Churches in Malta are not open all day. Most work two shifts.
Turn up at 1:30pm and you will find a locked door and no notice explaining why.
Church opening hours in Malta
The usual pattern in a village church:
- Early morning to about noon — open, around morning Mass.
- Noon to 4pm — locked.
- 4pm to evening Mass — open again.
Times shift by an hour either way from parish to parish. There is rarely a sign on the door.
Sunday morning is the exception. The church is open and full, and walking around during Mass is not on.
The churches that stay open all day
The ones that charge admission keep museum hours instead. Those are the two you are most likely to want to see.
- St John’s Co-Cathedral, Valletta — open through the day, closed Sundays.
- Mdina Cathedral and its museum — open through the day.
- The Mosta Rotunda keeps longer hours than a village church.
All three are open during the exact hours when everything else is shut.
Feast week is the exception
During a village festa the church is open far more, hung with red damask inside, and full of people.
Time a visit for feast week and you see the church as it is meant to look.
Most feasts fall between June and September. There are fifteen in September alone.
Holy Week is the other time. Churches open long hours and the statues come out.
How to plan around it
Do churches in the morning and museums after lunch.
That also puts you indoors during the hottest part of the day. In July and August the middle hours are unpleasant outside.
Winter shortens everything again. Winter opening hours cut the afternoon shift as well.
If a church matters to you, ring the parish office. Somebody will often open it.
What to wear
Shoulders and knees covered, for both men and women.
This is enforced at St John’s and at Mdina Cathedral, where they hand out shawls at the door.
Village churches rarely say anything, but a beach cover-up will get you a look.
St John’s also bans stiletto heels, because the floor is a carpet of inlaid marble tombstones.
