Malta Buses

We visited Malta in March 2011 and frequently used Maltese Buses. The information below was as of that date.

Buses are the primary method of public transport for the Maltese islands

The vast majority of buses on Malta depart from a large circular terminus in Valetta.

Buses have been used on the island since 1905.

Malta's classic buses have become tourist attractions in their own right, due to their uniqueness, and are depicted on many Maltese advertisements to promote tourism as well as on gifts and merchandise for tourists. However, these old buses are slowly being replaced by a more modern fleet, albeit still customised in the tradition of the older buses.

The buses used to be colour coded, according to the their routes, before being painted green. Now the buses in Malta are all dark yellow, with a band of orange, while those on the sister island of Gozo are grey, with a red band.

Malta buses are characterised by their high level of customisation and detailing. Common additions to buses include: Increased use chrome parts / high polishing of chrome parts, such as hubcaps and grilles; Paint detailing, both generally, and of parts such as indicators and filler caps; Custom passenger messages, both in the interior and exterior of the bus; Names relating to the village patron saint, monarchs, or other notable objects; Trimmings and hangings, especially inside the front window
Slogans, murals, quotations and lucky images (such as the horseshoe); Due to the nature of operation of Malta buses, many of the drivers are also mechanics, and a high number of Malta buses proudly display the name of the manufacturer of the chassis or body of the bus, or the engine type used. In some instances though, these names are not actually the name of the bus in question!

Malta Bus Fleet

There are approximately 500 buses in public transit service in Malta, most of them privately owned by the bus drivers themselves, and operated to a unified timetable set by the transport authority.

This will change drastically soon when the bus company Arriva takes over the contract to manage the Maltese bus fleet!

Malta buses carry approximately 31 million passengers per year. On any one day, half the bus fleet works on the public transport network (called 'route buses'), while the other half are used for private tours and school transportation.

Malta Bus Map

CLICK HERE TO VIEW a .pdf file of a Malta Bus Map

Malta Bus Fares

Malta's buses offer cheap fares and frequent services to many parts of Malta and Gozo. We found that for frequent use the 7 day pass was a good investment as these covered the cheap regular service buses, which all seem to go via the town of Mosta and the more expensive 'express' services, which are more direct between urban centres.

Malta Bus Tours

Besides regular booked coach excursions through your hotel or package tour travel rep there are two 'open top' bus tour companies vieing for your business on Malta and Gozo:

The international Citysightseeing bus company with its hop on / hop off open topped buses operating four routes: 2 hop-on-hop-off services with much less frequency than its rival and 2 daily purely guided tours - Blue North Route: 4 times per day Hop-on Hop-off - Round Trip with 32 stops. Violet (Short) North Route: 4 times per day Hop-on Hop-off - Round Trip with 22 stops. Red South Route: Once per day Guided Tour (NOT Hop-on Hop-off) with just 5 stops, passing 5 other sights with photo opportunities along the way and Green Gozo Route: Once per day Guided Minibus Tour (NOT Hop-on Hop-off)

and

The local Maltasightseeing bus company with its fleet of hop on / hop off open topped buses - operating 3 Services - North Malta - Blue hop on / hop off tour with 15 stops every 30 minutes. South Malta - Red hop on / hop off tour with 15 stops every hour. Gozo Sightseeing - Green hop on / hop off tour with 12 stops every 45 minutes.

We have used both companies buses and found them comparable in punctuality but found the service to differ greatly. We preferred the Hop-on Hop-off services offered by The local Maltasightseeing bus company, although we can see the benefits for some people for having a Guided Bus Tour with included Guided Walks with Citysightseeing Malta.