Malta Airport (MLA)

3.4

Rating

3.4/5

Flyctory.com Pros

Good bus connections
Large landside area
Great lounge (separate review)

Flyctory.com Cons

Airside waiting area too small

Malta was the destination of choice for my wife and myself during Easter 2022. Staying at the Hilton Malta, we obviously used Malta Airport (MLA) to get to and from the Southern European island. Nowadays, it is merging civil and military aviation of the small country. Here is my review.

Malta Airport (MLA) – Location & Transport

Malta Airport is located in Luqa, a city South of the capital Valletta. There have been predecessor airports, but this location is more or less the only aviation option on the Maltese islands, including Gozo, since a couple of decades.

Malta is rather compact and the bus network is excellent. Especially to the capital area, the connections are very good. Apart from taxis, the only other transport option is a rental car, We had a rental with Hertz at Malta Airport (MLA), which felt a bit of scam-alike. As I wrote in that review already, the route and the signs to the rental car offices are a bit of a mess.

Malta Airport (MLA) – Connections

We flew local carrier Air Malta to and from the island, which is one of the key providers of connections to the airport. Another big carrier is Malta Air, a subsidiary of low-cost carrier Ryanair. However, there is a wide range of European airlines connecting to Malta, especially compared to the size of the island. This illustrates its touristic and economic importance. However, at the time of writing, there are just two non-European connections from Malta Airport (MLA), both being rather short-haul ones: There are flights to Tel Aviv (TLV) and Tunis (TUN). We arrived from Munich (MUC) and flew back home via Zurich (ZRH).

Arriving at Malta Airport (MLA)

We were quite surprised that our Air Malta flight from Munich (operated by Smartlynx Estonia) has been parked a very remote location, so that we had quite a bus ride to the terminal.. Arriving at Malta Airport (MLA)’s terminal felt very friendly then. Some parts of the luggage belt and arrival duty free area felt a bit too narrow, but overall, it was a reasonable experience.

Departing from Malta Airport (MLA)

Malta Airport (MLA) is handling more flight operations than you might imagine – there were some seven million passengers per year pre-Covid. The landside check-in area might not be too fancy, but it is really spacious and well-organized. The large advertisement screens give the place a nice and modern touch.

Unfortunately, the airport could not keep up with the good impression on the other side of security controls. The airside waiting area was simply too packed. Thus, we were really happy that our Air Malta Business Class ticket gave us access to the La Valette Club Lounge (see also below). Compared to the size of the waiting area, the shopping and dining opportunities are quite nice, though. It is typically a good destination for duty free shopping.

Malta Airport (MLA) – Services

WiFi worked fine in the airport. In vast contrast to the “standard” airside experience, the airport offers a lovely and large airport longe located on an upper level, even including a balcony. I already introduced it to you in a review:

La Valette Club Lounge Malta Airport (MLA)

Malta Airport (MLA) – My View

Overall, the Malta Airport (MLA) experience was okay. The biggest pain point was definitely the waiting area airside. Due to its rather close bounds to the United Kingdom, it may be very difficult to balance the capacity of the Schengen and Non-Schengen section of the airport. The operations in general felt to work very fine, though.

Airports on Flyctory.com

Here are all other airport-related postings:

Erste Premier Lounge Prague Airport (PRG)

In addition to the non-Schengen services at Terminal 1, Terminal 2 of Prague Airport (PRG) offers two lounge options. I ...

Dubai World Central Airport (DWC)

Dubai World Central (DWC), also Dubai Al Maktoum International, is Dubai's future hub in the making, according to the official ...

2024 – My Year in Travel

Like I did in 2023, I will kick off my looking back to the year 2024 with some travel facts ...

Munich Airport (MUC) Visitors Tour

Spending some time in and around Munich Airport (MUC), I also took the opportunity to have their Airport-Live-Tour, the basic bus tour ...

Flytoget Oslo Airport Express Train

Airport trains are a very convenient option to get to an airport. The Arlanda Express in Stockholm, for example, makes ...

Tunis Airport (TUN)

Having a 1,000 EUR business class flight with Saudia to Kuala Lumpur just felt too tempting for me. The downside ...

Myrtle Beach Airport (MYR)

Myrtle Beach in South Carolina is definitely a special place to me. The city on the Atlantic coast is full ...

Johor Bahru Airport (JHB)

When I traveled to Malaysia in February 2024, I was really curious about Johor Bahru. The city in the South ...

