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Transport Options from Malta Airport to Valletta, Sliema and Other City Destinations with Bus and Taxi Guide

Getting from Malta Airport to city centre Valletta, Sliema or other destinations by taxi or bus are the most popular options. There is no metro or subway train system in Malta. The only public transport used is the public bus service. Taxi is rather cheap and also another commonly used mode of transportation as compared to other European cities. Hence, from Malta Airport to the destinations, one can choose between booking a taxi, taking a public bus, shared shuttle van or a private transfer.

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Taxi from Malta Airport to Sliema

We arrived at Malta International Airport at 22:35 from Belgium with Air Malta. Our friends living in Malta advised the three of us that it was better to book a taxi from Malta airport to Sliema. We were going to stay over at their place for two weeks in Sliema.

• Taxi Price from Malta Airport to Sliema = €20 | 18 min | 11.2 km
• Taxi Cost from Malta Airport to Valletta = €17 | 18 min | 10.3 km

The taxi counter is inside Malta Airport Arrival Hall, located on the left side of the main exit next to the door. Behind the table displayed a board of taxi price lists from Malta Airport to various destinations.

You have to make payment at the counter first, then the staff will pass you a receipt. A female taxi driver happened to be standing around the corner. She took the receipt from me and subsequently, we walked over to her taxi outside the main exit.

The odd thing was that the taxi had another lady sitting at the front of the passenger’s seat. They took my mobile where I had stored my friend’s address in Sliema and keyed it on the GPS.

The female was showing the taxi driver the GPS route on her mobile throughout the journey. What did not seem acceptable was that there should not be another unauthorised person sharing the cab with us. The taxi driver did not ask us for permission either.

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Taxi Fare Malta Price List

Here are the latest Malta Airport taxi prices travelling to all other destinations according to the photo taken on the counter. The taxi service at Malta Airports runs 24 hours. The cost stated on the airport website did not seem updated. Some taxi fares to other cities displayed at the counter were €1 to €6.50 higher or €0.50 lower than what was published online.

The taxi fare from Malta Airport to Sliema was €20 booked from Malta Airport Arrival Hall. When we booked a cab 6 hours in advance from eCabs back to the airport, the cab fare was €22.90. The pick-up time is at 03:00. If you want to get a taxi in Malta at your fingertips, you can read the reviews and download these 2 Malta taxi apps – eCabs and Bolt. Booking a taxi is cheap in Malta as compared to other European cities.

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If we had opted to take a public bus from Malta Airport to Sliema or Valletta instead of a taxi, the bus journey would be 1 hour but for merely €2 during summertime. Besides, the buses would mostly be full of people since Malta does not have a metro system.

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Malta Airport Bus Service and Bus Routes to City

Here is a list of public buses that run from Malta Airport to the cities. Additionally, I have added the bus stop names and locations on the table below. You can find them on Google Maps at the top of the sidebar and the bottom right of the page. That will make it easy for you to refer if you want to take a bus from Malta Airport. You can also download the Tallinja app from Malta Public Transport.

• TD buses will take you directly to the city stated without stops in between and run hourly.
• TD2 bus will take you directly to St. Julian’s (San Ġiljan) and the TD3 bus will take you directly to Buġibba and Qawra.
• X buses operate like conventional buses with stops in between.

By clicking on the links below, it will show you the bus routes from Malta Airport to the city and vice versa by Malta Public Transport.

• Note that Bus X4 has two bus stops at Malta Airport – Airport 1 and 3 because the Malta Airport bus stop is between the two routes. Unlike most bus services, the airport bus stops are usually the first.
  • If you are planning to go to Valletta, go to Airport 1 Bus Stop.
  • If you are going to Birzebbugia, go to Airport 3 Bus Stop.
  • To go to Gozo, you have to take Bus X1 at Airport 2 Bus Stop to go to Cirkewwa Ferry Terminal and then take a ferry to cross over to the island.

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Malta Bus Fares

For Malta bus tickets for tourists, one can buy a single trip ticket for all the buses in Malta including bus services operating from the airport. Pay the amount directly to the bus driver in small change. A cash paper ticket will be issued. You can use it on other buses within 2 hours.

• Winter Bus Fare: €1.50 (most time of the year)
• Summer Bus Fare: €2.00 (mid-June to mid-October)
• Night Ticket: €3.00 (all times)

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Malta Explore Card (Tourists Travel Cards)

Knowing the bus fares now, do a mental calculation on the number of bus trips based on the number of days spent and places of interest that you plan to visit in Malta. If you are going to take buses frequently, it will be worthwhile to consider buying a transport card with more or unlimited bus rides.

