There’s been a lot of negativity in the press recently about Malta’s tourism – even The New York Post published a piece – just as Delta Airlines was launching its direct service to the city.
According to the National Statistics Office, inbound tourists for May 2026 were estimated at 457,636, an increase of 22.3 per cent when compared with May 2025. Total nights spent reached 2.6 million, while total tourist expenditure stood at €419.9 million, up 15.5 per cent on the same month last year.
The vast majority came for a holiday, with 424,926 visitors travelling for leisure, while 23,791 arrived for business. The largest share of inbound tourists fell into the 25 to 44 age bracket, followed by those aged 45 to 64, confirming that Malta continues to appeal across a broad and rather active travel market.
British, Italian and Polish residents made up 44.8 per cent of total inbound tourists, underlining the continued importance of Malta’s traditional European markets, while the average length of stay stood at 5.7 nights. Rented accommodation accounted for the overwhelming majority of guest nights, at 88 per cent.
Gozo and Comino also had a particularly strong showing. In May alone, 268,229 tourists visited Gozo and Comino, including both same-day and overnight visitors. That represents 58.6 per cent of all inbound tourists for the month, proving that visitors are increasingly looking beyond the main island for their Malta fix.
For the first five months of 2026, inbound tourists amounted to 1,673,602, an increase of 17.9 per cent over the same period in 2025. Total nights reached 9.2 million, while total expenditure for January to May was estimated at €1.34 billion. Expenditure per capita stood at €800, down from €823 in 2025.
Where are they going?
While the numbers tell us how many people are arriving, the more interesting question is where they are all heading once the suitcase has been liberated from the carousel.
Valletta remains the obvious headline act. St John’s Co-Cathedral, the Grand Master’s Palace, MUŻA, the National Museum of Archaeology, Fort St Elmo, the Upper Barrakka Gardens and a very respectable number of excuses to stop for a drink with a harbour view.
Mdina and Rabat continue to deliver the old-world drama and the Three Cities, especially Birgu, are increasingly worth more than a quick look across the harbour.
Sliema and St Julian’s remain the practical crowd-pleasers, particularly for visitors who want hotels, restaurants, shopping, lidos, nightlife and easy ferry access to Valletta. They may not be the quietest corners of Malta, but they are among the most convenient.
Marsaxlokk keeps its postcard status thanks to its colourful luzzus, seafood restaurants and Sunday market, while the surrounding south offers temples, cliffs, coves and a slower rhythm for those willing to venture a little further.
Mellieħa and the north remain favourites for beach-focused visitors, with Għadira Bay, Golden Bay, Għajn Tuffieħa and easy access to ferries for Gozo and Comino. For families and sea-seekers, this is still one of Malta’s strongest holiday bases.
Gozo is no longer simply the “day trip” option. Victoria and the Ċittadella, Xagħra and Ġgantija, Dwejra, Marsalforn, Xlendi and the island’s rural villages give visitors a softer, slower counterpoint to Malta’s busier resorts. The numbers suggest they are getting the message.
Comino, meanwhile, continues to draw visitors to the Blue Lagoon, though the experience is now being managed through a booking system designed to control numbers and protect one of the islands’ most photographed natural sites.
What’s new, or worth a fresh look?
For 2026, Heritage Malta has put forward a year-long calendar of more than 200 events, turning historic sites into spaces for talks, tours, family activities, food events and more immersive cultural experiences. For visitors who think Malta’s heritage begins and ends with a quick cathedral visit and a selfie in Mdina, this is a useful corrective.
The Malta Biennale 2026 also placed contemporary art inside some of the islands’ most important historic locations, including sites in Valletta, Birgu, Xagħra and the Ċittadella in Gozo. Even after the main event, it has helped underline a growing direction in Malta’s cultural tourism: not just looking at old buildings, but rethinking how they are used, animated and experienced.
The Blue Lagoon booking system is another significant shift. Rather than allowing Comino to be overwhelmed at peak times, visitors are now required to book one of the available time slots before setting foot at the lagoon. It is less spontaneous, perhaps, but far more sensible for a fragile site that has been loved a little too enthusiastically.
But the real story is that visitors are not just arriving in Malta. They are spreading out, staying nearly six nights on average, spending heavily, crossing to Gozo and Comino, and looking for more layered ways to experience the islands.
For a country that sometimes worries about volume, that may be the more important question: not just how many tourists come, but how we ‘police’ and licence businesses and how intelligently we guide them once they are here.
