When I started researching the Comino island in Malta I couldn’t believe that I had never heard of it before. In my opinion, it’s one of Europe’s best-kept secrets. The stunning blue waters, the activity and the atmosphere make the Comino Island one of my favourite places I’ve ever visited.
Now, the one caveat I would have is that because the Comino Island in Malta is so stunning, other tourists (and locals) flock to the area in droves. The island is really small. Like, really small. It’s inhabited by a total of 3 people: 2 farmers and a policeman. Which is a joke in itself but either way, that’s how small it is!
I would say a couple of hours is enough to spend on the island. I would also highly recommend that you plan a trip as early in the morning as possible. There are so many tours that go there now by noon it’s almost overrun with other visitors.
| How to get there |
I had done quite a bit of research about the area before going because I wanted to make sure we got the best tour. The last thing I wanted was for our day to be ruined because I picked the wrong group to go with! While you can get there by taking a local ferry, I found it much easier to book a tour. Plus, the one we went with picked us up from a nearby hotel.
Who did we go with? Hornblower Cruises.
Everything that I read made this group the best one to go with. They little to no bad reviews and were family owned. When I can I really try to support local business’, especially in a new country.
Hornblower Cruises made it super easy to get to the island. We simply told them we needed a pick up from the city of Sliema the day of and they got us to the waterfront. Once on the ship, it took us about 25 minutes to get to the actual island.
If you do plan on taking this tour I would highly recommend you get a spot on the top deck as early as you can. It’s a great way to sunbathe and watch the world go by. Because people layout, seating is often very limited.
| The Experience |
We were one of the first cruises that docked on the Comino Island in Malta which meant first pick of where we wanted to sit and layout. As we got off the boat we walked along the stone path towards the beach. I honestly couldn’t believe how small it was!
You can rent lounge chairs right at the beach but there are only about 25 to 30 so if you don’t get there quick enough you’re out of luck. We weren’t staying too long because we also wanted to go and see Gozo Island so we opted out of getting a lounge chair.
Instead, we walked up to the top of the hill to get a good view of everything. It was incredible.
Once we spotted some open space on the rocks we headed down as quickly as we could to grab it. The one thing I would highly recommend you bring is flip-flops. Like an idiot, I was wearing my walking shoes (knowing we’d be headed to Gozo after) which was obviously I had to take off wading through the water. Going barefoot on these rocks is definitely something you want to avoid.
If you don’t want to carry your stuff around with you all day there are lockers available that you can use (for a fee).
One of the things I love most about Europe is that you can drink anywhere. We got a couple of Corona’s from a nearby vendor to bring down to the water with us and sat there drinking them. It was a super hot day as well when we visited which made it even better for lounging and swimming.
We stayed for a total of 3 hours before heading onto the Gozo island. For us, that was perfect. While we always love going to beaches I think I’m too Restless (get it?) to sit for an entire day on a beach. It’s just too much for me.
| Where to stay |
Because you can’t actually stay on the Comino Island my best suggestion would be to stay in one of the bigger cities in Malta. This would make it much easier for you to find a tour that will bring you right to the island. We absolutely loved staying at the AX hotels in Sliema and Valletta.
Looking for more places to stay? Click here for more hotels in Malta.
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*This post contains affiliate links. Please note that while we make a small commission if you book, it’s at no extra cost to you! We were NOT invited by Hornblower Cruises to review the tour – we just loved it that much!
