(Sources from Wikipedia -> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malta and EAP Malta website -> https://www.eapmalta.com/malta)

Megaliths, medieval dungeons, and Calypso's Grotto: the Maltese islands are steeped in legend. The winding streets of their towns and villages lead to the main square, invariably dominated by an imposing Baroque church. The countryside, dotted with medieval towers, chapels, and some of the oldest known human constructions in the world, rightfully earns Malta the nickname "an open-air museum."

Malta International Airport is the country's only airport and serves the entire archipelago. It is located on the island of Malta, in the town of Luqa.

At the airport, the Malta Tourism Authority has a tourist information desk in the arrivals hall. An experienced team is available to answer your questions and provide you with useful information before your departure for your holiday in Malta. The information desk is open daily from 10:00 to 21:00 (last entry at 20:45).

• Country: Malta
• Capital: Valletta
• Area: 316 km² (186th largest country in the world)
• Population: 475,700 inhabitants
• Currency: Euro (€)
• Time zone: UTC + 1 (Central European Time)
• Daylight Saving Time: UTC + 2 (Central European Summer Time)
• Driving direction: Left-hand drive
• International dialing code: + 356

Malta has a typically Mediterranean climate and is strongly Influenced by the sea, the Maltese islands enjoy a pleasantly sunny climate, with an average of about 12 hours of sunshine per day in summer and 5 to 6 hours in the depths of winter. Languages: The official languages of Malta are Maltese and English. History: Prehistory: Malta has been inhabited since at least 6500 BC, with the arrival of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers likely originating from Sicily. Discoveries in Latnija Cave, led by Maltese archaeologist Eleanor Scerri, have revealed remains of hearths, stone tools, and a wide variety of animal bones. These included native red deer, now extinct, fish and marine mammals, and numerous edible marine gastropods. To reach Malta, these hunter-gatherers had to cross approximately 100 km of open water, the longest known sea crossing by hunter-gatherers in the Mediterranean. The extinction of pygmy hippos, giant swans, and dwarf elephants has historically been linked to the arrival of the first humans in Malta. [53] However, this seems unlikely, as recent work suggests that these animals became extinct several thousand years before the arrival of the first humans, and no such animals have been found associated with the earliest known Mesolithic hunter-gatherers. The hypothesis of an earlier Neanderthal occupation of the island is widely rejected. Additional information: Neolithic farmers, also from Sicily, are thought to have arrived on the islands around 5400 BC. Among the prehistoric agricultural sites dating to the Early Neolithic period is the Għar Dalam cave site, in the upper layers associated with domesticated animals. The Neolithic population of Malta cultivated cereals, raised livestock, and, like other ancient Mediterranean cultures, worshipped a fertility deity. A culture of megalithic temple builders later supplanted or emerged from this early period. Around 3500 BC, these populations built some of the oldest freestanding structures in the world: the megalithic temples of Ġgantija on Gozo. Other early temples include those of Ħaġar Qim and Mnajdra. These temples exhibit distinctive architecture, usually characterized by an intricate trefoil pattern, and were used from 4000 to 2500 BC. According to some reports, animal sacrifices were offered there to the goddess of fertility, whose statue is now kept at the National Archaeological Museum in Valletta. Another archaeological feature of the Maltese islands, often attributed to these ancient builders, is the presence of uniform, equidistant grooves, called "cart tracks" or "ruts," found in several locations across the islands, notably at Misraħ Għar il-Kbir ("Clapham Junction"). These ruts may have been made by carts with wooden wheels eroding the soft limestone. This culture is thought to have disappeared from the islands around 2500 BC, probably due to famine or an epidemic. After 2500 BC, the Maltese islands were depopulated for several decades until the arrival of Bronze Age immigrants. This culture practiced cremation and introduced more modest megalithic structures called dolmens. These later structures are thought to be the work of a distinct population from that which built the earlier megalithic temples. It is assumed that this population came from Sicily due to the resemblance of Maltese dolmens to certain small structures discovered on that continent. Phoenicians, Carthaginians, and Romans: The lands that now constitute Malta were part of the Byzantine Empire (the empire which, in 555, under Justinian the Great, reached its zenith since the fall of the Western Roman Empire (its vassals are shown in pink)). Phoenician merchants colonized the islands under the name Ann (, ʾnn) after 1000 BC, stopping there on their trade routes linking the eastern Mediterranean to Cornwall. [68] Their seat of government was apparently at Mdina, which bore the same name as the island; the main port was Cospicua, in the Great Harbour, which they called Maleth. After the fall of Phoenicia in 332 BC, the region came under Carthaginian control. At that time, the inhabitants of Malta mainly cultivated olives and carobs and produced textiles.

