Culture
Celebrate International Museum Day with special museum openings & free admissions
Steeped in history and brimming with culture, Malta is an open-air museum waiting to be explored. And this is the best weekend to do it without spending a single Euro.

Adriana Bishop

It’s International Museum Day today, so what better way to spend your day in Malta than to wander around some of the island’s most fascinating museums. 

Organised by the International Council of Museums, the theme for this year’s Museum Day is Hyperconnected museums: New approaches, new publics and aims to raise awareness that “museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, cooperation and peace among peoples.”

The day happens to coincide with Public Service Week in Malta, honouring all public sector employees who keep the island ticking, so there are some special museum openings this weekend to make your history tour extra special. And there’s also a cultural festival in Gozo. Never a dull moment on this island!

Bir Mula Heritage House, Cospicua

bir mula

John Vella

This ordinary looking townhouse in the heart of Cospicua (Bormla) reveals the extraordinary history of Malta under one roof. The lowest level of the building is at least 1,000 years old, and over the centuries the house has been adapted and re-used in several ways. Normally open only on Saturdays and Sundays, today Bir Mula will be open from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. Tomorrow and Sunday the house museum will open as usual from 10am to noon with a guided tour in English starting at 11am. On Saturday at 7pm, owner and curator John Vella will present his 30-year long research which reveals the origins and development of the Byzantine rock-cut church of Cospicua. An exhibition of art by local artists will be on display in the main hall. Admission is free for all events. Donations for the upkeep of the privately-owned museum are appreciated.

Open Day in Gozo, Saturday

cittadella

©viewingmalta.com - Jurgen Scicluna/MTA

Malta’s sister island Gozo is celebrating Gozo Alive this weekend, a programme of culture, entertainment and fun. On Saturday 19th May, all Heritage Malta museums in Gozo will be open, free of charge. It’s the perfect excuse to explore the oldest free-standing temple in the world, Ggantija in Xaghra, and one of the last complete windmills, Ta’ Kola, also in the same village. There will also be free admission to the Cittadella’s four museums, the Gozo Museum of Archaeology, Gozo Nature Museum, Old Prison and Gran Castello Historic House

Open Day in Malta, Sunday

nat history museum

©viewingmalta.com - Mario Galea

And the museum free-entry-fest continues on Sunday with an open day at all Heritage Malta sites on the island of Malta in honour of Public Service Week. Take your pick from prehistoric temples, ancient catacombs, a roman villa, the Natural History Museum, the only inquisitor’s palace open to the public anywhere in the world, the Grandmasters Palace or the Maritime Museum, to name but a few.  

Special admission fee at Casa Bernard, Rabat

casa bernard

Casa Bernard

Say the words "International Museum Day" and you'll get to tour this beautiful palazzo in the heart of Rabat at a discounted rate of €6 instead of €8. This offer applies to the first four tours of the day starting at 10am, 11am, 12pm and 1pm. You won't want to miss the opportunity to nosey round this private family home brimming with history. 

Bonus! Musical surprise at Casa Rocca Piccola, Valletta

While entry to Casa Rocca Piccola will not be free today, visitors will be treated to a little musical surprise as they tour this aristocratic palazzo. Wait till you reach the library… 


Adriana Bishop
Written by
Adriana Bishop
A former journalist and travel PR executive, Adriana divides her time between her adopted home Switzerland and her forever home Malta where she enjoys playing the ‘local tourist’ re-discovering favourite haunts and new attractions on every visit.

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