Valletta Waterfront and Grand Harbour (Il-Port il-Kbir) are two of the most notable landmarks for people arriving at Maltese island directly from Mediterranean, they welcome millions of cruise passengers every year with a quantity of excellent services.
Valletta Waterfront, also known as Pinto's Wharf, is a very versatile center, a multi-purpose area and one of the most frequented meeting points of Valletta due to its extraordinary offer including high quality entertainment, a complete mix of retail, dining, leisure experiences and shopping, festivities and outdoor themed events all year round and much more...a dream destination become increasingly popular over the years for tourists and locals. Its origins date back to the 18th century, when was commissioned by the Knights of St. John's Grand Master Manuel Pinto de Fonseca as a simple pier and place where merchants used to unload their wares, once renovated, the old warehouses of this Baroque masterpiece were replaced with a leisure complex for locals and million cruise passengers as well as a famous cruise and ferry terminal also providing efficient and affordable transport services within the Grand Harbour and neighbouring areas; Valletta Waterfront is certainly worth a visit, whether we're looking for luxurious restaurants, events or simply a moment for a walk along the promenade, Valletta Waterfront has it all, either day or night a simple stroll while admiring all breathtaking panoramic views around, including a lovely view of Senglea (o L-Isla), can turn into a marvelous experience!
Also known as Isla, this stunning city, one of the heaviest fortified cities of Malta, belongs to Three Cities (or Cottonera Lines) also including Cospicua (Bormla) and Vittoriosa (Birgu), rightly claimed to be the cradle of Maltese history. Although its smaller dimensions, it boasts a rich historic heritage, many buildings and massive bastions and fortifications, which give spectacular views on the Grand Harbour, were built during the age of the Knights of St. John, Senglea is also nicknamed "Civitas Invicta" as unconquered during the Ottoman invasion at the Great Siege of 1565, however it was mostly destroyed by bombings during the WWII and suffered heavy losses including rare architectural masterpieces dating back to its first construction in the 16th century; originally a small island later partially connected to the mainland for strategic reasons by the Knights Hospitaller (the Maltese name "Isla" derives from the Italian "isola", island) it protrudes with its oldest part into the Grand Harbour and is still enclosed by massive fortifications guarding the harbour and the opposite side where the capital Valletta (Il-Belt Valletta) is located as they did a longtime ago.
There are a variety of activities and events taking place in Senglea throughout the year as well as tourist attractions all worth a visit, most of them still a reminder of its glorious past, through a simple stroll it is possible to reach them, just a few words to mention the most important must-sees: the look-out garden (Gnien il-Gardjola) and the stone vedette where one can enjoy a blend of history and the Mediterranean, a variety of architectural buildings in British style, Senglea Point with its magnificent views of Valletta and Grand Harbour, narrow streets still holding a number of ancient buildings, religious treasures such as the miraculous statue of Jesus Christ the Redeemer (Ir-Redentur ta `l-Isla) situated in the Basilica dedicated to The Birth of the Virgin Mary or the statue Madonna of the Middle (il-Madonna Tan-Nofs), originally placed in the main road as a sign of gratitude to the Virgin for protecting Senglea from the 1813 plague; moreover a stroll along the nearby Vittoriosa's promenade will offer magnificent views of Senglea, among the most beautiful in the world. We can't forget to mention the famous boatyard, enlarged and developed by British, it has become increasingly important over the years for its role in the economic growth of the city, it sees thousands of cruise passengers embarking and disembarking every day and offers all types of services and works to make more comfortable the stay of the big cruise ships, a real attraction for tourists and locals.
Comments
I guess this is the tip of cargo ship Kenta Maru that we can see on screen here?
Wow Debbie, 6700 passengers? That's HUGE ! Only a matter of time before we see ones accommodating 10,000 I guess !
Valletta is getting the new Celebrity Apex next year, (as well as the Edge that's been coming occasionally) and also the new MSC Virtuosa. Not coming to Valletta unfortunately, will be the new cruise ship Scarlet Lady, the very first ship from the new cruise line Virgin Voyages. That one is scheduled to visit the Caribbean.
Hi Ann thanks for the info it seems that costa is selling on the neo ships but its great that the older ships are built tp last,there are a lot of new ships on order for 2022-2024 for quite a few cruise lines and im glad to say some of them are the smaller but I saw one which had the capacity for 6,700 passengers without crew,
Hi Debbie, AIDAmira called into Valletta a few times starting at the end of September but was still operating as Costa NeoRiviera at the time. She just transferred to sister brand AIDA this month. Don't recall ever seeing any of the other ships you mentioned though so it will be lovely to see them. Just 3 more months until cruise ship season gets under way again !
Ive been looking at next years schedule there are a few ships ive not seen before such as msc musica,costa mediterranea,AIDAmira,Carnival radiance,seven seas splendour and towards the end of the year Msc virtuosa,Celebrity Apex and Msc seaview visits once again which visited several times in 2018.
MSC Grandiosa arrived at 07:45 and did a counter-clockwise turn in front of this cam. Have taken pics on the various cams.
Hedy Lamarr arrived at 08:15. Have taken pics on the various cams !
Offshore supply ship North Ocean 102 arrived at 07:15. Quite unusual looking. Have taken pics on the various cams.
Hi,Ann yes grandiosas passengers have a lovely itinerary lucky people
Debbie, sorry to hear that you had bad experiences at a couple of the ports. Definitely a nice itinerary for the passengers.
Thank you Ann i dont have great memories of Marseille I was bitten dog totally my fault I went to stroke a homeless mans dog and he nipped me only a small cut and I had to have a tetanus back home,ive been to Rome a few times and barcelona once when they had a national strike an everything was closed lol Grandiosas passengers are in for a treat.
Debbie, MSC Grandiosa's ports of call are: Barcelona - Marseille - Genoa - Rome - Palermo - Valletta - Barcelona.
I bet you're right Margaret. The cam hasn't been offline in a while so it's probably overdue !
great to see this beauty in port,does anyone know what other ports she currently visits? also my thoughts go out to those on an excursion from the ovation of the seas caught up on the volcanic eruption in New Zealand.
Hi Ann, I missed Grandiosa coming in, I thought I might see her, but she had disappeared from view, I caught a glimpse on the Floriana camera. I've been watching them building something else near the Triton Fountain, I bet the camera goes off before the skating begins.