The Geography

Only the three largest islands – Malta, Gozo, and Comino are inhabited. The other islands are called Filfla, Cominotto, St.Paul's and Fungus rock.

Malta is the largest island only 27KM at its longest point from the northwest to southeast, and 14.5km at its widest point, from west to east. Gozo is a third the size of Malta, but greener and more rural.

The seas around the tiny island of Comino are mainly used for swimming, snorkeling, diving and windsurfing. It is here that the gorgeous Blue Lagoon is found, with its crystal-clear, azure waters.

The islands of the archipelago were formed from the high points of a land bridge between Sicily and North Africa that became isolated as sea levels rose after the last Ice Age. Several bays along the coastline of the islands provide good harbours, while the landscape consists of low hills with terraced fields

Malta covers just over 300 km² in land area - making it one of the world's smallest and most densely populated countries. Its capital is Valletta and the largest town is Birkirkara. The rest of the island is made up of many small towns and villages.

The island of Malta is made up of rock and limestone and there are no mountains, rivers or lakes. The coastline of Malta and Gozo is mainly rocky; however sandy bays found mostly in the north, with a few in the south.

The Maltese Islands have a Subtropical-Mediterranean, with mild winters and hot summers. Rain occurs predominantly in winter; however, strong winds can make Malta feel cold during the springtime. Large fluctuations in temperature are rare.

The average annual temperature is 18–19 °C (64–66 °F) - one of the highest results in Europe. Malta enjoys around 3,000 hours of sunshine per year (again, one of the highest in Europe), from average 5 hours of sunshine per day in December to average 12 hours of sunshine per day in July. The average annual temperature of sea is 20 °C (68 °F) - the highest result in the continent of Europe.