You can buy the cards from any of the Sales and Information Offices and also at the third party outlets. At Malta Airport, you can get them from WHS Express (Arrival Hall) and Agenda Bookshop (Departure Hall). All the travel cards should be ordered at least 2 weeks in advance. Get it delivered to a local address or an address out of Malta by registered mail. Here are the options of the cards:

❶ 12 Single Day Journeys Card

• Cost: €15 = €1.25/trip
• Usage: 12 single trips during the day or 6 single trips on night services, or a combination of both
• Valid: 1 year from the date of validation on the bus
• Area: Malta and Gozo
• Pros: Can be shared by family and friends

❷ Explore Card for Adults / Children

• Cost: €21 / €15 (children up to 10 years old)
• Valid: 7-day unlimited bus travel from the first day of use
• Area: Malta and Gozo
• Cons: Cannot share with other people

❸ Valletta Card

• Cost: €19
• Valid: 24 hours (Need to validate the card every time you use it)
• Area: Bus travel to and from Valletta from any location in Malta
• Pros: Includes ferry trips from Sliema and Cospicua using Valletta Ferry Services
• Free Entry for Any Three: The Palace State Rooms, The Palace Armoury, The National Museum of Archaeology and Malta 5D

❹ ExplorePlus Meep Card

• Cost: €39
• Valid: 7-day unlimited bus travel from the first day of use
• Area: Malta, Gozo and Comino
• Pros:
  • Ferry: 2 x single trip specific route from Sliema ➟ Valletta and/or from Cospicua ➟ Valletta
  • Hip-on, Hop-off Buses: 1 x full-day tour by CitySightseeing Malta OR
  • One round trip (including lunch) to Comino Island by a boat operated by Captain Morgan Cruises
  • 2 x free trips on Tallinja Bike (electric bike-sharing service in Valletta)
  • 20% discount on Ioscoot (electric motorbike sharing service available in the St. Julian’s, Sliema and Valletta area)
• Bonus: Meep App

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As we were claiming our luggage at the Malta Airport Arrival Hall, I saw a Hotel Airport Shuttle sales office by Malta Transfer at the Baggage Reclaim Area, which is Malta Airport official shuttle service. The Malta Airport Shuttle Transfer Services works by bringing you to the hotel or a cruise liner terminal and vice versa throughout Malta and Gozo. There are 3 types of services here.

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Shared Shuttle Bus

The Shared Shuttle Bus service can bring you to the following destinations for a single trip journey by sharing the shuttle van with others. It is a cost-effective way to get from Malta Airport to the city if you are travelling alone and want to reach your destination faster than a standard bus journey by paying slightly more.

• To 165 hotels in Malta: €5/person
• To Gozo Ferry Terminal: €8/pax

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Private Car Transfer

If you want to go to a destination of your choice and not stop at the designated 165 hotels, you can take a private car transfer from these 2 options at a fixed rate per vehicle for a one-way trip. The prices may be subject to change depending on the date and the destination. For example, going from Malta Airport to Gozo Ferry Terminal or Cirkewwa (€32/car) would cost more than going to Valletta or Sliema (€23/car).

•  Chauffeur Driven Car: approx. €23 – €32/car (max. 4 passengers)
• Wheelchair Accessible Van: approx. €80 – €100/van (max. 5 passengers)

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Luggage Capacity

If you have excess luggage other than specified below such as pushchairs, wheelchairs, golf clubs, diving equipment or any other out of the ordinary items, do let the company knows in advance to prevent incurring additional charges.

• Shared Shuttle Bus: Each person can carry 1 large + 1 small luggage.
• Chauffeur Driven Car: One vehicle can hold only 1 large + 1 small luggage.
• Wheelchair Accessible Van: The capacity allows a maximum of 5 large + 5 small luggage.

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Journey Time

How long is the journey from Malta Airport to the destination? The approximate durations are as follows:

• 30min: Sliema, St Julians, Valletta Area
• 45min: St Paul’s Bay, Xemxija, Rabat Area
• 1 hr: Mellieha, Marfa, Cirkewwa
• 2 hr: Gozo (this depends on Gozo Channel Ferry crossing time)

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Lastly, if you have not bought your air ticket to Malta, consider buying them from the low-cost carriers operating their flights to Malta International Airport (MLA) from your region for some cost reduction.

Some flight comparison websites do not reflect the results of these budget airlines. Thus, you may miss a great deal as quite a number of them fly to Malta. I bought my air tickets from Air Malta two months in advance departing from Brussels Airport for €130/pax on a 3-hr flight.

⦿ Air Malta ⦿ Aeroflot ⦿ Blue Air ⦿ IndiGo ⦿ Iberia ⦿ EasyJet ⦿ Jet2.com ⦿ Ryanair  ⦿ Transavia ⦿ Volotea ⦿ Vueling ⦿ Wizz Air

On the other hand, you may also want to check out the various navigation mobile apps in Malta for download for your travel and transport guide.