Southern Malta

The southern region is largely undeveloped. Most accommodation is in the harbour town of Marsascala, a southern resort which bustles by night yet is charming and quiet by day. Originally a small fishing village it is still used by the local fishermen with their colourful crafts known as Luzzo. Nearby St Thomas’ Bay is a large inlet with shallow waters and small sandy banks making it suitable for bathing. Marsalxlokk is Malta’s main fishing port and its bay is lined with fish restaurants and cafes. Sunday is local market day here offering an array of colourful fish. Nearby are the rural villages of Zejtun and Zurrieq offering a taste of traditional Maltese life. A short distance from the village of Zurrieq is Wied iz-Zurrieq, a picturesque inlet at the end of a spectacular rugged valley leading down to the sea. From here you can take a short boat trip to the local beauty spot, the Blue Grotto. This is in fact an arched hollow denting the sheer cliffs and nearby are a series of small caves which provide some beautiful light effects. Ghar Lapsi is a small rocky inlet 1km south-west of the Blue Grotto. It lies below a stretch of Dingli Cliffs. It is a popular beauty spot and is used by a few fishermen. In summer, the inlet turns into natural swimming pool. The rocky shoreline here is perfect for snorkelling enthusiasts and the inlet makes a good entry point for divers.

Zejtun

Zejtun lies in the south east of Malta, on a hilltop overlooking the bays of Marsascala and St Thomas and the harbour of Marsaxlokk. The advantageous location of Zejtun, overlooking the harbours in the south which provided landing beaches for invasions by Mediterranean corsairs, especially from North Africa, rendered it ideal as a lookout post for such attacks. Indeed the old Parish Church of St Gregory’s doubled as a watch tower. Secret passages in the south and south east walls of the Church provided shelter for sentinels who where detailed to provide advance warning by means of fire and smoke signals to the inhabitants of the locality, as well as those of the old capital Mdina in the north of the island. The village derives its name from the semitic word `zejt' meaning olive, dating back to Roman times when the production of olive oil was prevalent in Malta and you can find evidence of this activity to this day around the village. We have 1 villas in Zejtun.

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Zurrieq

The largest village in the south of Malta, Zurrieq is one of the original medieval parishes and provides an insight into pre-baroque Malta. This beautiful little village is near to some of the most spectacular coastline, particularly the picturesque, tiny harbour of Wied iz-Zurrieq which is at the end of a rugged valley. From this very harbour, you can take a short boat trip to the famous Blue Grotto, a local beauty spot and a series of natural, sea-level caves. This whole area is rich in historic and archaeological sites, including several ancient chapels and a Roman tower. The chapels at Hal-Millieri, on the fringes of Zurrieq, were built between the 14th and 16th centuries; in one you can still see the original medieval frescoes. Also in Zurrieq is the Tax-Xarolla windmill which was built in 1724 and is the only functioning windmill in Malta and Gozo. Adjacent to the windmill are the remains of a cluster of Roman catacombs. In nearby Qrendi are some of Malta’s most important archaeological remains, the pre-historic temples of Hagar Qim and Mnajdra. These temples are considered the oldest free-standing buildings in the world and are listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We have 1 villas in Zurrieq.