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The Three Cities of Malta, Vittoriosa (Birgu), Senglea (Isla), and Cospicua (Bormla) are a unique showcase of Malta’s rich history and cultural heritage. These towns are historic fortified places that played a significant role in defending Malta, particularly during the Great Siege of 1565.
Located across the Grand Harbour from the Capital City–Valletta, the Three Cities are known for their fortifications, including the iconic Fort St. Angelo in Vittoriosa and the Gardjola Gardens in Senglea.
The inner towns consist of narrow streets and alleys, each having a blend of Baroque architecture in the many historical buildings as well as more contemporary homes.
Visiting The Three Cities is something I recommend to most travellers who are interested in local culture and history, and exploring the area on foot is fairly easy to do.
Birgu is the oldest of the Three Cities and existed well before the arrival of the Knights of Saint John in the Maltese islands. Due to its historical and cultural wealth, it is also the most popularly visited town.
With over 11,000 inhabitants combined, the Three Cities give you a glimpse of authentic life and are regaining their past popularity, attracting many investors who are buying property and turning it into state-of-the-art homes. This revival has also attracted the tourism industry, with boutique hotels, restaurants and wine bars popping up along the narrow streets and alleys of the Three Cities.
While walking around the Three Cities, you cannot help but admire the imposing bastions restored to their former glory. They are quite a sight, especially at night.
The Three Cities are special in many ways. Their history, tightly related to the Order of the Knights, location overlooking the Grand Harbour, and contemporary revival to newfound glory, makes them unique in what they offer. In short, they should be high up on your travel bucket list when planning to visit Malta.
All of the three are insanely rich in history, having been the first fortified cities built by the Knights of St John when they arrived in Malta in 1530. The Knights had been thrown out of Rhodes in 1522, and after seven years of wandering, they were finally given Malta as their new home. They settled in Birgu (Vittoriosa), making it their main Maltese city, repurposing the ancient fortress known as Castrum Maris as Fort St Angelo, and also building new fortifications and countless new buildings, including churches, auberges, warehouses and palaces.
The Grand Harbour was what made the Knights settle in that area. Trade and controlling the harbour were tremendously important and much can be learned by visiting the Malta Maritime Museum right on the Birgu Waterfront.
Individually, each of the Three Cities has much to offer. Birgu is the most popular, and also the one boasting the most attractions, such as the Maritime Museum, the Malta at War Museum, the Inquisitor’s Palace and of course Fort St, Angelo.
Bormla, with its six kilometres of fortifications, is home to an impressive parish church with an oratory full of works of art. Isla hosts two astounding churches (namely St Philips and Our Lady of Victories) and has a lovely garden at its tip overlooking Grand Harbour, where you can find a great example of a Gardjola watch post.
Between the three, you’re in for some truly spectacular sights. Dive into the Maltese culture and history of the Three Cities, take a stroll around the beautiful yacht marina or just relax in one of the many cafeterias, restaurants and wine bars.
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It’s not easy to find hotels in the area, and the few that are around are mostly in the luxury segment and get booked up pretty quickly. These are a few options to have a look at:
If you don’t mind going for a self-catering option, there are a few really nice places on Airbnb available around the Three Cities, some with stunning harbour views.
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The Three Cities are well connected with regular buses and a water taxi service from Valletta and are easy to get to by car. Not sure which option works best for you? Here’s a quick overview of all the ways that will get you to the Three Cities in no time!
By bus, the trip to the Three Cities takes about 15 minutes from the Valletta bus station. Route numbers are 1, 2, 3, 4 or 213.
Valletta Ferries offers two routes: Senglea/Bormla (part of The Three Cities, across Grand Harbour) and Sliema to Valletta (Sliema Ferry seafront across Marsamxett Harbour) to take you across each of the harbours for just a couple of euros. The journey lasts around 10 minutes.
You can also take the South Route of the Hop-on-hop-off bus routes to get to Birgu (Vittoriosa on the route map). Get your tickets in advance here!
In the afternoon, you’ll then get a chance to sample some of the best local wines paired with Maltese bread and cheese at Marsovin Cellars in Marsa.
A more scenic way to cross to the Three Cities is by water taxi across the Grand Harbour. This is a continuous service offered throughout the day (running from 06:45h till 19:15h in winter and from 06:45h till midnight in summer – full schedule here), and it takes just 7 minutes from Valletta to reach Bormla. A ticket with return and use of the Upper Barrakka lift (Valletta) costs just €2.80 per person.
You can also take a 30-minute harbour tour for a little extra.
It is very easy to reach the Three Cities by car. Parking is not a problem unless there are events in the area. If you decide to park on the Valletta side, you can either get one of the buses to the Three Cities or take the Water Taxi from the Valletta waterfront. Use of the lift in Barrakka is included in the ferry ticket.
