Blue Lagoon, located on Malta's smallest inhabited island - Comino, with its clear turquoise shallow waters, golden rocks and dramatic coastline is without a doubt one of the most popular spots to visit. The bright sea illuminated by warm sun rays around Comino contrasts beautifully with the arid land. The only sandy beach sandwiched between the cliffs is beautiful but really tiny, so to enjoy the Blue Lagoon in the best way possible, get there really early or... avoid the beach itself! Take a long walk along the breathtaking coast, or hike to one of the other beaches - San Niklaw Bay or Santa Marija Bay which are really idyllic and quiet. Read on and I'll give you some tips on what this tiny piece of paradise has to offer.

How to get to the Blue Lagoon in Comino

Blue Lagoon is a perfect destination for a day trip. Actually, it's a must when you are in Malta! Not only for those who like to stay on the beach all day but also for those who love hiking - the views are great!

Comino Island is located between Malta and Gozo - (which is also worth visiting! I'll describe Gozo in the future). There are many boats, especially in the high season departing every 30 minute or so both from Gozo (Mgarr) and Malta (Cirkewwa Ferry Terminal). In Gozo, if you are staying in the capital - Victoria - to get to Mgarr take the bus number 301 or 303. In Malta, buses are much more frequent and you can catch 41 or 42 from Valleta, 101 or 102 from Golden Bay area (which is also a great, off the beaten path place in Malta - I have described it here), 222 from St. Julian's and X1 directly from the airport. You can find the whole map with bus connections in Malta here.

From Cirkewwa Ferry Terminal in Malta, the boat ride takes around 30 minutes, from Mgar in Gozo slightly less to the Blue Lagoon. The cost is around 10 EUR return, for a child 5-12 - 5 EUR.

Sometimes, on a busy day pubic buses may be full. In that case, the boat taxi operators might organize an extra mini but to Cirkewwa at a small additional fee.

Blue Lagoon - The experience

My first impression of the Blue Lagoon was - amazing but a little bit too touristy. Actually, not a little bit, the tiny beach was completely packed, so packed that all the sunbeds and umbrellas were squeezed all around, also on the unpaved road above. There were more or less 3 rows and if you decided to sit down in the last one (after paying the fee of course), the only thing you would see is the rock behind you and the back of a person in front of you. I was actually surprised that all those sunbeds were taken!

It's so much better to walk a bit further - the views along the cliffs and the coast are even greater than those at the Blue Lagoon beach itself. As usual, in those kind of places there were literally no hikers, all the tourists who came with us by boat preferred to squeeze near the beach. For me, it would be a nightmare.

From the top you can admire the entire coast, the nearby island of Gozo and the boats and yachts that came with the tourists to the cliffs. If you go down, you can also take a swim and admire the arches and magnificent rock formations created by the forces of nature.

Nearby, you'll notice the 17th century Santa Marija Tower - as a part of the fortification and defence system in medieval Malta.

San Niklaw Bay and Santa Marija Bay

For those who would like to stay longer in Comino, there is a hotel which is located at Santa Marija Bay and also a camp site for backpackers. Both bays are located only a 40 minute walk to the northern part of the island and they are perfect if you wont to escape the crowds. The walk itself is pretty attractive, among the lava fields - reminds of a moon-like surface. This is probably how Iceland would look if it were located in a hotter climate zone.

The beaches are not as spectacular as Blue Lagoon but they are so idyllic - just perfect to relax in peace and silence. There are also a few trees around that can provide shade.

After all day exploring the beauty of Comino you'll get a little surprise - on the way back to Malta, the taxi boats will do a mini tour around the coast (included in the ticket fare) so you can see it all from the sea level!