Sliema and St Julian's are the twin seafront towns where most Malta visitors end up eating, swimming and going out, even if they're sightseeing elsewhere by day. They run into each other along one long promenade: Sliema is the calmer, shop-and-stroll half with the fast ferry to Valletta, while St Julian's brings the photogenic Spinola Bay and Malta's busiest nightlife at Paceville. Neither has big historic sights – this is about the sea, the food and the evenings – and a harbour cruise from Sliema is the easiest way to see the coast from the water. Here's how to spend your time, and where it fits on a wider Malta trip.
- 01Sliema and St Julian's sit side by side on one seafront promenade – walkable end to end in about 40 minutes.
- 02Sliema is the calmer side: shopping, cafés, rocky lidos and the 7-minute ferry to Valletta.
- 03St Julian's has Spinola Bay (the postcard inlet) and Paceville, Malta's main nightlife district.
- 04The 'beaches' here are flat-rock foreshores and lido pools, not sand – the sandy bays are up north.
- 05It's the best base for dining, nightlife and boat departures, and pairs with day trips by bus or ferry.
Sliema or St Julian's: what's the difference?
They blur into one another, but they have distinct personalities. Sliema is the more polished, everyday side – a long promenade lined with cafés and shops, a couple of malls, and rocky bathing spots, all backed by a wall of apartment towers.
St Julian's is livelier and more uneven: the pretty Spinola Bay at its heart, the big resort hotels along the front, and Paceville – the compact club district – at its northern edge.
For a calmer stay you lean Sliema; for nightlife and a bay view you lean St Julian's. The good news is you don't have to choose, since the promenade links them in a single walk.
Sliema: the promenade, shopping and the ferry
Sliema is built for strolling. The seafront – Triq il-Fliegu – runs around 3 km of café terraces, ice-cream stops and rocky shoreline, and it's the most pleasant aimless walk in the area, especially at sunset.
For shopping, Tigné Point and The Point mall sit at the Valletta end, with high-street brands and harbour views. It's the practical heart of the area for everyday needs.
The single most useful thing in Sliema is the ferry. The Sliema–Valletta crossing takes about seven minutes for roughly €1.50, and it beats any bus into the capital – our things to do in Valletta guide covers what to do once you're across.
St Julian's: Spinola Bay, Paceville and the nightlife
St Julian's centres on Spinola Bay, a small inlet ringed with seafood restaurants and a few painted boats on the water – the prettiest spot in the area and the one everyone photographs. It's the natural place for a long evening dinner by the water.
A short walk north is Paceville, Malta's densest nightlife zone: clubs and bars packed into a few streets, busy late into the week and aimed squarely at a younger crowd. If late nights aren't your thing, you can stay firmly in Spinola and Balluta and never hear it.
Balluta Bay, between Sliema and Spinola, adds a small beach, the striking Art Nouveau Balluta Buildings and a quieter cluster of cafés – a calmer counterpoint to Paceville a few minutes away.
Beaches and swimming: rocky, not sandy
Set expectations here: there's no sandy beach in Sliema or St Julian's. The coast is flat limestone foreshore and a string of lido pools cut into the rock, where locals and visitors swim off the ledges in summer.
It's genuinely good swimming on a calm day – clear water, easy access – just not a bucket-and-spade beach. For sand you'll head north to Golden Bay or Mellieħa, covered in our best beaches in Malta guide.
St George's Bay, on the far side of Paceville, has a small imported-sand beach if you want somewhere to lay a towel without leaving the area.
Boat trips and the harbour from the water
Because Sliema is a departure hub, the area is the easiest place in Malta to get out on the water. The short Valletta and Three Cities harbour cruise loops the Grand Harbour and Marsamxett in about 90 minutes – a relaxed way to see the fortifications you can't appreciate from land.
For a full day, the Blue Lagoon and Gozo cruises also leave from Sliema Ferries. And for an evening, party boats run from the same point in summer, if a DJ and an open bar are more your speed than a scenic loop.
How to spend your time here
Treat Sliema and St Julian's as your base for mornings out and evenings in. By day, use the ferry and buses for the sights, beaches and day trips; by evening, the area comes into its own for dinner, a harbour stroll and a drink. For where to actually book, see our pick of the best hotels in Sliema and St Julian's.
A simple plan: a Sliema promenade walk and the ferry to Valletta in the day, then dinner at Spinola Bay and as much or as little of Paceville as you fancy after. For where to actually base yourself, see our where to stay in Malta comparison.
Featured image: Txllxt TxllxT / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0
