How to spend Pride weekend in Malta, Europe’s most-welcoming country for LGBTQ+ people
Malta is an LGBTQ+ safe haven. (FINN Partners)
It’s midnight in the town of Żebbuġ, in southern Malta, and I am watching two drag queens snogging to Charli XCX and Billie Eilish’s “Guess”. Around me are roughly 2,000 sweaty queer people who lose their collective minds over the course of the night to the sounds of Lady Gaga deep cuts, Chappell Roan’s mega hits, and Beyoncé’s best bangers.
This is Nerve, a semi-regular queer club night, tonight staged at the outdoor, jungle-like Marrakech Club, to celebrate the end of Malta’s main LGBTQ+ Pride festivities. It’s a little messy and incredibly fun (don’t ask for a recount of how many white wines I downed), and I’m feeling high on hedonism.
Tomorrow though, I’ll be tucking into a plate of pumpkin gnocchi at Tartarun, an esteemed seafood restaurant on the harbour of postcard-perfect fishing village Marsaxlokk, and venturing out on a short boat along the coastline. Such is the versatility of Malta.
For nine successive years, this archipelago bobbing away in the Mediterranean has been named the best and safest place for LGBTQ+ people in Europe, according to ILGA-Europe’s Rainbow Map, and is a haven for queer travellers. Being here for Pride weekend, held every September, it’s not difficult to understand why. I spent 72 hours feeling well-fed and sun-kissed, but most importantly, safe.
Where to stay
I flew to Malta on one of British Airways’ seven weekly flights from the UK in little more than three hours.
From there, I checked into the InterContinental Malta, a hotel of such inordinate, cruise ship-like opulence it felt like a could be a setting for The White Lotus. Slap-bang in the middle of St George’s Bay, in the built-up town of St Julian’s, it’s a stone’s throw from the beach and, crucially, within walking distance of Malta’s only LGBTQ+ bar, Michelangelo (more on that shortly).
It’s also a short drive to the country’s capital, and UNESCO World Heritage Site, Valletta. Not that Malta leads to much staying in, but if you wanted, you could make a weekend of the hotel alone, be that in the rooftop infinity pool or lavish fitness centre.
Prices start at £130 ($165) a night, including breakfast.
Where to eat
Malta is famed for its seafood, although this was wasted on this vegetarian. The oysters at Tartarun looked plump, while Sole Seabar by Tarragon – not far from the hotel – was a group favourite (I had the mushroom and truffle bao buns, equally plump, and risotto: a crowd pleaser).
The weekend’s highlights though were nestled in the honey-coloured globigerina limestone walls of Malta’s old town capital. Buoyed by revered chefs and a Michelin star or two, Fifty-Nine Republic and Gracy’s brasserie blend international cuisine with a Maltese touch, with the former offering the sort of vegetarian wellington British pubs could only pray for, and the latter serving a tomato dish for which sorcery is the only logical explanation.
Where to drink
As the most queer-friendly country on the continent, I was surprised by the lack of explicitly LGBTQ+ bars. There’s Michelangelo in St Julian’s, the sort of hazy, violet-lit venue that would’ve been instrumental to Charli XCX’s Brat campaign, had she been born Maltese not British.
But I learnt swiftly that this dearth of clubs is a good thing, actually: a hefty number of other bars and nightlife spots make it crystal clear that they’re safe spaces for the community, and exclusive venues aren’t a necessity.
My first night started at Kuch Kuch, a sort of maximalist art deco hidey-hole lined with ruby-red walls, zebra-print furniture, and a version of the Mona Lisa with a hand tattoo and bold lip. Its drink list is brilliantly odd. My first was a gin cocktail made with feta and olives, served in a neon green and pink bust. It’s a must-try.
Another highlight was Cafe Society, in Valletta, which, if I’m honest, I didn’t see much of inside. Revellers spilled out on to the narrow streets, underneath billowing Progress Pride flags hitched to the bar’s frame. It’s not flashy but a good night needs only good vibes, and this place was overflowing with them.
What to do
Malta might be the smallest country in the European Union but there’s still a lot of ground to cover in a weekend. Thankfully, getting around can be an experience all in itself: after setting off via ferry to the island of Gozo, I hitched a ride (bought a ticket) with Yippee TukTuk tours, careering along teal-blue coastlines and over rugged clifftops, and zipping between architectural sites that date back as far as 7,000 years.
If history is your bag, Malta is chock full of it: I’d suggest a walking tour of the baroque-style architecture in Mdina, the Silent City, or, for something more LGBTQ+-history-specific, Valletta is the place for you. The Megalithic Temples of Malta, more UNESCO sites which are dotted around the island, predate the Egyptian pyramids.
In more recent historical annals, Malta was the shooting location for major movies, such as both Gladiator epics, Napoleon and Murder on the Orient Express.
You’d be forgiven if your main Malta aim is to soak up some potent sun, and you can do that with a glass of something potent in hand: the wine tasting experience on the Ta’ Betta Wine Estates, in the south west of the island, was unbeatable.
LGBTQ+ history in Malta
As a country so ready to accept the queer community, it’s unsurprising that much of Malta is steeped in LGBTQ+ history. So much so that there’s a tour company, Q Travel, which operates solely to showcase the country’s queer culture roots.
Valletta has a particularly prominent place in Malta’s LGBTQ+ past (and present), so I opted to venture out on a two-hour queer walking tour of the city.
There’s some pretty intriguing stuff packed into those two hours, including focus on Valletta’s once-upon-a-time meeting points for queer folk, such as St Philip’s Garden (for cruising), Strait Street (for dancing, drinking and debauchery), and The Wembley Store, on Republic Street (for more-general, less-salacious meet-ups).
Hearing about some of the country’s most notable queer people from eras gone by was fascinating – heart-warming and heart-breaking in equal measure. To name just a couple, there’s Bobbie, Malta’s drag legend who performed up and down Strait Street about 70 years ago, and Rosaria Mifsud, the country’s first recorded person to transition, from female to male – in 1774. It’s a pretty special tour, with an astonishing amount to digest.
Malta Pride
Malta’s Pride march felt unburdened compared with similar events in, say, London or Brighton. In those cities, there’s often a slight unease among the celebrations, a niggling fear of where the nearest anti-trans or religious fundamentalist protestors (or passers-by) are, or which hot take will emerge in the right-wing press the following day.
Perhaps it was the 26C temperature (with sun and a light breeze, a godly combination), but Malta’s Pride march just felt pure. It’s not to say the country doesn’t have its own political, anti-LGBTQ+ groups – it certainly does – but the carefree sense of community made me feel a little emotional.
The march is less showy than those in other cities but it’s got all the essentials: scores of people, some clothed, others less so, a blaring soundtrack featuring Kylie and Diana Ross, powerful signage and community groups, kissing, and the longest rainbow tarp I’ve ever seen.
The afternoon was topped off by a concert in Valletta’s St George’s Square, featuring past Eurovision stars and outrageous British drag performers. If crowds aren’t your thing, I was pleasantly surprised by the extensive calendar of events around Pride itself, from painting to peer support groups.
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