During the First Punic War, the island was conquered after fierce fighting by Marcus Atilius Regulus. [70] Following the failure of his expedition, the island fell back into Carthaginian hands, before being recaptured during the Second Punic War in 218 BC by the Roman consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus. Malta became a Foederata Civitas, a status that exempted it from paying tribute and from the application of Roman law, and placed it under the jurisdiction of the province of Sicily. Its capital, Mdina, was renamed Melita, adopting the Greek and Roman name of the island. Punic influence, however, remained very present, as evidenced by the Melqart cippi, a monument essential to deciphering the Punic language, inaugurated in the 2nd century BC. The local minting of Roman coins, which ceased in the 1st century BC, indicates the slow pace of Romanization on the island: the last coins minted locally still bear inscriptions in ancient Greek and Punic motifs, proof of the persistence of Greek and Punic cultures.

In the 2nd century, Emperor Hadrian elevated Malta to the status of a municipium, or free city: the island's local affairs were administered by four duumvirs and a municipal senate, while a Roman procurator residing in Mdina represented the proconsul of Sicily. In 58 AD, the Apostle Paul and the Evangelist Luke were shipwrecked on the islands. Paul stayed there for three months, preaching the Christian faith. The island is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles under the name Melitene (Ancient Greek: Μελιτήνη).

In 395, during the final partition of the Roman Empire upon the death of Theodosius I, Malta, after Sicily, came under the control of the Western Roman Empire. During the Invasions, as the Western Roman Empire declined, Malta was conquered or occupied several times. From 454 to 464, the islands were ruled by the Vandals, and then, after 464, by the Ostrogoths. In 533, Belisarius, on his way to conquer the Vandal kingdom of North Africa, united the islands under imperial (Eastern) rule. Little is known about Byzantine rule in Malta: the island was part of the Theme of Sicily and was administered by Greek governors, with a small Greek garrison. Although the population remained largely composed of Latinized inhabitants, its religious allegiance during this period fluctuated between the Pope and the Patriarch of Constantinople. Byzantine rule introduced Greek families into the Maltese community. Malta remained under Byzantine rule until 870, when it was conquered by the Arabs.

Malta was involved in the Arab-Byzantine wars, and its conquest is closely linked to that of Sicily, which began in 827 after Admiral Euphemius betrayed his Byzantine compatriots, asking the Aghlabids to invade the island. The Muslim chronicler and geographer al-Himyari reports that in 870, following a fierce struggle against the Byzantines, Arab invaders, first led by Halaf al-Hadim and then by Sawada ibn Muhammad, plundered the island, destroying its most important buildings and leaving it virtually uninhabited until its recolonization by Arabs from Sicily in 1048–1049. It is unknown whether this new settlement was due to population growth in Sicily, an improvement in the standard of living there (in which case the recolonization could have occurred a few decades earlier), or a civil war that broke out among the Arab rulers of Sicily in 1038. The Arab agricultural revolution introduced irrigation, cotton, and certain fruits. The Siculo-Arabic language was adopted on the island from Sicily; it later evolved into Maltese.

The Normans attacked Malta in 1091 as part of their conquest of Sicily. The Norman ruler, Roger I of Sicily, was welcomed by Christian captives. Contrary to legend, he did not offer the Maltese, in gratitude for their service, a piece of his red and white checkered standard, which is said to have served as the model for the current Maltese flag.

