Travel // Malta – A Long Weekend Away

The other weekend we got away for a friend’s 30th and went to Malta for a long weekend in search of some sun. She is the first friend to turn 30 and she wanted to get away for some chill time, sun, tasty food and celebrations.

Tim and I have been saving up for Australia so haven’t had many holidays this year and its the first year in agesssss that we haven’t gone away during the summer. It really had felt like an age since we’d gone on hols. So we were 100% counting down to this long weekend away. I love doing long weekends away as you only have to take 1/2 days of holiday and get to explore a new place. We went from the Friday to the Monday eve.
The 8 of us met at Heathrow airport for 8am which meant we were up for 6am and had left the house for 6:15am. Tbh it isn’t much earlier than our normal wake up time during the week so didn’t feel too early. We got everything ready the night before – I’ve turned into such a last minute packer so left everything until the day before. I also left it until the day before to get my nails done, a pedicure, a wax and also pack! Definitely lastminute.com!
It was hard to know what to pack as the weather in Malta this time of year can be hot and then rainy/stormy so I packed jeans, leggings, shorts, dresses and a couple bikinis in the hope that the pool was warm enough for a swim (thank goodness it was!). I also packed trainers, toms, flip flops and a pair of heels incase we were going out. We also packed a couple of card games incase it was rainy – we packed exploding kittens and the bean game. Both great games and always a hit when we have friends around.
First order of business when we got to the airport for breakfast and some bubbles – when at an airport international hours apply and drinking at anytime shouldn’t be judged. The girls kept it classy with bubbles and mimosas while the boys started on the beers!
The flight is about 3 hours so we managed to get some zzz’s to catch up on sleep so we were all raring to go when we got to Malta. As soon as we stepped off the plane the heat hit us. Don’t know if its just me but I love it when I feel the heat when I get off a plane – it just gets me in the holiday mood if I’m not already. Such a nice contrast to the cold in the UK!
We grabbed a couple bolts (Uber isn’t in Malta) and made our way to our villa. See here for our villa which was amazing! I would say though its a bit out of the way and some of the taxi drivers had a few issues finding it as the roads are main roads and super tight. For 8 of us we paid about £140 each for 3 nights and all had enough space to spread out. 3 of the bedrooms had an ensuite which was perfect – meant we weren’t all fighting for a shower in the morning.
Here’s a few pics of the villa – I mean just wow! Look at that kitchen! And the garden and villa – perfect!

The first evening we cooked up some yummy prawn pasta and played some drinking games. We played back to back which was good fun! Never played it before but will definitely be cracking it out again in the future. The pool had some amazing lights so we got the fire pit lit and jumped in the pool – definitely a great way to start the hols!

The next day was all about chilling. We started the day with scrambled eggs (delish!) and literally chilled by the pool for most of the day after watching the Rugby World Cup semi-final. Just what we all needed! We definitely made the most of the inflatables and the pool 😊

Tasty lunch in the sun <3
I also made Tim take a pic of me by the pool in a bikini. I honestly can’t remember the last time I felt comfortable having my photo taken in a bikini but I went out on this holiday thinking I needed to enjoy it completely and not be worried about my own insecurities. It was nice to let my hair down and just be myself. Got this gorgeous black scalloped bikini from Zoggs (see here).

Late afternoon, half of us went for a walk down to the local town Marsascala while the others had a snooze. We were gone for just over an hr but managed to get some lovely pics of the local harbour and grabbed some ice-creams – you’ve got to have some ice-cream when you’re by the sea and on hols!

When we got back we all got ready to go out in Valetta for a 30th birthday celebration meal for my friend Poorvi. Of course we had to have some pics before we went out!

We went to a place called Cockney’s and were able to sit outside. For €44 each we had starters, mains and shared puddings along with 2 bottles of bubbles, 2 bottles of white wine, several limoncello spritz’s, several beers and a bottle of Asti. It was a delicious but affordable meal for the amount we had! I shared a seafood platter with a friend which had muscles, clams and prawns which was just delish. I then had prawn pasta as my main and then shared a chocolate cake with Tim for pudding. Tim had a platter of 3 fish for his main which looked amazing! Tbh all the food looked and tasted great. If you’re in Valetta definitely pop by!

On Sunday the day started off with a lot of rain. We started the days with eggs (yum!) and then made our way down to Marsaxlokk to visit the fish market. It was definitely an experience but good fun. We got some massive cannelloni but it was a little bit of a rip off – 2 for €10 – we should have definitely haggled!

We then caught some Bolts to Valetta where we had a wonder about and took some amazing pics of the city. If I were to go back to Malta I’d definitely want to go back there – the city is gorgeous and full of tiny little streets and the architecture is pretty impressive too. I love my history and this place has it. Whilst in Valetta we had lunch at an Italian and I had a pretty yummy half pizza/ half Calsonie. I mean… doesn’t that look delish?!

The most tastiest pizza! YUM!
Love all brightly covered buildings in Valetta
Got a pic of Kings Landing from Game of Thrones!

We also each brought a bottle of wine for €10 max – the plan was to do our own wine tasting. So when we got back to the villa we all took pics of the labels and then covered them up with masking tape. We got through so much wine but was definitely worth it! I got a tasty rosé which got the most points for tastiest wine. #winner!

Voted the tastiest wine 👍

We had brought a bunch of food for a BBQ as we’d seen a gas BBQ at the villa so we brought chicken, halloumi type Malta cheese, sausages, peppers, aubergine and wedges. The guys said they were in charge and tbh it was delish – Defo a tasty feast! YUM!

The next day was our last half day. Tim and I went out for a walk to the local shop about 20 mins away and grabbed bits for brekkie. We whipped up some eggs and mushrooms and then cleaned up. It was a chill morning – we played a couple card games in the garden to enjoy our lsat bit of sun and then got taxi’s to the airport. We got there a few hours early and Tim and I demolished nachos, onion rings and chicken wings to fuel ourselves up before the flight and a long drive home.

Malta was a much needed trip and the weather was perfect! Chilling with friends and celebrating a 30th was great. We’re looking forward to going back at some point but will go explore more of the beaches, see more of the the capital Valetta and the north of the island.

Next time we go to Malta we’ll definitely bring insect spray! My legs got bitten alive!

Until next time,

Cathers xx

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