Top 10 Lighthouses in Malta
Malta occupies a position of unique strategic importance in the centre of the Mediterranean, equidistant between Gibraltar and the Suez Canal, lying between the western and eastern basins of the sea at their narrowest point. The Maltese archipelago — Malta, Gozo, Comino, and several uninhabited islets — has been a maritime crossroads since the Phoenicians first established a presence here in the ninth century BCE. The Knights of St John, who held Malta from 1530 to 1798, were essentially a naval power, and they understood the importance of lighting the approaches to the Grand Harbour at Valletta — one of the world's great natural harbours. Systematic lighthouse construction under the British colonial administration (1800–1964) gave Malta a comprehensive network of lights administered today by Transport Malta's Ports and Yachting Directorate. For an island just 27 kilometres long, the variety of lighthouse architecture and setting is remarkable: cliff-edge towers above dramatic sea platforms, modernised harbour structures in the shadow of Baroque fortifications, and a lighthouse on Gozo that marks one of the central Mediterranean's most exposed headlands.
1. St Elmo Lighthouse, Valletta
The St Elmo Lighthouse stands on the breakwater at the entrance to the Grand Harbour, the most important and most visited anchorage in the central Mediterranean. A light has marked this position since the Knights of St John, who maintained a lantern on Fort St Elmo — the fortress that dominates the tip of the Valletta peninsula — to guide galleys safely into the harbour. The current structure is a white lighthouse on the outer breakwater, showing a green and white light that guides vessels through the channel between the breakwater and the Ricasoli fortifications on the opposite shore. The Grand Harbour, flanked by layers of Baroque and British military architecture, is one of the world's most dramatic harbour approaches. The breakwater is accessible on foot from the road on the Valletta side.
2. Delimara Lighthouse, Delimara Point
The Delimara Lighthouse on the southeastern tip of Malta is the island's principal coastal light and one of the Mediterranean's significant navigation aids, marking the passage between Malta and the shoals and islands extending toward Sicily and North Africa. Built in 1894 by the British colonial Public Works Department, the white octagonal masonry tower stands approximately 15 metres on a cliff that rises about 50 metres above the sea. The light character is white flashing and is visible around 16 nautical miles. Adjacent to the lighthouse is the Marsaxlokk Bay, Malta's main fishing harbour, where the colourful painted luzzus (traditional Maltese fishing boats decorated with the Eye of Osiris) are moored in their hundreds. The lighthouse grounds are a Protected Area but the exterior is easily seen from the coastal path.
3. Giordan Lighthouse, Gozo
The Giordan Lighthouse on the northwestern cliffs of Gozo is the most dramatically sited in the Maltese archipelago, perched on the edge of the Dwejra headland with an unobstructed view of the open Mediterranean in three directions. Built in 1853 by the British colonial administration and substantially modified since, the white square tower stands approximately 15 metres on cliffs nearly 140 metres above the sea — giving the light an exceptional range. The character is white flashing, visible around 20 nautical miles. The lighthouse marks the northern approaches to the Gozo Channel and is used by vessels on passage between the western and eastern Mediterranean. The road to Giordan passes through the interior of Gozo, an island of terraced fields, ancient megalithic temples, and the characteristic azure domes of its village churches.
4. Benghisa Lighthouse, Birzebbuga
The Benghisa Lighthouse stands near Birzebbuga at the southwestern corner of Marsaxlokk Bay, marking the southern shore of the bay's broad entrance for vessels arriving from the south. The tower, built in the British period, is a modest white cylindrical structure of approximately 12 metres showing a white flashing light. Marsaxlokk Bay is Malta's main commercial port anchorage, used by container ships, tankers, and the vast LNG floating storage unit that has become a prominent feature of the bay since Malta's shift to gas-fired power generation. The lighthouse is in a residential area and is not regularly open to visitors, but the bay shore road provides clear views.
5. Gurdan Lighthouse, Gozo
The Gurdan Lighthouse — sometimes referred to alongside the Giordan Lighthouse as these names are variants of each other — is active on the Gozo cliffs and has become a reference point for the yachts and sailing vessels that pass through the Gozo Channel on Mediterranean passages. The tower is maintained by Transport Malta and remains an operational lighthouse. Views from the clifftop near the light extend south across the Comino Channel to Malta and north toward the open sea.
6. Fort Ricasoli Lighthouse, Kalkara
Fort Ricasoli guards the eastern side of the Grand Harbour entrance, a massive fortification built by the Knights in the late seventeenth century and used as a military base by the British. A light on the fort marks the eastern edge of the harbour entrance channel, working in concert with the St Elmo breakwater light to define the safe passage. The fort itself has been used as a film set for major productions including Gladiator and Troy, and its massive curtain walls and bastions are among the finest examples of military architecture in Malta.
7. Marsamxett Harbour Light, Valletta
Marsamxett Harbour, on the northern side of the Valletta peninsula, is Malta's main yacht marina and the anchorage for smaller commercial vessels and the inter-island passenger ferries to Gozo. A navigation light marks the entrance to the harbour from the open sea to the north, working with the lights on the Sliema and Valletta shores to define the approach. Marsamxett is flanked by some of Malta's most historic streets: the Valletta waterfront on the south and the elegant resort town of Sliema on the north.
8. Comino Lighthouse, Comino
Comino is the tiny island between Malta and Gozo, best known for the Blue Lagoon whose improbably turquoise water attracts thousands of day-trippers each summer. A lighthouse on Comino's western headland marks the passage through the Comino Channel, the busy strait between Comino and Malta used by the ferries and numerous private vessels. The tower is a white cylindrical structure of the British period, still active, in a setting of wild garigue — the low scrubby Mediterranean vegetation of thyme, carob, and wild olive — that makes Comino a striking contrast to developed Malta and Gozo.
9. Qawra Point Lighthouse, St Paul's Bay
Qawra Point at the northeastern tip of Malta marks the approach to St Paul's Bay, named for the shipwreck of St Paul in 60 CE — an event described in the Acts of the Apostles and attested by a tradition of remarkable continuity. The lighthouse at Qawra is a modern structure, a white tower on the promontory that shows a white flashing light, marking the hazardous rocky coast north of the main tourist zone around Bugibba and Qawra. The area is densely developed with hotels and holiday apartments, and the lighthouse sits amid the urban sprawl.
10. Filfla Lighthouse, off Malta
Filfla is an uninhabited stack south of Malta, a vertical cliff of limestone rising about 60 metres from the sea, used for target practice by the British military until 1971 and now a strictly protected nature reserve — no landing is permitted. A minor light marks this rocky hazard for vessels approaching Malta from the south. Filfla's cliffs are home to a large breeding colony of Cory's shearwaters, and the island has one of the densest concentrations of these birds in the Mediterranean. The light can be seen from the cliff-edge paths along Malta's southern coast near Wied iz-Zurrieq.
Visiting Malta's Lighthouses
Malta is among the most accessible of Mediterranean lighthouse destinations: the entire island can be driven in well under an hour, and public buses connect most coastal areas. The Delimara Lighthouse at Marsaxlokk is the most rewarding for its dramatic cliff setting and proximity to the atmospheric fishing harbour. Giordan on Gozo is the highlight for those who take the Gozo ferry — a 25-minute crossing from Cirkewwa. The Valletta Grand Harbour lighthouses are best appreciated from the harbour itself, either from the ferry between Valletta and Sliema or from a harbour cruise. Malta is a year-round destination; spring and autumn are ideal, with warm temperatures and sea conditions suitable for coastal walking. Open the map to explore every lighthouse and navigation aid in the Maltese archipelago.