Never mind seeing our family and friends, every time we Maltese expats visit home, we also look forward to going to the dentist, the hairdresser, the seamstress, the cobbler and a long list of other errands that we wait to do only in Malta. Don't believe me? Well, it's true!

I emigrated from Malta 18 years ago, living first in London and now close to Zurich, two cities renowned for their sky-high cost of living, so it’s quite understandable that whenever I go back home (because Malta will always be home) I appreciate the lower prices - and I’m not the only one!

Errand #1: The dentist

A quick poll of my Maltese expat friends spread across Europe revealed that we all visit Malta with an errands and shopping list accumulated over several months. Top of the list for all of us: the dentist. We’re all in agreement here: dental costs in Malta are a fraction of the prices charged elsewhere on the continent, fact. I can tell you through bitter experience that a filling in Switzerland cost me precisely ten times as much it would have in Malta. Ouch! 

My friend Franklin, who lives in Brussels, concurs. “The errand I wait to do in Malta is definitely going to the dentist. So far I haven’t needed anything urgent, but for the annual check-up/cleaning I wait until I'm back home. It costs me €35 in Malta, whereas a similar procedure in Brussels cost me €145 two years ago. I also think Maltese dentists are very good, so even if I need anything on a bigger scale, unless it’s urgent, I would postpone until I am in Malta.”

"It costs me €35 in Malta, whereas a similar procedure in Brussels cost me €145 two years ago."

Alan, who lives in Luxembourg, agrees. "I have never been to a dentist in Luxembourg in the 11 years I have lived here. It takes three months to get an appointment here, and it's way too expensive! Any other medical visits that can wait, including minor surgeries, I leave for when I am in Malta. They are cheaper and I feel more comfortable communicating with a Maltese doctor using Maltese or English rather than French or my limited knowledge of German. I also feel that the medical service in Malta in general terms is rather better."

May, who has been living in Italy for a number of years, also still relies on her dentist and beautician in Malta, and would not swap her trusted family doctor for anyone else. “I save all necessary medical tests for when I am visiting home in Gozo,” says May. “She has been my doctor ever since I was a teenager, and she knows all our family’s medical history so she’s my number one choice.” May’s errands list also includes a visit to her local grocer in her hometown to stock up on essentials she cannot find in Italy and can't live without, such as “soy sauce, sweet and sour sauce, Xwejni salt, Twistees and Kinnie, and of course the occasional small Malta souvenir that serves as s handy small gift to give away.” 

Errand #2: The tailor

As I prepare for my annual migration back home for the summer holidays, my very long errands list inevitably includes clothes alterations. Almost a quarter of the contents in my suitcase will go straight to the seamstress for hems to be shortened or other adjustments. Doris, who has lived in London for over 15 years, will also be heading to the tailor as soon as she arrives in Malta. 

“If I buy a pair of trousers for, say, £25 but they are too long, it would cost me a further £15 to raise the hem. In Malta, the tailor does it for €1 or €2,” Doris points out. “The same for shoes. Say I buy a pair of boots in the sale for £40 and after wearing them a while, they need re-soling. It would cost me £25 in the UK, but in Malta the cobbler would do it for about €4.”

Personally, I will be making a beeline for the suitcase manufacturer in Gzira to repair a leather handbag and fix the zip on my daughter’s leather boots. All for the princely sum of around €4. 

Errand #3: The hairdresser

Meanwhile, my son is looking forward to his outing with his grandpa, who always takes him to his barber for a long-awaited haircut. It will cost €4.50 (plus 50 cents tip). Multiply that by 10 for the Swiss equivalent for an 11-year old. I’ll also fit in a quick touch up to my highlights. At a fraction of the cost of Swiss prices, it will be worth spending a couple of hours away from the beach.

My expat friend in Italy also goes back to her hairdresser in Gozo, the same one she’s used for the past 20 years. “My hairdresser in Gozo is cheaper than the equivalent of one in Italy,” says May. “But the most convenient thing for me is that the straightening treatment I’ve been doing for years doesn’t exist in Italy! Or at least, all hairdressers I’ve asked don’t know about it. So I play it safe and use my hairdresser back home.” 

Errand #4: The optician

And last but not least on my list of errands this summer: new sunglasses with prescription lenses. I plan to use a designer frame I bought in Milan (in the sales) and add prescription lenses to them which my trusted optician in my hometown of Sliema will do for around €80 each lens. Just under half the cost of a similar service back in my adopted town in Switzerland. Bargain!

So, what’s on your list of errands?