Collect in the arrivals hall at Luqa and the whole of Malta opens up from the terminal door: Valletta and Mdina a quarter of an hour away, Marsaxlokk and the Blue Grotto twenty minutes south, and the Ċirkewwa ferry to Gozo three quarters of an hour north. Traffic keeps left here, so the airport slip road is where the habit starts.
Collect in the arrivals hall at Luqa and the whole of Malta opens up from the terminal door: Valletta and Mdina a quarter of an hour away, Marsaxlokk and the Blue Grotto twenty minutes south, and the Ċirkewwa ferry to Gozo three quarters of an hour north. Traffic keeps left here, so the airport slip road is where the habit starts.
Zero deposit, zero excess
Choose Premium Insurance and the partner waives the security hold entirely — nothing is blocked on your card while you are on the island.
No airport surcharge
Direct prices from Maltese partners. What you book is what you pay in arrivals, with no desk fee bolted on at the terminal.
Briefed for driving on the left
Malta is the only left-hand-traffic country we operate in. The counter talks you through the roundabouts and the Valletta access zone before you take the keys.
Delayed flights are tracked
Add your flight number at booking and the desk follows it. Landing late is an ordinary evening at MLA, not a lost reservation.
Unlimited mileage
The island is 27 kilometres end to end and you will cross it most days. No rental we offer charges by the kilometre.
The terminal sits near the middle of the island, so nothing classic is more than twenty minutes from the barrier.
The UNESCO capital on its peninsula. Upper Barrakka Gardens look straight down on the Grand Harbour and the Three Cities opposite. Park in Floriana and walk in through City Gate.
A walled medieval capital where almost nobody lives and no traffic enters. Go for the bastion view over half the island, and stay into the evening once the tour buses have gone.
Painted luzzu fishing boats packed into a working harbour, the eye of Osiris on every bow. The Sunday fish market is the real thing rather than a display for visitors.
Sea caves under the south cliffs, best in the morning when the light comes up through the water. Boats run from the inlet below the viewpoint on the coast road.
Malta is small enough that each of these is a half day, and the airport sits roughly equidistant from all four.
45 min to the ramp
Drive north to Ċirkewwa, roll onto the ferry and cross in 25 minutes. Ġgantija predates the pyramids, Ramla Bay is red sand, and the fare is collected only when you leave the island.
20 min one way
The west edge of the island drops away into the sea, and the megalithic temples at Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra sit on the south coast below it — older than Stonehenge, and roofed against the weather.
35 min one way
Golden Bay, Għajn Tuffieħa and Mellieħa Bay are the sand the rest of the island does not have. Popeye Village in Anchor Bay is exactly as odd as it sounds, and the kids will insist.
20 min one way
Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua face Valletta across the Grand Harbour and take a fraction of its visitors. Walk the Birgu waterfront, then take the dgħajsa across for the best view of the bastions.
Keep left from the barrier
Malta is the only left-hand-traffic country we operate in. The airport slip road is the easiest place to build the habit — take the first roundabout slowly and let it settle in.
Roundabouts run clockwise
Malta uses them instead of traffic lights almost everywhere. Traffic already on the roundabout has priority, and it arrives from your right rather than your left.
Do not drive into Valletta
The capital is a Controlled Vehicular Access zone: cameras read your plate and charge for the time you spend inside. Park at the MCP car park in Floriana or use the Park & Ride.
Read the parking bays
White bays are free, blue are time-limited and green ones are reserved for residents. Spaces are short as well as narrow, which is another argument for a small car.
80 km/h is the national maximum
50 in built-up areas, 80 on the open road, and nowhere on the island is far enough away for that to cost you any real time.
Fuel up before late evening
Many stations switch to unattended card-only pumps after hours and a few close entirely. The ones on the road between Luqa and the airport stay open longest.
Yes. Choose Premium Insurance with zero excess at checkout and the partner waives the security deposit, so you settle in arrivals with a debit card or cash. Nothing is blocked on a card, and there is no pay-and-claim afterwards.
In the arrivals hall at Malta International Airport in Luqa, the single terminal serving the islands. Follow the signs out of baggage reclaim — the car rental desks are on the concourse, and the car park is a short walk beyond them.
Give us your flight number at booking so the counter can track it. The car is held for one hour after your booked pick-up time within the station's opening hours, and landing after closing can mean an out-of-hours fee. If unsure, book a later pick-up.
The left, kept from British rule along with the roundabouts. It is the only left-hand-traffic country in our network. Take the airport slip road and the first roundabout slowly — most drivers have the hang of it well before Valletta.
Yes. Cars cross on the Ċirkewwa–Mġarr ferry, 45 minutes north of the terminal, and the crossing takes 25 minutes. You drive on and off, and the fare is collected only when you leave Gozo, so the outbound trip costs nothing.
You can, but the capital is a Controlled Vehicular Access zone: cameras read your plate and charge for the time you spend inside. Park at the MCP car park in Floriana, fifteen minutes from the terminal, and walk in through City Gate.
The smallest one you are comfortable in. Lanes are narrow, stone walls are unforgiving and parking bays are short. Nothing here needs ground clearance or power, and the roads worth driving are exactly the ones that punish a big car.
The usual minimum is 21 with at least one year of driving experience. Some vehicle categories set a higher minimum — it is shown on the car before you book.
Arrivals hall – Malta International Airport
Book in minutes, choose flexible insurance, and collect in the arrivals hall at Luqa the moment you land.