Once you’re in Birgu, you can take a dgħajsa across the creek to Senglea. These traditional Maltese boats operate from near the Maritime Museum, costing €2 per person. The trip takes just a couple of minutes but saves you a 30-minute walk.
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Although I’ve briefly touched upon some of the main sights to see when you visit the Three Cities in Malta, here are the highlights that you should definitely not miss out on:
The biggest concentration of interesting sights to see within the Three Cities is found in Birgu.
For more places of interest that you can visit in the Victorious City, you can find more details in my Birgu article, here!
Although there isn’t much to explore in Bormla, there are a few sights to see:
Senglea also offers just a few places that are of interest but are both very much worth visiting:
The best time for a stroll around the Three Cities depends mostly on the time of the year. If visiting in summer, it is advisable to avoid walking between 11 am and 3 pm since the heat would be a little too much to bear. At night, especially with a nice breeze, a stroll by the marina is lovely.
During spring, autumn and winter, a trip in the morning is mostly recommended. It is very easy to find your way around the Three Cities and then stop for lunch in one of the many eating places around the place.
The Three Cities are packed with good restaurants, especially in the Waterfront area. However, all along the picturesque streets of the ancient towns, one will find several snack bars, little cafeterias and band or political clubs that offer quick snacks at extremely favourable prices.
Places such as the Old City Pub and Birgi, right across the marina in Birgu or Il Bacino, a cafe, pizza & grill just by the water’s edge are great places to stop for lunch. The clubs also cater for snacks and are a good place to absorb the true local atmosphere.
While in Birgu, go by the information Centre down by the marina. The people there are very helpful and you can get a small map of the three cities for free.
Public toilets are available on the Birgu side of the marina, just before the Malta Maritime Museum.
While my article on Birgu offers a selection of restaurant recommendations, here are a few options for Senglea and Bormla:
Both the Good Friday procession and the Easter Sunday feast are popularly attended in Senglea. On Easter Sunday, the statue of the Risen Christ is carried at a run through the crowded streets with viewers standing on the sidewalks.
If visiting in August, make sure you catch the annual Feast of St Lawrence on the 10th of August, a night also very well known for the shooting star phenomenon which locals call Dmugħ ta’ San Lawrenz, or St Lawrence’s Tears. And just two weeks after that, the feast of St Dominic is celebrated on the last Sunday of August.
Senglea celebrates two feasts:
The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is celebrated in Cospicua on the 8th of December and even that day is a public holiday.
Although the area has been inhabited since ancient times, the Three Cities as we know them owe their inception to the order of the Knights of St John. They landed in Malta in 1530 and the first thing they did was to make Birgu the island’s first capital city. They rebuilt it, erecting massive fortifications and forts to protect the Grand Harbour. In July 1551, Ottoman forces attempted to take over Fort Saint Angelo–they couldn’t take it, so attacked Gozo instead and enslaved the whole population. After this attack, the Knights built the city of Senglea, building a new fort which they called St Michael.
The Three Cities played a most important role all through the Great Siege of Malta of 1565. The invading Ottomans concentrated all their attacks on the cities, firing cannonballs day and night for months. Undefeated, Birgu was given the title of Città Vittoriosa while Senglea was called Città Invicta (the Invincible City) after the siege was over. In his book The Great Siege: Malta 1565, Ernle Bradford gives a very detailed account of the siege, a must-read for all history buffs out there.
It was only six years after the Great Siege that Valletta was built, taking over the title of capital city from Birgu.
In 1670, during the reign of Grandmaster Nicolas Cotoner, the building of the Cottonera fortifications started–a project that was intended to create a new city encompassing all the surrounding towns but which was never completed as planned. The new city was going to be called Civitas Cotonera, a name that still sticks among the population.
In 1722, Grandmaster Marc’Antonio Zondadari gave the town of Bormla the title of Città Cospicua. Bormla’s ancient name of Burmula is thought to be Phoenician. ‘Burmula’ is made up of the words ‘Bur’ and ‘Mula’ where ‘Bur’ means ‘place’ and ‘Mula’ means ‘high’.
During World War II, the Three Cities suffered greatly when Italians and Germans bombed the Grand Harbour and the surrounding areas. Many inhabitants had to leave their birthplace and seek refuge in the countryside, returning after the war was over.
Today, thanks to massive investment, the Three Cities have become once more a sparkling jewel amongst Malta’s cultural treasures.
The Three Cities of Malta are absolutely worth visiting. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy some picturesque views and the authentic life, whilst learning more about Malta’s fascinating history
The Three Cities of Malta are Birgu (Vittoriosa), Bormla (Cospicua) and Isla (Senglea). Collectively, the area is known as Il-Cottonera.
The easiest way to get to the Three Cities of Malta from Valletta is by bus. The trip takes about 15 minutes from Valletta bus station. Route numbers are 1, 2, 3, 4 or 213. You can also opt for the ferry service.
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