Malta was incorporated into the new Kingdom of Sicily, which also included the island of Sicily and the southern part of the Italian peninsula. The Catholic Church was re-established as the state religion, with Malta placed under the authority of the See of Palermo. Norman architecture appeared on the island, particularly in its former capital, Mdina. King Tancred made Malta a fief of the kingdom and installed a count there in 1192. The islands being highly coveted due to their strategic importance, it was at this time that the Maltese were militarized to repel attempts at conquest; the first counts were skilled Genoese corsairs. The kingdom passed into the hands of the Hohenstaufen dynasty from 1194 to 1266. While Emperor Frederick II undertook the reorganization of his Kingdom of Sicily, Western culture and religion began to exert a more pronounced influence. Malta was raised to a county and then a marquisate, but its trade was destroyed. For a long time, it remained a simple fortified garrison.

A mass expulsion of Arabs took place in 1224, and the entire Christian male population of Celano, in Abruzzo, was deported to Malta that same year. In 1249, Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, decreed the expulsion of all remaining Muslims from Malta or their forced conversion.

For a brief period, the kingdom passed into the hands of the Capetian House of Anjou, but high taxes made the dynasty unpopular in Malta, particularly due to the war waged by Charles of Anjou against the Republic of Genoa, and the island of Gozo was sacked in 1275.

Malta was ruled by the House of Barcelona, the ruling dynasty of the Crown of Aragon, from 1282 to 1409. The Aragonese supported the Maltese insurgents during the Sicilian Vespers and the naval Battle of the Grand Harbour in 1283.

Close associates of the kings of Aragon ruled The island remained under Aragonese rule until 1409, when it officially came under the dominion of the Crown of Aragon. From the very beginning of this Aragonese ascension, the sons of the monarchs received the title of Count of Malta. It was during this period that a large part of the local nobility was formed. However, as early as 1397, the comital title regained a feudal character, with two families vying for it. King Martin I of Sicily abolished it. The dispute resurfaced a few years later when the title was reinstated and the Maltese, led by the local nobility, rose up against Count Gonsalvo Monroy. Although opposed to the Count, the Maltese expressed their loyalty to the Sicilian Crown, which so impressed King Alfonso V that he did not punish the people for their rebellion. On the contrary, he promised never to grant this title to a third party and reinstated it to the crown. The city of Mdina then received the title of Città Notabile. In September 1429, Hafsid Berbers attempted to seize Malta but were repelled by the Maltese. The invaders pillaged the countryside and enslaved approximately 3,000 inhabitants. On March 23,1530, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, granted the islands to the Hospitallers, under the leadership of the Frenchman Philippe Villiers de L'Isle-Adam, in perpetual lease, in exchange for an annual tribute of a Maltese falcon. These knights, a military religious order also known as the Order of Saint John, and later as the Knights of Malta, had been expelled from Rhodes by the Ottoman Empire in 1522. The Hospitallers ruled Malta and Gozo between 1530 and 1798. During this period, the island's strategic and military importance grew considerably, with the Order of Saint John's small but effective fleet launching attacks from this new base against the sea lanes of Ottoman territories in the Mediterranean. In 1551, the population of the island of Gozo (approximately 5,000 people) was enslaved by Barbary pirates and taken to the Barbary Coast of North Africa.

