Malta is an amazing place and many tourists visit this historical and beautiful Mediterranean island every year for a great holiday, but the islands are also an excellent destination to host many types of events. With a long history of hosting and accommodating guests from St. Paul to presidents, and small groups to high-powered EU conferences as well as weddings, Malta has plenty of event venues and expertise for any size of formal or informal event. The range of fabulous event venues across the Maltese Islands include forts, palazzos, and castles, luxury yachts, theme parks, quaint village squares, and exclusive sea-front facilities.
With its mild Mediterranean climate, friendly, welcoming people, and plenty to see and do, Malta is an ideal location for a business or private event.
Le Méridien St. Julian’s Hotel & Spa
One of the newest hotels in Malta, Le Meridien offers 282 rooms overlooking beautiful Balluta Bay in the popular town of St. Julian’s. The hotel is built around and incorporates an original 19th-century villa which makes it quite characterful. Le Meridien has a dedicated meeting floor with 14 rooms with a total of 1,800m2 making it well set up for the MICE market. There is a 141-seat amphitheater and a banqueting hall which can accommodate 350 delegates.
Malta Fairs and Convention Centre
The Malta Fairs and Convention Centre is a state-of -the-art venue, in Ta’ Qali, in Central Malta. It was previously the temporary Wembley Arena, and thanks to it being a pillar-free space, it offers great flexibility in layout for all sorts of events from a gala dinner, to concerts, to a trade fair. The main space is 7,000m2 and it can hold 10,000 seated guests or 22,000 standing guests. As a purpose-built centre, it offers many event services in-house.
Palazzo Parisio
Palazzo Parisio is a lavish 19th century palace and you can be forgiven for thinking it is a mini version of the Palace of Versailles. Located in Naxxar, in the north west of Malta, the Palazzo is an elegant and historic venue with a mirrored ballroom, hand-painted walls, gold leaf, and many antiques and treasures. One of the loveliest event venues that Malta offers, the ballroom can host a dinner for 200 and receptions can be held in the gardens for up to 1,000 guests.
Excelsior Grand Hotel Malta
A beautiful, luxurious 5-star hotel, this is an ideal venue for those looking for modern facilities in a historical setting. Set into the 16th-century bastion walls of Malta’s capital Valletta, it offers 428 rooms with fabulous views of Manoel Island and the picturesque harbour. The hotel has extensive meeting facilities including a Grand Ballroom that can seat 850 guests in theater style, an exhibition hall that can host receptions for up to 900 guests, and for an outside event, 2,400 people can gather on the pool deck area. Smaller but equally sophisticated and elegant rooms with state-of-the-art equipment are available and guests have access to excellent facilities throughout the hotel.
Ex-Royal Naval Hospital
Previously known as Bighli Hospital, and now known as the Bighi Esplanade & Gardens, this exciting venue with a real sense of history is a magnificent neo-classical building that stands overlooking the Grand Harbour, on the opposite side of Valletta with fabulous views of the capital and Fort St. Angelo. The former hospital now serves as the headquarters of Heritage Malta and also offers an outdoor meeting and events space which can host 1,000 standing guests or 600 seated. If the weather is less than favourable, a marquee is erected.
Intercontinental Malta
Another of Malta’s luxury hotels located on St. George’s Bay in St. Julian’s, the Intercontinental houses one of the largest indoor spaces in Malta. The Eden Arena is a former ice rink with a nine-metre domed ceiling and 1660m2 of uninterrupted floor space which can accommodate up to 1,800 guests in theatre style. There are also 21 meeting rooms within the hotel and the private beach can also be used for functions. Guests who stay in the hotel have access to a lagoon style pool and various bars.
Villa Arrigo
Many event venues Malta offer stunning views and Villa Arrigo is among them. Located in San Pawl Tat-Targa, the restored, elegant villa overlooks St. Paul’s Bay, with the best views from the terrace, which becomes rather spectacular at night, with fountains and lighting adding to the atmosphere. With two main interior rooms, extensive and immaculate gardens, and a marquee, Villa Arrigo can host events from intimate dinners to large receptions. 1,500 can be accommodated in the lower floor and garden while the Gran Marquee can host 270 seated guests.
The Mediterranean Conference Centre
Set in the heart of beautiful Valletta, the Mediterranean Conference Centre is an imposing stone building originally built as hospital by the Knights of St. John. Atmospheric and giving a real flavour of historical Malta, the venue on the tip of the Valletta peninsula is divided into ten meeting spaces including the Sacra Infermeria which can host a seated banquet for 1,500 guests, the Republic Hall which can seat 1,400 in theatre style, and the unusual vaulted basement which is ideal for a gala dinner. Full event services are available including audio technicians and usherettes.
And now for two excellent event venues in Gozo, the second largest of the Maltese Islands.
Palazzo Palina
The Knights of St. John were once stationed at the early 17th-century Palazzo Palina to guard the surrounding land. The former lodge of a Grand Master, it is now owned by the Ta’ Cenc Hotel. It has the feel of a medieval castle complete with its main hall that can hold meetings or gala dinners for up to 150 guests/delegates. Two meeting rooms can hold up to 20 guests and there is also a pretty garden which can host a dinner of up to 350 guests. The hotel itself also offers a banqueting hall which can seat 400. The dramatic cliffside location in the south of Gozo certainly gives a sense of theatre to any event.
Casa Del Pescatore
One of the most intimate event venues in the Maltese Islands, the Casa del Pescatore is, as its name so romantically suggests, an idyllic farmhouse overlooking Mgarr ix-Xini Bay with views out to Comino and Malta. Ideal for small workshops, seminars, and meetings, the house is 150 years old and retains its historic beauty and charm while also offering all the modern conveniences needed for an event. The event spaces are an indoor room with flat screen TV that seats 12, and a table by the lawn and a table by the pool which both seat up to 12 – lovely for barbecues in the evening. The house also has five rooms for guest occupation.
