The Blue House Birgu
The Blue House is located in the heart of the fortified town Birgu, also known as Vittoriosa. This is the area where the knights used to live and is known as the Collachio. Just around the corner of inquisitor’s Palace and a few steps away from the main square. The Blue house is one of the oldest houses in Birgu and it dates back from around 1600. From the rooftop you can overlook Valletta, Senglea and of course the Mediterranean sea.
Birgu Waterfront offers a great choice of dining opportunities as well as in the village itself. Also the beautiful alleys will take you back to the medieval times and you will enjoy to meander the paved cobbled streets, absorbing the historic times of the town.
Malta is well known for its hospitality. The locals are very friendly and always willing to help you to find your way. They are very proud of their village and put a lot of effort in making their fiesta(s) a happening for everyone.
The Blue House as a family house
The Blue House is a much loved family house. We bought the house in 2010 and have maintained it with love since then. We use it as our own house most of the year, but prepare it for our guests during the summer months so they can enjoy the house, Birgu and Malta as well.
Please use the house as if it is your house. Feel at home but treat it with respect! The charm of the house is that it is an old house and with old houses there is always something to improve. Of course we do our utmost to ensure that the house is in perfect condition, but please feel free to give us a message if anything needs to be done or fixed.
Please treat neighbours and street mates with respect. It is a quiet street with very proud and hospitable people. Please keep this in mind!
Last but not least a few household notes:
The waste will be collected every morning.
Tuesday and Saturday: mixed waste (black bag).
Monday, Wednesday and Friday: organic waste (small white bags).
Thursday: plastic, metal and paper (big white bag).
There is an air conditioning in the living room and two bedrooms. If you decide to use it, please close the windows and doors, otherwise it makes no sense. When you leave the house or that room, please make sure you switch it off. Please be as energy sufficient as possible!
The main switch for the hot water is outside the second bath room. It will be switched on if you arrive and you can leave it on all times.
Shops
There are a few small shops where you can buy your daily groceries, such as bread, milk, coffee, tea and wine. The closest you will find is down the street at the corner. You will find a few other shops in de streets of Birgu. There is a butcher (open only in the morning), on your left hand, walking up to the parking place. The bakery will come by car every morning around 9.00 a.m. He will use his horn to let you know he is there!
Beaches
On foot
Rocky beach at Fort St. Angelo: there’s a swimming area in Birgu (just below St Angelo Mansions, on the Kalkara side and another at the tip of St Angelo itself. Not a lot of people venture there, but it’s a real privilege when you find it: picture yourself swimming while overlooking Valetta and the breakwater. The water is crystal clear and the fort brings a nice shade until midday. Most of the time there’s barely anyone around. In the late afternoon, there are usually more people, and it’s ideal for a picnic while the sun is setting.
Small sandy beach at Rinella: this bay is made of three elements, one can find a quay on the left side with a free for all shower at one end, a sandy beach in the middle and rocky area on the right side which is dog friendly. There is a newly built public convenience, three restaurants and take-aways one can visit along the bay.
By car
Famous beach at St. Peters Pool: St. Peter’s Pool is one of the most beautiful and stunning natural swimming pools in Malta and is located close to Marsaxlokk at the tip of Delimara Point in the southwest of Malta. About 15 minutes to drive by car/taxi. The sea at St. Peters Pool is crystal clear with an amazing azure and light green colors and offers excellent snorkeling opportunities. The flat rocks around St Peter’s Pool provide perfect sunbathing areas and the high rocks offer some shade from the strong sun.
Beach at St. Thomas Bay in Marsaskala: Only a 10 minutes’ drive by car/taxi from Birgu you will find a large and natural inlet which is quite popular with local holidaymakers. This secluded bay in the south of Malta has not yet been developed into a tourist area and has more of a Maltese vibe with plenty of families enjoying its rocky coastline and small sandy banks. Its shallow waters and sandy beach make it suitable for both sunbathing and swimming. For those who are more adventurous, it is also possible to hike to the Munxar cliffs which offer stunning views of the white cliffs as well as the opportunity to swim in some of the clearest waters.
Sandy beaches up the North: Ghajn Tuffieha and Golden bay are two of the best sandy beaches on Malta. The beaches sit next to each other on the north-west coast of Malta island and offer great opportunity for a day trip. Beside the beautiful beaches, you can also enjoy hiking, swimming and observing the scenic landscape. You can refresh yourself at the bars around or read interesting information at educational olive tree grove between the beaches.
Places of interest in and around Birgu
Valletta by ferry: The beautiful capital Valletta is literally a stone’s throw from Birgu. You can take the ferry which will bring you in 10 minutes down to the seaside of Valletta. Take the beautiful lift with the amazing view over Grand Harbour and the three cities( price is included in your ferry ticket) and go up to Barrakka Gardens. This is your starting point of a city trip full of history, good food and nice shops!
Maritime museum: Housed within the Old Navy Bakery down the Waterfront of Birgu, the Malta Maritime Museum charts 7000 years of Malta’s maritime history, from prehistory to the present day. Numerous exhibited artefacts highlight the different epochs of the islands’ history and illustrate the global nature of seafaring and its impact on Maltese society. The museum manifests also the fascination of the sea within a Mediterranean context, without neglecting the overall global nature of seafaring.
War museum: you can find this museum at the entrance of Vittoriosa at Couvre Porte, which presents an impressive and complex gateway structure that provided access into the city of Vittoriosa. The complex opened in 1940 to accommodate the Combined War Headquarters of all three services underground to protect it from aerial attack, this complex housed the Fighter Sector Operations Room used during the Battle for Malta 1940-43 along with other operation rooms and ancillary facilities. After the end of the war it was used by NATO up to 1977 to track the movement of Soviet subs in the Mediterranean.
Inquisitors palace: Just next to The Blue house and situated in the heart of Birgu as well, the Inquisitor’s Palace is one of the very few surviving buildings of its kind which in the early modern period could be found all over Europe and South America. Many of these palaces simply succumbed to the ravages of time or were victims of the anti-reactionary power which was unleashed by the French Revolution. Throughout its five centuries of history, the Maltese Inquisitor’s Palace, always hosted high-ranking officials representing the main powers on the island, who therefore ensured its survival. The palace also managed to endure through the bombings of the Second World War and the threat of modern development. Have a great stay!