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Malta, Heart of the Mediterranean
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FACTS ON MALTA, GOZO AND COMINO
Location: Group of islands in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, just south of Sicily
Getting there: Fly with Air Malta, among others, about 3.5 hours from Stockholm (during low season, sometimes via Oslo).
Capital: Valletta
Largest city: Birkirkara
Official languages: Maltese, English
Government: Republic
Population: 398,534, about 350 000 of them on the main island of Malta.
Currency: Maltese lira (MTL)
Time zone: UTC +1
National Day: 21 September
Miscellaneous: During World War II, Malta was an important ally airbase and endured terrible hardships during the Axis bombardment. After the war the country was awarded a St George’s Cross for its efforts and the courage of the population. The Cross is to this day on the national flag.
THE ROYAL MALTA GOLF CLUB
Number of holes: 18, par 68
Length: 4,938 / 4,612 metres
Year built: 1888
Address: Aldo Moro Street, Marsa LQA 06
Tel: +356 2122 7019
Homepage: www.royalmaltagolfclub.com
Malta
Come along to Malta, the charming little island in the middle of the Mediterranean, where a golf course lasts longer than you think.
Before the trip to Malta, I had heard and read almost only negative opinions about golf in Malta. There was just one course and furthermore it would not be especially good, but think how wrong you can be.
Now, don’t be hasty and believe that the course is some masterpiece, because it isn’t. It’s rather a fairly typical old-fashioned British golf course. Short and relatively flat, with small and not well maintained greens, but on the other hand, extremely well looked after.
No, instead it’s other softer values that make me appreciate the course. Things like the relaxed atmosphere, the friendly hospitality and the liberating, unaffected feeling.
As soon as you arrive at the combined sports centre where the club is located you will notice the happy atmosphere. It is a bit charmingly cluttered, and weekends full of people coming or going to different activities. The golf club is a bit obscured, but once you have found your way through to the reception you will be warmly received.
The course’s signature hole is the fourth, a 154 metre long short hole where you are expected to hit the ball over the remains of an old wall. If you happen to top the ball, don’t be too sad. It can reach up to the green anyway, through a portal in the wall. Odd, yes, but kind of fun.
The sixth is the course’s most difficult hole and here you have to watch out for the out of bounds along the left edge.
Otherwise the course doesn’t offer any major difficulties. The 84 bunkers are nicely designed and it’s largely a question of light-hearted holiday golf with a good chance of a birdie or two. Perhaps that’s why everyone on the course looks so cheerful. It is afterall more fun to chase birdies than save bogeys.
The Hilton Malta and the Portomaso district is a unique building in the fashionable St. Julian’s on Malta's northeast coast. Here a beautiful marina, residences and a host of restaurants and shops have grown out of what were previously only stones.
The hotel exudes quiet elegance and actually feels smaller than it is - in a positive way. And the view, yes, it's worth coming here for!
From the hotel you can take advantage of a slow morning stroll along the water past Spinola Bay, with its maze of boats and the occasional fisherman who’s preparing his nets. Walk a little further to Sliema, and then on the way back again you can reward yourself with a divine, chocolate-filled and seriously unhealthy croissant at Cafe Bocconcino. Here you can sit a while and watch passers-by while you're chatting with staff and other guests.
In order to fully understand the country and its inhabitants a visit to "The Malta Experience" in the city of Valetta is a must. In 45 minutes you get a multimedia overview of Malta's 7,000-year history, and only then will you realize that hospitality has always been a big part of the people's mentality.
The first visitors probably arrived from nearby Sicily, but as the importance of shipping rose in the Mediterranean area, Malta's position also became increasingly important. Over the years there were visits from the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans and Arabs - and all have more or less brought something to the local culture.
Malta has an area of 300 square metres so you understand that it is quick to get around on the island, but remember that the 350,000 inhabitants also will hit the road now and then.
The local bus service runs admirably, but if you want to hire a car I have to warn you that the Maltese don’t always seem quite so pleasingly friendly in traffic as they are otherwise. Nevertheless, Malta, together with Sweden, among others, is best in relation to the EU average when it comes to traffic fatalities.
If you like to dive there is a wealth of interesting dive sites in crystal clear water. If you like wine, you won’t want to miss the manufacturer Delicata’s cellar where you can sample your way through the entire selection - yet another favourite spot on the island that can justly be described as the heart of the Mediterranean.
Text: Mikael Andersson
Before the trip to Malta, I had heard and read almost only negative opinions about golf in Malta. There was just one course and furthermore it would not be especially good, but think how wrong you can be.
Now, don’t be hasty and believe that the course is some masterpiece, because it isn’t. It’s rather a fairly typical old-fashioned British golf course. Short and relatively flat, with small and not well maintained greens, but on the other hand, extremely well looked after.
No, instead it’s other softer values that make me appreciate the course. Things like the relaxed atmosphere, the friendly hospitality and the liberating, unaffected feeling.
As soon as you arrive at the combined sports centre where the club is located you will notice the happy atmosphere. It is a bit charmingly cluttered, and weekends full of people coming or going to different activities. The golf club is a bit obscured, but once you have found your way through to the reception you will be warmly received.
The course’s signature hole is the fourth, a 154 metre long short hole where you are expected to hit the ball over the remains of an old wall. If you happen to top the ball, don’t be too sad. It can reach up to the green anyway, through a portal in the wall. Odd, yes, but kind of fun.
The sixth is the course’s most difficult hole and here you have to watch out for the out of bounds along the left edge.
Otherwise the course doesn’t offer any major difficulties. The 84 bunkers are nicely designed and it’s largely a question of light-hearted holiday golf with a good chance of a birdie or two. Perhaps that’s why everyone on the course looks so cheerful. It is afterall more fun to chase birdies than save bogeys.
The Hilton Malta and the Portomaso district is a unique building in the fashionable St. Julian’s on Malta's northeast coast. Here a beautiful marina, residences and a host of restaurants and shops have grown out of what were previously only stones.
The hotel exudes quiet elegance and actually feels smaller than it is - in a positive way. And the view, yes, it's worth coming here for!
From the hotel you can take advantage of a slow morning stroll along the water past Spinola Bay, with its maze of boats and the occasional fisherman who’s preparing his nets. Walk a little further to Sliema, and then on the way back again you can reward yourself with a divine, chocolate-filled and seriously unhealthy croissant at Cafe Bocconcino. Here you can sit a while and watch passers-by while you're chatting with staff and other guests.
In order to fully understand the country and its inhabitants a visit to "The Malta Experience" in the city of Valetta is a must. In 45 minutes you get a multimedia overview of Malta's 7,000-year history, and only then will you realize that hospitality has always been a big part of the people's mentality.
The first visitors probably arrived from nearby Sicily, but as the importance of shipping rose in the Mediterranean area, Malta's position also became increasingly important. Over the years there were visits from the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans and Arabs - and all have more or less brought something to the local culture.
Malta has an area of 300 square metres so you understand that it is quick to get around on the island, but remember that the 350,000 inhabitants also will hit the road now and then.
The local bus service runs admirably, but if you want to hire a car I have to warn you that the Maltese don’t always seem quite so pleasingly friendly in traffic as they are otherwise. Nevertheless, Malta, together with Sweden, among others, is best in relation to the EU average when it comes to traffic fatalities.
If you like to dive there is a wealth of interesting dive sites in crystal clear water. If you like wine, you won’t want to miss the manufacturer Delicata’s cellar where you can sample your way through the entire selection - yet another favourite spot on the island that can justly be described as the heart of the Mediterranean.
Text: Mikael Andersson
Photo: Samir Soudah
Web Editor: Emma Lindén