidity. The Maltese said it's humid in the summer but I have difficulty believing that since there's almost no rain in the summer and there is little greenery. I can't imagine what is creating the humidity.

nancy

vhayes: I didn't look at any other tours as I know they're much more money than I care to spend. I did check out doing it independently and quit after checking airfare (from the US West Coast) and hotel room. Plus we would have added 6 dinners and a few lunches doing it independently. After having been on a GCT tour in Thailand and finding out what a great job they do, I didn't hesitate to book Malta with them. Besides the price, the many "free" days were an incentive. You have the benefit of a tour guide where needed and plenty of time to go off on your own.

pcal2

Adrienne (and Nancy): I was thrilled to read your trip report. My husband and I will spend 2 weeks in Sicily and a week in Malta in February so it was great to read the comments of someone who has been to Malta recently. We are seasoned independent travelers and always look forward to new adventures! I would love to view your photos, but have been unable to access them at the url shown in you report...any suggestions?

adrienne

Hi pcal2,

I almost missed your message. I'm not sure why you can't access the pix. Are you putting www into the url? If so, that could be a reason why it doesn't work. I've accessed the site from computers other than my own (library, work, etc.) and it's always worked for me. I'll copy and paste it again here -if it doesn't work the second time email me:

http://piero.home.att.net/

adrienne

pcal2

Great! It worked this time...can't wait to see the pics!

Italy4me

dear nancy and adrienne -

(first of all, please excuse the lack of capitals - i broke my left hand while on vacation in sicily, and typing is difficult!)

thank you so much for such a thorough and detailed trip report!
when friends and i first started researching malta for a week-long visit this spring, we knew right away your report would be a great resource - and it was.
i transferred it to Word and printed out copies for the three of us. along with the "lonely planet malta" and "rough guide malta" books, your report was referred to frequently.
rather, we'd usually review it in the evenings, and at some point during the day one of us would say, "remember what that trip report said: ...... "
your remark that "all buses lead to valletta" was repeated frequently during our week on malta!
we really appreciate your taking the time to write up such detailed notes.
we wish we'd taken your advice to reserve in advance for the hypogeum - it's the one thing we were interested in seeing that we missed missed out on because there were no spaces available during our week.
oh, well ... next time!

thanks again -
colleen, shannon, and lisa

adrienne

topping for csdplus

gertie3751

Thanks adrienne, it's great I have made notes.

scarlettudor

Malta was one of the first international trips I made and I loved it! I went with Cosmos and was quite pleased, but I also think highly of Grand Circle. I wrote a story about Malta, published in our local newspaper and in 'Boots n' All' internet newspaper. How do you go about submitting one to Fodors? I just joined Fodors message board, in order to comment on your Malta trip. How would I get in touch with you by email? I have pictures of Malta I'd love to share, too.

adrienne

Hi scarlettudor,

I almost missed your comment. You can post a trip report on fodors simply by starting a new thread and use the trip report tag so others know that it's a trip report.

I just realized that the email addresses that used to be next to names are no longer there. If anyone wants to show their email address it's in their profile. I guess it's more secure against spam this way. You can click on my name in this thread to go to my profile for my email address or you can post a link to your photos on this thread.

I've moved my photos since I wrote this. The new site is

http://modigliani.shutterfly.com/malta2004

scarlettudor

Hello, Adrienne ~ Thanks for the explanation of how to do a trip report. I have several to put up. Also, for the new links to your Malta pictures. So lovely!

My Malta pictures are at http://community.webshots.com/user/scarlettudor100
along with albums of China, Vietnam, Costa Rica, horseback riding in Ireland, Copper Canyon in Mexico.

Sue Ellen

adrienne

Nice photos of Malta. I don't think I saw any dogs on Malta but there were lots of well-fed cats.