Experience · Malta

Swimming Comino's Blue Lagoon

Between Malta and Gozo, the islet of Comino guards a lagoon of white sand and water so luminous it looks backlit.

Best forDivers & snorkellers · Beach lovers · Couples
In October24°C · 4 rainy days
Ideal stayA day trip from Gozo or northern Malta
Approx. flying time~13h 30m from Los Angeles

Happens around Comino, Malta — nearest airport Valletta (MLA), about 23km away.

CurrencyEUREuro
LanguageMaltese and English
Local time12:341h ahead of the UK
PlugsType GUK plugs fit
Drive on theLeftSame as the UK
Dialling code+356

The experience

The channel between Comino and the islet of Cominotto holds water over white sand so pale it reads as turquoise from a long way off. Swimming is the whole point: shallow, sheltered and warm from June into November, with rocky ledges to jump from and caves to snorkel around the headland. There is almost no shade, and very little on the island besides the lagoon and a couple of kiosks.

Ferries and day boats run from both Malta and Gozo, and the lagoon is busiest between roughly eleven and four in high summer. Coming early, coming late or coming in the shoulder months changes the experience entirely. Combine it with a night or two on Gozo, which is quieter than the main island and a much shorter crossing. October keeps the sea warm and loses most of the fleet.

Ideal stay: A day trip from Gozo or northern Malta
The vibe: Bright, salty, blindingly blue

From our guides

Day boats mob it by 11am — so charter an early kayak or paddleboard crossing from Gozo, or come late afternoon when the fleet retreats. Snorkelling the caves around the headland completes it. October keeps the warmth and loses the armada.

Featured in Ten wild swimming and water adventures across Europe

Make a trip of it

Swimming at first light

Before the day boats arrive the lagoon is glassy and empty. An early crossing from Gozo or an overnight camp gets you an hour of it to yourself.
Snorkelling the caves

Around the headland towards Santa Marija, low sea caves and arches cut into the limestone, with clear water and shoals of small fish inside.
Santa Marija Bay

A quieter sandy bay on the north side of the island with tamarisk trees for shade, about twenty minutes' walk from the lagoon and vastly less crowded.
Saint Mary's Tower

A seventeenth-century watchtower on the cliffs, reached by an easy walk across the scrub. It looks out over the channel and appeared in the Count of Monte Cristo.
Kayaking from Gozo

The crossing from Mġarr is short enough to paddle in calm conditions with a guide, arriving before the ferries and seeing the cliffs from the water.

Getting there

Fly to
Valletta (MLA)

Nearest airport to Comino, about 23km away as the crow flies.
Then
To Mellieħa

About 45 minutes by car, taxi or bus from Malta (MLA) up to Mellieħa in the north west of the island.
On the ground
Getting around

Day boats and ferries to Comino leave from Ċirkewwa just beyond Mellieħa and take around twenty minutes. There are no roads or cars on Comino, so it is a short walk from the landing to the lagoon.

Public transport: Malta's buses reach Ċirkewwa from Valletta and the north, and the Comino boats run frequently in season.

Flights

Los Angeles Comino, Malta

Flying from

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Roughly 13h 30m in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices.

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Pick your departure date, then your return.

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Flight times are estimates; prices open on Google Flights.

When to go

Daytime highs run from about 16°C in January to 29°C in August. Driest June to August; wettest in November, with rain on about 11 days.

The year at a glance — pick a month for detail

October24° · rain 4 daysWarm with the odd shower.

Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis). Highlighted months are warm and mostly dry — May to October.

Where to base yourself

Resort hotels and self-catering apartments in the north, farmhouse conversions with pools on Gozo, plus a scattering of boutique places. Comino itself has one hotel and no village.

Best base overall
Mellieħa

The nearest Maltese town to the Ċirkewwa ferry, on a hill above a long sandy bay, with hotels, apartments and buses. Twenty minutes to the boats for an early crossing.
Find stays in Mellieħa
Closest to the sights
Marfa and Ċirkewwa

The narrow peninsula at the ferry terminal itself, with a few apartments and a resort, so you can be on the first boat. Nothing else is out here.
Find stays in Marfa and Ċirkewwa
Quietest
Marsalforn or Xlendi, Gozo

Basing on Gozo means short crossings from Mġarr and the option of an early kayak or charter, with calmer villages and better value rooms. You are away from Malta's sights.
Find stays in Marsalforn or Xlendi, Gozo
Best value
St Paul's Bay and Buġibba

The big, plain resort sprawl south of Mellieħa, with the cheapest rooms on the island and frequent buses. Concrete, busy and functional rather than pretty.
Find stays in St Paul's Bay and Buġibba

Worth knowing before you book: Day boats reach the lagoon from about eleven, so book the earliest crossing or an afternoon trip, and July and August rooms in the north sell out by spring.

Search everything else in Mellieħa by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.

Or see everything in Mellieħa

Good to know

Timing: Day boats mob the lagoon from about eleven until four in summer. Take the earliest ferry or the late-afternoon one and it is a different place.
Shade: There is almost no natural shade. Bring an umbrella or accept renting one, and reapply sun cream far more often than feels necessary.
Bring supplies: Facilities are limited to seasonal kiosks with long queues. Carry plenty of water and food, and take your rubbish back with you.
Footwear: Much of the entry is over rock rather than sand, and sea urchins live in the crevices. Water shoes save the day.
Getting there: Ferries leave from Ċirkewwa in northern Malta and Mġarr on Gozo. Crossings are cancelled in strong winds, so check the forecast.