Grand Harbour
From CruisersWiki
Grand Harbour
| |
| |
The main commercial harbour of Malta is Grand Harbour located on the south-east side of Malta's capital city of Valletta. It is a very large harbour mostly used by commercial vessels, however, within the harbour there is a privately run yacht marina as well as a boatyard specialising in yachts which also has floating pontoon berths for yachts.
Charts
See Malta.
Weather
See Malta.
Passages
Malta is 412 nM form Cythera and 383 nM from Pylos in Greece. It is also 364 nM from Cagliari, Sardinia and about 85 nM from Lampedusa in Italy.
Also see Aegean to West Mediterranean Passages.
Communication
See Malta.
While the approaches are straight forward, be aware of the many ships anchored off near the harbour entrance.
Entrance
See Malta.
Berthing
Yachts should proceed to one of the yacht marinas.
Marinas
- Grand Harbour Marina. This is primarily a floating pontoon marina in Grand Harbour. Stern to berths are available for larger vessels.
- Kalkara Marina (Kalkara Boat Yard). In spring 2012 Kalkara Boatyard installed two rows of floating pontoons with water and electricity. The pontoons are sheltered by a wave breaker on the seaward side of the pontoons. They now refer to themselves as Kalkara Marina.
More Kalkara Boat Yard information below. Kalkara Marina monitors channel 13. See general Malta Radio Net information above.
Note: that despite a partial breakwater at the entrance to Grand Harbour, a notable amount of swell enters and is reflected around this harbour. Consequently boats berthed in these marinas may be subject to quite a bit of movement.
Amenities
Facilities | |
---|---|
Water | {in the marina |
Electricity | in the marina |
Toilets | ? |
Showers | ? |
Laundry | in the marina |
Garbage | In bins |
Supplies | |
Fuel | check with marina office |
Bottled gas | Give details on cooking gas (Camping Gaz, butane, propane, etc) suppliers. If there are no suppliers in the island just enter "None" |
Chandlers | Ask in the marina office. Most chandleries are located in Marsamxett Harbour |
Services | |
Repairs |
See also the list of Malta boatyards on the Malta page. |
Internet | The Kalkara Regatta Restaurant has free WiFi |
Mobile connectivity | Is there mobile telephone signal such as G4, G3, GPRS on the island? How strong is the signal? Are there any blind spots? |
Vehicle rentals | Rental outlet [[Grand Harbour#Rental outlet|Rental outlet]] DD.ddd, DD.ddd description, location, tel. +xx (xxxx) xxxxxx |
Provisioning
Give the names and locations of supermarkets, grocery stores, bakeries, etc.
Store name1 [[Grand Harbour#Store name1|Store name1]] DD.ddd, DD.ddd description, location, tel. +xx (xxxx) xxxxxx .
Eating out
At the Kalkara Boatyard there is a restaurant called Kalkara Regatta Kalkara Regatta; right at the Marina. Contact them to confirm when they will be open, tends to be late afternoon, and the crowds don't tend to start until late. Popular with locals. Big-screen TVs and free WiFi.
There is another restaurant in the corner of the Kalkara Creek harbour entrance just off the roundabout with lots of outdoor seating, big screen, pub-like atmosphere. Sorry, can't recall the name. Popular with the locals.
Transportation
- Buses operate from nearby the marina and run to Valletta.
- Water taxis operate between the marina and Valletta.
Tourism
History
Give a short history of the port.
Places to Visit
The Grand Harbour Marina is close to Birgu, one of the oldest villages of Malta and worth a walkthrough. Here also will be found the Knights Hall built by the Order of St. John between 1533-57, and the Maritime Museum, housed now in the 19th-century building of the Naval Bakery.
Friends
Contact details of "Cruiser's Friends" that can be contacted for local information or assistance.
Forums
List links to discussion threads on partnering forums. (see link for requirements)
Links
See Malta.
References
See Malta.
Comments
We welcome users' contributions to the Wiki. Please click on Comments to view other users' comments, add your own personal experiences or recommend any changes to this page following your visit.
Verified by
Date of member's last visit to Grand Harbour and this page's details validated:
- Some amendments and additions Feb 2011 --Wayward
This is a usable page of the cruising guide. However, please contribute if you can to help it grow further. Click on Comments to add your personal notes on this page or to discuss its contents. Alternatively, if you feel confident to edit the page, click on the edit tab at the top and enter your changes directly. |
Contributors to this page
|
---|
Names: Lighthouse, Istioploos, , Wayward |