The Knights, led by the Frenchman Jean Parisot de Valette, resisted the Great Siege of Malta by the Ottomans in 1565. With the help of Portuguese, Spanish, and Maltese forces, they repelled the attack. After the siege, they decided to strengthen Malta's fortifications, particularly in the inner harbor area, where the new city of Valletta was built, named in Valette's honor. They also erected watchtowers along the coast—the Wignacourt, Lascaris, and De Redin towers—named after the Grand Masters who had ordered their construction. The Knights saw the completion of numerous architectural and cultural projects, including the embellishment of Città Vittoriosa (modern-day Birgu) and the construction of new towns, notably Città Rohan (modern-day Ħaż-Żebbuġ). However, by the end of the 18th century, the Knights' power had declined. The Knights' reign ended when Napoleon seized Malta in 1798, during his march to Egypt in the French Revolutionary Wars. From June 12 to 18,1798, Napoleon resided at the Palazzo Parisio in Valletta. He reformed the national administration by creating a Government Commission, twelve municipalities, a public finance administration, abolishing all feudal rights and privileges, slavery, and freeing all Turkish and Jewish slaves. In the judicial system, a family code was drawn up and twelve judges appointed. Public education was organized according to the principles laid down by Bonaparte himself, providing for primary and secondary schooling. He then sailed for Egypt, leaving a large garrison in Malta.

The French troops who remained became unpopular with the Maltese, particularly due to their hostility towards Catholicism and the looting of local churches to finance the war effort. French financial and religious policies so exasperated the Maltese that they revolted, forcing the French to leave the island. Great Britain, in conjunction with the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, sent munitions and aid to the Maltese. It also dispatched its navy, which blockaded the islands.

On October 28,1798, Captain Sir Alexander Ball succeeded in obtaining the surrender of the French garrison on Gozo and the transfer of the island to the British. They handed the island over to the inhabitants that same day, and it was administered by Archpriest Saverio Cassar, acting on behalf of Ferdinand III of Sicily. Gozo remained independent until Cassar's dismissal by the British in 1801. General Claude-Henri Belgrand de Vaubois capitulated with his French troops in 1800. The Maltese leaders presented the main island to Sir Alexander Ball, requesting that it become a British dominion. The Maltese people drafted a Declaration of Rights in which they agreed to place themselves "under the protection and sovereignty of the King of Free Peoples, His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland." The Declaration also stipulated that “His Majesty has no right to cede these islands to any power… if he chooses to withdraw his protection and relinquish his sovereignty, the right to elect another sovereign or to govern these islands belongs to us alone, the inhabitants and natives, and without any control. ”

In 1814, following the Treaty of Paris, Malta officially became part of the British Empire and served as a maritime stopover and headquarters for the fleet. After the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, Malta's position, halfway between the Strait of Gibraltar and Egypt, proved to be its main asset. The island was considered an important stop on the route to India, a vital trade route for the British. A Turkish military cemetery was commissioned by Sultan Abdul Aziz and built between 1873 and 1874 for Ottoman soldiers who fell during the Great Siege of Malta. Between 1915 and 1918, during the First World War, Malta was nicknamed "the nurse of the Mediterranean" because of the large number of wounded soldiers treated there. On June 7,1919, the Maltese population rose up in response to a cost-of-living crisis. British troops eventually managed to suppress the riots, resulting in four deaths. This event, known as Sette Giugno ("June 7"), is commemorated annually and is one of the five national holidays. Until the Second World War, Maltese political life was dominated by the language issue, pitting Italian-speaking against English-speaking parties.

Before the Second World War, Valletta housed the headquarters of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet. However, despite Winston Churchill's objections, the command was transferred to Alexandria, Egypt, in 1937, due to concerns about its vulnerability to air attacks from Europe. During the war, Malta played a significant role for the Allies. A British colony located near Sicily and the Axis shipping lanes, Malta was bombed by both Italian and German air forces. The British used Malta as a launching base for attacks on the Italian navy and established a submarine base there. It also served as a listening post, intercepting German radio communications, including Enigma messages. The courage of the Maltese people during the Second Siege of Malta prompted King George VI to award the George Cross to Malta collectively on April 15,1942. Some historians believe this distinction resulted in disproportionate losses for Great Britain in the defense of Malta, as British credibility would have been compromised had Malta surrendered, as was the case for British forces in Singapore. The George Cross is now featured on the flag and coat of arms of Malta.

