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Monday, March 2, 2015

Taking a Trip To Malta - Travel, Airport, Airline and Package Options, Passenger Rights

We travelled to Malta booking Ryanair from Stansted, very pleased with the low cost of our Ryanair flight, and the price of rooms at the Excelsior Grand Hotel, a top class hotel with an indoor pool in the capital, Valletta.




However, views differ. Our neighbours who have a timeshare and have often flown to Malta told us they now preferred to pay just a little extra and go on Air Malta. Our friends said they preferred Air Malta which provided wider seats, from another nearer airport.

But with a timeshare, their accommodation cost was already taken care of. They were just looking at the cost and convenience of flights. Their timeshare was in an all-jumping resort complex, far away from other places, except for a taxi ride to a small town with an authentic rabbit stew restaurant. We were quite satisfied with Ryanair.

What other options are there? What if you want a complete package, trips to pre-historic monuments, underground caves, museums, numerous cities, all organised for you?

I have a travel brochure from the UK's Sunday Times. (I mention UK because Singapore also has a Sunday Times.)

The travel brochure title is European and Worldwide Escorted Tours. Having just returned from Malta, I was interested to see what was included. Prices for 8 days from £819 per person (sharing) at Golden Tulip hotel Vivaldi in St Julians, more for another hotel. The cheaper hotel has a restaurant and two pools. You can fly on Air Malta from Heathrow or Gatwick.

St Julians is a waterfront resort. If you are taken around it doesn't matter where you are because the island is only about half an hour 's drive across. (Although this extending to an hour's drive in peak hours depending on traffic and road works diversions, especially with detours on narrow lanes blocked by coaches, delivery vehicles, cranes outside building works, you name it.)

We chose to stay in the capital, within walking distance of the centre which we walked around on Sunday. We could not take more than four days and flew with Ryanair from Stansted and stayed in Valletta the capital, a city holiday rather than a resort-based holiday. The advantage of the escorted tour is that you see much more, as well as having company.
timyriviera.co.uk

Air Passenger Rights
ec.europa.eu/passenger-rights

Angela Lansbury BA Hons, travel writer and photographer.

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