Malta

Anybody know if its possible to rent a decent bike in Malta?

Im going with my sister who is really short, we were thinking of riding some MTB's while there but all the hire places seem to just have one size only cheapo hybrids or bike-shaped-objects.

If anyone has some contacts over there, would be mucho useful, even if its for non-bike stuff. Any fun local people/stuff to check out.

Paging Dammit!

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There are hire places on Gozo- and trust me when I say that you will not want to ride on the main island due to the state of the roads and the traffic.

I hired a basic MTB and a hybrid last time I was there for very little.

Bear in mind the brakes will be the wrong way round as the bikes will be Italian.

Gozo is beautiful, go there and enjoy bit- perfect size to explore by bike also.

You've made me.want to go back now!

Avoid Paceville unless you like lager and vomit.

I went to Malta this summer. It's full of toffs.
Well the wedding I went to was.
Gozo = better. Some nice looking hills, hot, beaches aren't that great, lots of flags. Big ones.

Problem with Malta is that it is overdeveloped now.

Gozo still has some open spaces that are not built on.

The Sea is nice though. And the ice creams.

Gozo is amazing. Malta not so.

A while since I been but we rented a jeep for a fiver a day. screw riding on maltese roads. as has been said. tho i guess there might be good potential for off road

http://www.mountainbikemalta.com/

Hmm, I took my mountain bike to Malta and ended up putting slicks on it- on the mainland it is either paved, arrable with crops growing, or built upon.

The only exception to this is the coast, and that's an exciting place to ride due to the high chance of being shot by a hunter.

Hmm, I took my mountain bike to Malta and ended up putting slicks on it- on the mainland it is either paved, arrable with crops growing, or built upon.

The only exception to this is the coast, and that's an exciting place to ride due to the high chance of being shot by a hunter.

Hmmm, that was the sort of impression I was getting except I thought it would be rather pleasant to ride around the mediterranean rural areas away from the road. You know, light off-road kind of stuff, up hils, across fields etc admiring the spring countryside and trying to spot ancient ruins.

Ive been to spain before, and any grassy bits near beaches were both usually a nature reserve AND full of hunters.

In Malta the hunters have styled themselves as the environmental lobby, presumably because they get close to nature by shooting it.

They set up these shooting alleys around the coast where they hide in a stone and corrugated iron shed, drinking, whilst a song bird in a cage is at the other end of the alley.

When enough birds have been attracted by the one in the cage the hunters open up with drunken fury, and shotguns.

That said walking along the coast is good fun.

Seriously- if you want to cycle get the ferry over to Gozo, hire a bike there, you'll have a great time pootling around.

Cycle on the mainland and you'll only enjoy it if you are channeling the spirit of DJ.

I vote you head for gozo too. my family have been holidaying there since well before I was born.

If you do end up in gozo a trip to dwejra for a diving trip or just a boat tour is well worth it. it's a small bay with a circular hole through the surrounding cliff face that opens out into the sea, it's a 'stone' beach not sand but it's really beautiful.

By the Azure window?

Last time I went there a million tiny blue squid had been washed up everywhere.

My family have a picture of it when there was a lot more rock under the arch- it's going to collapse totally at some point.

I love Gozo- there's even a half decent French restaurant.

I went to Malta this summer. It's full of toffs.

Paging Dammit!

Paging Dammit!

bollocks! malta can be the nuts! good one dammit with slicks mtb choice.. 10/10 fun.. excellent night riding but warning, avoid dangerous girl racers

Azure window- note the sedimentary line (if that's what it is), the arch used to be in line with this:

http://www.brodyaga.com/pages/photos/Malta/Azure%20Window%20-%20Dwejra%20%28Gozo%29%20Malta%201173299422.jpg

that's the one...

http://malta.mydestinationinfo.com/en/dwejra

i used to hate going there as a little'un as the rocks hurt my feet (they were big pebbles) but when I got older it was one of my favourite parts of the island.

In Malta now, even brought over me bike too, traffic and roads not all that bad, someone last year knocked down there top rider so there now seems to be a nod for cyclist and also Tour of Malta is growing in popularity.

PS. no extra charge for bringing your bike if you fly with Air Malta.

I just got back from malta.
Traffic and the roads were fine, dont know what people were complaining about.
I was a bit ill though, with a non-bikey person AND couldnt actually find a decent bike so just stuck to the buses for transportation.

I saw the free sports equipment with air malta, but we went ryan with the idea that we could use the saved airfare towards bike hire. Opportunity never arose though, we never even went to gozo.

Its hard to find any empty natural spot for a bit of fun off road riding, everything is farms/small holdings and full of guard dogs or hunters.

There is a specific car-park which one goes to on Malta when it is time to pass your driving test.

The test comprises of:

• Start the car
  
• Reverse around a corner
  
• Drive forward
  
• Reverse into a parking space marked out with cones
  
• Pay
  
  

You can convert an English licence into a Maltese licence, you cannot do it the other way around.

Other interesting fact- despite what the law says the only drink drive rule in Malta is that in a crash, the drunkest driver was at fault.

Food in malta was bloody awful, damn english seem to have left their stamp good and proper.

I did like pea cakes and the hard to find local produce/fish though.

Hah, the government sets the price that farmers can sell their products at- so all the good stuff is exported to Italy for decent prices.

If you eat in a hotel then it is likely that you will be eating Maltese produce that has been exported to Italy, then re-imported to Malta.