18th April 2026

Across the Grand Harbour from Valletta is an area known as the Three Cities – Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua. On our second day we decided to take a boat over to Vittoriosa. Of course, on our way to the waterfront we couldn’t help but sightsee.

We had a choice of going by traditional water taxi or the regular ferry. We chose the latter – both were dwarfed by the cruise ship next door.

The crossing was short but sweet – there were some very impressive yachts on the other side.

In the first area we explored, between the harbour and the main square, we found a cluster of churches. You will notice a lot of candles in glass jars – these were everywhere we went in preparation for an event that evening.

We were able to see inside St Lawrence – guess what? Another ornate church!

We wandered through Victory Square and through a maze of alleys with some of the city’s oldest buildings.

One of the alleys, Triq it-Tramuntana, is home to the 13th century Norman House. Abandoned and neglected for 30 years, it was purchased in 2000 by Charlie Bugeja who started its renovation and keeps it open to the public. It’s free, but donations towards the continuing work are appreciated. You can see Charlie in the doorway below.

Next we wandered along to Fort St Angelo, which had appeared in so many of our views from Valletta. Originally a medieval fort, the Knights of St John took it over and strengthened it in 1530. A multimedia production here gave us an excellent overview of Malta’s complex history which I’m not going to go in to here – suffice it to say it is known as the Crossroads of the Mediterranean and everyone has wanted it at some time over the centuries! The British were the last occupants of the fort (until 1979) which has now been beautifully restored by Heritage Malta.

From the top there were great views over the Three Cities.

Then we discovered we weren’t quite at the very top. A small staircase took us up to an area still held by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, including the Grand Master’s House and the Chapel of St Anne. It was beautiful.

Finally, we made our way back to the harbour to return to Valletta. The huge cruise ship was still there!

The next day was the last of our holiday and we went on another excursion, this time by bus.