Malta After Dark: How the Island’s Entertainment Scene Has Changed
Strait Street, Valletta
From historic bars and village festas to waterfront dinners and late-night clubs, Malta’s after-dark scene has changed dramatically over the decades. Explore the places, traditions and cultural venues that keep the islands buzzing long after sunset.
At eight in the evening, Valletta’s Strait Street is a place for cocktails, dinner and live music. A few kilometres away, Paceville is preparing for another night of DJs and crowded dance floors. In Sliema, the waterfront tables are filling up for dinner.
Back in the 1970s, Royal Navy sailors were still visiting Strait Street’s bars. Paceville had yet to become Malta’s main club district, and village feasts already had their own busy evening crowds.
The Years When Strait Street Belonged to Sailors
British servicemen knew where to go for a night out in Valletta. Strait Street, close to the Grand Harbour, had cabarets, dance halls and bars where live music continued well into the night.
The street earned the nickname The Gut. Places called the Silver Horse, Blue Peter and James Bond became familiar names among visiting servicemen.
The British military withdrawal in 1979 hit the street’s bars hard. Some closed for good, while others stood empty for years.
Today, Alchemy Bar and N Japanese Bistrot occupy part of the revived Gut district. Behind the old limestone façades, former nightlife premises have found new uses.
Strait Street
Village Festas Never Went Away
In Żebbuġ, the feast of St Philip brings marching bands and fireworks to the town centre. Mosta has its Assumption celebrations in August, and Victoria on Gozo holds its own summer festivities.
Each town follows its local programme. Flags go up on balconies days before the festa, and the local band starts practising. After the procession, people gather near the church for food and fireworks.
Mosta Dome
Paceville Grew Around Hotels and Nightclubs
Paceville began as a residential area near St Julian’s. Giuseppe Pace developed houses there during the early twentieth century, long before the neighbourhood acquired its collection of clubs.
Dragonara Palace, a nineteenth-century building near St Julian’s, opened its casino in 1964. Nightclubs developed elsewhere on the island, too. Gianpula opened near Rabat in 1980 and eventually expanded into a complex with several dance venues.
Paceville later became Malta’s best-known clubbing district. Around St George’s Bay, the streets fill with people moving between dance floors, bars and late-night food outlets.
International DJs have also appeared at Maltese venues. Gianpula’s past line-ups include Carl Cox, Charlotte de Witte and Peggy Gou.
Paceville
Valletta’s Old Buildings Became Performance Venues
During Valletta’s 2018 European Capital of Culture year, concerts and exhibitions took over historic squares and venues across Malta and Gozo. Cultural organisations had been gathering in the city before then. In 2016, Valletta hosted an international arts summit attended by figures from Europe’s cultural sector.
Malta also has several annual festivals with established programmes. Three worth checking are:
Notte Bianca. Valletta’s museums and historic buildings welcome evening visitors, with concerts and exhibitions around the city.
Malta Jazz Festival. Founded in 1991, it brings jazz musicians to venues around the capital.
Malta International Arts Festival. The programme changes each year, with plays, concerts and dance events held across both islands.
For Notte Bianca, visitors can explore Valletta’s museums well past their usual closing time. Visitors can move from an exhibition to an outdoor concert, sometimes entering buildings normally closed in the evening.
A performance around St George’s Square also leaves time for a drink on Strait Street. Restaurants occupy several of the neighbouring lanes, within the old city walls.
Paceville
The Evening Sometimes Moves Online
Back at the Sliema apartment, one friend puts on the football highlights while another plays on their phone. Those interested in online casinos may browse Royal Sea on their phones, where local rules permit.
Check the last ferry to Sliema before dinner on Strait Street. It may have stopped running by the time you leave.
Three Areas Worth Exploring After Sunset
An evening around Valletta’s old bars has little in common with dinner on Sliema’s waterfront or a late night in Paceville. All three areas are within easy reach during a holiday.
An Evening Around Valletta’s Strait Street
Alchemy is among the bars on Strait Street, with restaurants tucked into the lanes nearby. From there, visitors can head towards Republic Street and continue to St George’s Square.
The Mediterranean Conference Centre stages concerts and plays inside the former Sacra Infermeria, a building originally used as a hospital.
The European Commission later examined Valletta’s 2018 programme in an evaluation available in Hungarian, covering the events and their cultural objectives.
Dinner Along Sliema’s Waterfront
Around Sliema Ferries, café terraces face Marsamxett Harbour, with Valletta across the water. Restaurants occupy much of the promenade towards Tigné Point.
Farther north, the coastal route passes Balluta Bay on its way towards St Julian’s. The walk is particularly pleasant after sunset, when lights appear across the harbour.
The location and nearby accommodation options are covered in this Hungarian guide to staying in Malta, alongside information about other tourist districts.
Spinola
St Julian’s for Clubs and Late Nights
Spinola Bay has restaurants overlooking the water and fishing boats. From there, visitors can continue towards the bars around St George’s Bay.
Paceville’s club streets are busiest later in the evening, with venues playing electronic music, hip-hop and commercial dance tracks.
Dragonara Palace offers another option for adults interested in casino gaming, with a history stretching back to 1964.
Whether it’s live music in a historic Valletta bar, dinner overlooking the harbour or dancing until the early hours in Paceville, Malta offers plenty of ways to spend an evening. The venues may change, but the island’s appetite for a night out remains.