Malta achieved independence as the State of Malta on September 21,1964 (Independence Day). In accordance with its 1964 constitution, Malta initially retained Elizabeth II as Queen of Malta and therefore Head of State, with a Governor-General exercising executive authority on her behalf. In 1971, the Maltese Labour Party, led by Dom Mintoff, won the general election, leading Malta to declare itself a republic on December 13,1974 (Republic Day) within the Commonwealth. A defense agreement was signed shortly after independence and, after being renegotiated in 1972, expired on March 31,1979 (Freedom Day). Upon its expiration, the British base closed and the land formerly under British control was ceded to the Maltese government. Following the departure of the last British troops in 1979, Malta intensified its commitment to the Non-Aligned Movement. The country adopted a policy of neutrality in 1980. That same year, three Maltese sites, including the capital Valletta, were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In 1989, Malta hosted the summit between US President George H.W. Bush and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, their first face-to-face meeting, which marked the end of the Cold War. Malta International Airport was inaugurated and became fully operational on March 25,1992, boosting the local aviation and tourism sectors. A referendum on joining the European Union was held on March 8,2003, with 53.65% voting in favor. Malta joined the European Union on May 1,2004, and the Eurozone on January 1,2008.

Malta is an archipelago located in the central Mediterranean Sea (in its eastern basin), about 80 km south of Italy, across the Malta Channel. Only the three main islands – Malta (in Maltese: Malta), Gozo (Għawdex), and Comino (Kemmuna) – are inhabited. The islands of the archipelago lie on the Maltese Plateau, a shallow platform formed by the highest points of an ancient isthmus connecting Sicily to North Africa, isolated by rising sea levels after the last Ice Age. The archipelago lies on the African tectonic plate. For centuries, Malta was considered an island of North Africa. Numerous bays along the islands' rugged coastline offer good harbors. The landscape consists of low hills and terraced fields. Malta's highest point is Ta' Dmejrek, at 253 m above sea level, near Dingli. Although some small streams form during heavy rainfall, Malta has no permanent rivers or lakes. However, some streams are fed by fresh water year-round, notably at Baħrija near Ras ir-Raħeb, at l-Imtaħleb and San Martin, as well as in the Lunzjata Valley on Gozo.

From a phytogeographical perspective, Malta belongs to the Ligurian-Tyrrhenian province of the Mediterranean region, within the Boreal Kingdom. According to the WWF, Maltese territory lies within the terrestrial ecoregion of Tyrrhenian-Adriatic sclerophyllous and mixed forests.

Malta enjoys a Mediterranean climate (Köppen classification Csa) [36][141], characterized by mild winters and hot summers, hotter inland. Rainfall occurs mainly in autumn and winter, while summers are generally dry.

The average annual temperature is approximately 23°C during the day and 15.5°C at night. During the coldest month, January, daytime highs typically range from 12 to 18°C and nighttime lows from 6 to 12°C. During the hottest month, August, daytime highs typically range from 28 to 34°C and nighttime lows from 20 to 24°C. Of all the capital cities on the European continent, Valletta, the capital of Malta, enjoys the mildest winters, with average daytime highs of around 15 to 16°C and nighttime lows of 9 to 10°C in January and February. In March and December, average daytime highs are around 17°C and nighttime lows around 11°C. Significant temperature fluctuations are rare. Snow is very rare, although snowfall was recorded in the last century, the most recent being in 2014. The average annual sea temperature is 20°C, fluctuating between 15 and 16°C in February and reaching 26°C in August. From June to November, the average sea temperature exceeds 20°C. The average annual relative humidity is high, at 75%, with variations ranging from 65% in July (78% in the morning, 53% in the evening) to 80% in December (83% in the morning, 73% in the evening). The total sunshine duration is approximately 3,000 hours per year, averaging 5.2 hours per day in December and more than 12 hours in July. This is roughly double that of northern European cities; for comparison, London enjoys 1,461 hours of sunshine. However, in winter, the amount of sunshine is up to four times greater; for comparison, in December, London has 37 hours of sunshine while Malta has over 160.