Gozo is a third the size of Malta with a tenth of the people. It feels like considerably more than a ferry ride away. It is greener, slower, more agricultural and more religious, and Gozitans will tell you it is a different country. Spend a few days and you stop arguing.
A day trip covers the ferry, the driving and the sites you would otherwise miss without a car.
Victoria and the Cittadella
The capital sits in the middle of the island and everyone still calls it Rabat as well as Victoria. Above it stands the Cittadella, a fortified hilltop citadel with the cathedral inside the walls and a view that takes in essentially the whole island. It is the single best thing to do in Gozo and it takes an hour.
The rest of the island
Ta’ Pinu
The national shrine stands on its own in open country, with fields around it and nothing else in sight. The setting is extraordinary whatever you believe.
It is a working place of pilgrimage rather than a monument, so dress accordingly and expect people to be praying.
The Xwejni salt pans
Pans are cut into the coastal rock in a chequerboard that runs for several hundred metres. Families still work them by hand and still sell the salt.
Go in the late afternoon. The low sun fills the pans and the rock turns the colour of the salt.
Dwejra
Dwejra is a shelf of open rock and cliff on the west coast. Fungus Rock stands offshore, with Dwejra Tower above it and the Blue Hole below. It is one of the best known dive sites in the Mediterranean.
Behind the rock, the Inland Sea is a landlocked pool joined to the open water by a cave tunnel. Small boats take visitors through it when the sea is calm. The Azure Window stood here until it collapsed in 2017, and the site is still worth the drive.
Diving in MaltaBook a dive in Gozo
The terraced fields
Most of Gozo is farmland, cut into terraces held up by rubble walls that have been there for centuries. It is greener than Malta and it stays green later into the year.
This is the part people mean when they say Gozo feels like a different country.
Walking routes
The ferry
The crossing takes about twenty-five minutes and runs through the night, though far less often after midnight. You pay leaving Gozo rather than arriving.
Buses in Gozo exist but they are infrequent. A car makes a real difference here in a way it does not in Sliema.
Ferries and faresBook a Gozo day trip
What is worth your time
- Ġgantija, Xagħra
- These are among the oldest free-standing structures anywhere, older than Stonehenge and the pyramids. They are part of the UNESCO World Heritage listing.
- Dwejra
- The Inland Sea is a landlocked pool joined to the open water by a cave tunnel that boats pass through. Fungus Rock, Dwejra Tower and the Blue Hole are all here too. The Blue Hole is one of the best-known dive sites in the Mediterranean.
- Ta’ Pinu
- The national shrine stands alone in open country near Għarb. The setting is extraordinary whatever you believe.
- Ramla l-Ħamra
- This is the red-sand beach of Gozo, backed by dunes rather than development. Calypso Cave sits on the hillside above it.
- Xlendi and Marsalforn
- These are the two seaside resorts, both built around small bays. They are busy in summer and half shut in winter.
- The Xwejni salt pans
- Pans are cut into the coastal rock near Marsalforn in a chequerboard. They are still worked by hand and still produce salt.
- Ta’ Ċenċ cliffs
- The clifftop above Sannat is high and empty. This is the best walking on either island.
- San Blas and Ħondoq
- Two small bays that take some effort to reach, which is precisely why they are worth it.
It collapsed into the sea during a storm on 8 March 2017 and nothing remains above the water. Photographs of it are still used to sell trips, which is worth knowing before you book one expecting to see it. The rest of Dwejra is intact and still remarkable. The fallen blocks have become a dive site in their own right.
Getting there and getting about
The ferry runs between Ċirkewwa in Malta and Mġarr in Gozo, about 25 minutes, and you pay leaving Gozo rather than arriving. Buses in Gozo exist but are infrequent; a car makes a real difference here in a way it does not in Sliema. Details and fares are on the ferries page.
After the crossings you have roughly five useful hours. One night roughly doubles that and changes the island entirely, because the day boats leave and Gozo returns to itself. If you can only do a day, pick two things rather than five.
Thinking of living there rather than visiting? See living in Gozo.
What changes with the season
You get the best walking of the year, and the island is green.
- The countryside is green from February to April and burnt brown by June, so put the walking days early in the trip.
- The sea does not really warm up until May. Treat a beach day as a coast day and you will not be disappointed.
- Holy Week moves every year and changes opening hours across a lot of towns. Check the dates before you fix a day to Valletta.
Everything is open and everything is busy. The heat sets the timetable.
- The midday heat limits you more than the distance does. Start early, stop between one and four, then go out again in the evening.
- The Blue Lagoon needs a slot booked in advance. It is free, but it is not optional.
- Beaches fill from mid-morning, and the northern buses fill with them. A full bus will drive straight past your stop.
The sea is still warm and the crowds have gone. Many people prefer October for that reason.
- The water lags the air by about a month, so swimming is still on the table through October.
- The Valletta harbour ferries switch to their winter timetable on 1 November, and the last crossing comes earlier than people expect.
- Rain returns in November. Keep one flexible day rather than booking every morning.
Swap the beach days for walking days and the itineraries still work.
- The sea is too cold for most people, so every beach day in these routes becomes a coast walk instead.
- Comino boats run to a reduced service or stop altogether, so treat the Blue Lagoon as a summer plan.
- The sites and the museums are almost empty in winter, so this is a good time to walk round them.
For a single day, an organised trip is easier because it handles the ferry and the driving for you. You can book a Gozo day trip from Malta through Klook.