Malta Maritime Museum

Malta Maritime Museum

Malta Maritime Museum
4
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Housed within the Old Naval bakery, the Malta Maritime Museum charts Malta's maritime history and lore within a Mediterranean context. It also illustrates the global nature of seafaring and its impact on Malta's society. The museum houses numerous artefacts highlighting the different epochs of Malta's history that is inadvertently tied to the sea.The museum is proud to showcase some unique artefacts including the largest known roman anchor in the world, the earliest known ex:voto on the island, the largest ship model belonging to the Order of St John, the largest collection of cannons on the island, the Napoleonic figure head of the 110 gun ship HMS Hibernia, a 1950's working marine steam engine, and a collection of 60+ boats.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles405 reviews
Excellent
152
Very good
151
Average
76
Poor
14
Terrible
12

Ray
Gillingham, UK3 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2024 • Couples
All the photos online of interesting things you could see here are from before the latest refit. Don't expect to see any of those things. The museum is currently undergoing a refit which is clearly far from finished but is open and still charging full price for access to a greatly reduced selection of exhibits. It's never clear where you are supposed to go next to find your way round, and almost nothing is labelled. Hopefully at some point they get everything back to how it should be, but in the meantime don't bother with it.
Written 30 September 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kris
Gdynia, Poland2 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
The museum is located in a beautiful, charmingly located building. The staff is polite, but doesn't have much to say about the exhibits. The reason is simple. There are only a handful of not very interesting exhibits there. I don't understand it at all. Malta has a wonderful maritime history, from ancient times to the present day. The fleet of the Order of the Knights of MALTA was famous throughout the world. Meanwhile, there is almost nothing on this subject. Anyone who thought that the curator's intention was to highlight the achievements of native Maltese people, and not the Hospitallers or the Royal Navy, would be wrong. From the friendly owner of the water taxi, I learned more about the Maltese as a nation living on coastal waters and the high seas than from the exhibition. Advice to the museum authorities: you should exhibit many more nautical artefacts and generalny redefine the concept.
Written 27 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Barbara M
London, UK9 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2024 • Friends
This museum used to be fascinating and I visited it many times. However, they have closed it and re-opened what is essentially a collection in one room of odd bits snd pieces - an old bed, said to be slits Nelson’s, an old fashioned swimming costume . All the stuff about the knights’ ships and the history of Malta has gone. There is also an ‘immersive experience’ which is supposed to give you an idea of what it’s like to be in a dockyard, but doesn’t.
It’s tragic. It was SUCH an interesting museum. Now frankly it’s rubbish and not worth seeing.
Written 26 May 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kevin W
London313 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2024 • Solo
The museum is along the waterfront in a beautiful building with some cannon barrels outside. It's a few minutes walk along the marina from the excellent Three Cities (Cospicua) ferry terminal for trips from Valetta.

I only had about 90 minutes that day to visit and that's about all you need as it's rather sparse. There are some interactive screens to delve deeper into some subjects which I only briefly explored.

The current layout finishes in a large room with very high ceiling showing a recreation construction in the late 20th century dockyard. It's cleverly created with multiple video projectors and some pointless smoke. I am not sure this part justifies the use of so much space and it has a bit of a strange emphasis on the risk and danger of the industry.

I think the museum would benefit from a clearer explanation of the building and its origins, a more linear story on the history of seafaring around Malta and (for me) less gimmicky stuff like the dockyard recreation. It's difficult to create a museum that has appeal to children, the general public and more serious maritime enthusiasts. In its current form I don't think the museum succeeds for any of them. It looks like the museum is still working on its exhibits and layout but I'm not sure if it's going in the right direction, imho.
Written 7 June 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Irishfamily183
Lurgan, UK44 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2018
only open to 5 so go early as it takes time to get around. Near lots of other attractions. A great place if you like marine history!
Written 27 August 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Acer sed justus
London, UK115 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2018 • Family
This is a fascinating museum in an interesting setting, which explains and makes real the huge importance of Britain in Malta's recent history (and vice versa too). It's quite old-fashioned in style, but none the worse for that, and I was struck by how poorly attended it was…especially by my fellow Brits. Sad commentary, really.
Written 27 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Olimpus2011
Sliema, Malta19 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2015 • Solo
Interesting place with a good overview of the history the place provides. items on display are very accurate.
Written 28 September 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

FactotumDellaCitta
London, UK3,982 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2015 • Couples
This a rather large museum by Maltese standards, and contains many interesting maritime exhibits. However, the layout is not intuitive and not easy to follow. Many of the explanations are small and difficult to read. If you have a Malta Heritage Pass, which includes this museum, then stop by and enjoy. Otherwise, it is probably worth it only for maritime history buffs.
Written 28 June 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ritianne a
Valletta, Malta24 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2014 • Couples
Malta, a small island in the middle of the Mediterranean, has a wealth of naval history. From the shipwreck of st paul to the british naval base, this maritime museum tells the long story of Malta's occupancy by numerous foreign forces along the centuries. Displaying everything from weaponry, actual engine room, typical canteen reconstruction, and miniature models, this museum is definitely worth a visit.
Written 18 May 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

gibsonchop
Catonsville, MD558 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2012 • Family
We came to this museum because we heard that the anchors off of the Roman ship Apostle Paul was on, when he shipwrecked on the island of Malta were here. The museum is full of all kinds of interesting items. Full of many interesting historical artifacts!!!! Really Cool!
Written 16 September 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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