A Summer Day in Gozo: Suggestions for Your Itinerary
The Maltese archipelago has a lot to offer — stunning scenery, history, peaceful countryside walks, unique cuisine, and traditional festivities, among others.
Today, I’d like to take you on a journey to Gozo with the aim of giving you some ideas for your visit.
Gozo is the second-largest island of our archipelago. Although it is part of the same country along with Malta and Comino, culturally and linguistically this island is somewhat different from the main island, Malta.
The Gozitan dialect is truly distinct. Now that you're learning standardized Maltese, if you visit Gozo, you might notice some differences in pronunciation and word usage when speaking with locals. Even we Maltese sometimes struggle to understand this dialect, as well as other dialects spoken in small localities around Malta.
But let me get back to today’s topic. Gozo is a Mediterranean gem, and despite its small size, I guarantee you can spend entire days exploring it without ever getting bored.
Let’s start with the historical aspect, for those interested. You definitely should visit the Ċittadella (Citadel) in Rabat, Gozo.
This fortress is very similar to Mdina in Malta. The Citadel protected hundreds of Gozitans from Turkish pirate attacks. However, during an attack in 1551, Gozo suffered a major loss after the Turks managed to seize the Citadel and took all its citizens as slaves.
(Source: https://visitgozo.com/places/cittadella)
Source: Pexels
The history of this fortress is a long one, beginning even before the 1500s.
Nowadays, it is open daily. Whether you want to learn more about what happened within the Citadel’s walls or simply enjoy the breathtaking views of the island from the perspective of a knight on lookout in 1551, this is definitely a place to include in your itinerary.
For those who enjoy countryside walks, I recommend a cliffside hike from Xlendi to Dwejra.
Xlendi is a small village known as one of the most beautiful swimming spots on the island. It’s also very popular with tourists because of its wide variety of seaside restaurants.
As soon as you reach the Xlendi seafront, you’ll see cliffs on your right and a staircase that marks the start of your hike. Follow the red dots painted on the rocks — they indicate the most ideal and safest route to climb further along the cliffs.
The path is also clearly marked on digital maps, so don’t worry — you won’t get lost.
The hike takes nearly two hours and will bring you to Dwejra Bay, where you can take a dip and enjoy the sunshine. Since the walk is rather long, I suggest doing it at the end of spring or, if in summer, early in the morning or late afternoon.
Just a 15-minute walk from the bay, you’ll reach the site known as Dwejra, where until a few years ago, a natural rock formation known as the Azure Window stood. It became very famous after being featured in the first season of Game of Thrones, which was partly filmed there.
Unfortunately, the window collapsed due to strong seas during the winter of 2017.
For those who enjoy celebrating, I recommend experiencing the Maltese village feasts. This unique, traditional Maltese event adds color to the whole summer across our islands, with a celebration held in every village in Malta and Gozo.
During the feasts, the village community gathers in the streets to enjoy music from local marching bands, watch fireworks (both aerial and ground-based), and spend warm summer nights in the town center with family.
If you attend a feast, you won’t only experience an authentic Maltese cultural event, you’ll also get the chance to taste traditional sweets like qubbajt (nougat) and imqaret (date-filled pastries), sold at low prices by street vendors.
The most popular feasts in Gozo take place during July and August in the capital, Rabat.
So, I hope your visit to Gozo is pleasant and full of beautiful memories!
Keep me posted and let me know if you’re interested in these activities or if you tried something different during your trip.
Looking forward to hearing from you,
Sarah, OLS Community Manager – Maltese