Kuala Lumpur Subang Airport (SZB)

During my early 2024 trip to Malaysia, I had domestic ATR 72 flights with Firefly. The key hub of the ...

Berlin Tempelhof (THF) Former Terminal Tour

The history of Berlin nowadays is also a story of two airports which have been closed down in the meantime ...

Krakow Airport (KRK)

Krakow is one of my favorite places in Poland. While I also took the lengthy train ride from Cologne once, ...

Riding the Öresundstag (Öresund Train)

The Öresund Bridge connecting Copenhagen in Denmark and Malmö in Sweden revolutionized did not only revolutionize travel and transport between ...

Tirana Airport (TIA)

In December 2022, I had my very first visit to Albania. The trip was, of course, by air, so that ...

Aerotel Jeddah Airport (JED)

Even though I really enjoyed my trip with Saudia Airlines from Tunis (TUN) to Kuala Lumpur (KUL), the transfer times ...

Vagar Faroe Islands Airport (FAE)

While I used the ferry some ten years ago to visit the Faroe Islands, I was really flattered to fly ...

SkyTrain Dusseldorf Airport

The public transport situation of Dusseldorf Airport (DUS) is a bit more complex than it might feel at first sight ...

Airport Marrakech-Menara (RAK)

Having a mileage run via Marrakesh was just the second time I set foot on Moroccan soil. Like at the ...

Riding the Heathrow Pod

The Heathrow Express, the Elizabeth Line or the good, old Piccadilly Line - there are many transport options to get ...

Larnaca Airport (LCA)

Visiting Cyprus in October 2022 was definitely one of the highlights of my previous year. I fell in love with ...

Dubrovnik Airport (DBV)

Due to the geographic situation of the Croatian coast, which is very long and thin along the Adriatic Sea, there ...

Heathrow Express – The Fastest Rail to the City (Business First and Express Class)

With the introduction of Elizabeth Line, there is now a third option to get from Heathrow Airport (LHR) to the ...

Open Sky Lounge Dusseldorf Airport (DUS)

Especially with British Airways moving the vast majority of their operations from B-Gates to C-Gates, I have been frequently visiting ...

Union Pearson Express Toronto – The Airport Express Rail

Especially when airports are located a little outside the city, airport express trains feel to be the perfect mass transportation ...

Nice Upgrades to Manchester Airport (MAN) Terminal 2 (Pictured Story)

Already in 2018, I introduced you to my thoughts about Manchester Airport (MAN). To sum it up: the airport has ...

Frankfurt Airport (Fraport) Visitors’ Center

Dud you ever feel like learning more about the current operations and future plans of Germany's largest airport? Frankfurt Airport ...

Andorra La Seu d’Urgell (LEU) Airport

This airport is likely one of the least frequented airports in Europe with regular scheduled services. You just have the ...

Inverness Airport (INV)

Traveling to the Scottish Highlands - a Rock of Ages musical trip in August 2022 lead to a trip quite to the ...

Tupelo Airport (TUP)

Tupelo, birth town of Elvis Presley. I felt very flattered that I would make it back to the city during ...

From Heathrow Airport to London with the Elizabeth Line

Adding a rail connection for Heathrow Airport, improving the travel options between the West and the East of London - ...

European Airports Go Mad – a Morning at Dusseldorf Airport

Early summer 2022. After the Covid-19 crisis feels to have come to a certain end, air travelers all over Europe ...

Helgoland Airport (HGL)

If you are not a general aviation pilot and "just" an aviation nerd or traveler, flying Helgoland Airport (HGL) is ...

Veterans Airport of Southern Illinois in Marion (MWA)

The seventh day of my Pittsburgh Penguins trip in March 2022 lead me to Marion, Southern Illinois. The local Veterans ...

Graz Airport (GRZ)

In summer 2021, I had a weeekend in Graz in Styria, Austria. Apart from meeting a wonderful friend again, I ...

Keflavik Airport (KEF)

There is currently some effort to establish regular international flights from Akureyri (AEY) again, but in general, if you approach ...

Gdansk Airport (GDN)

For our trip in late summer 2021 to Gdansk in Poland , my wife and I arrived in the city ...

Egilsstadir Airport (EGS)

Icelandair gave me a very short-term cancellation for my flight to Vestmannaeyear, when I visited the island. However, I definitely ...

LOT Business Lounge Mazurek (Warsaw WAW Non-Schengen)

There are a couple of LOT intercontinental flights from Warsaw Airport (WAW) in my flight log. Based on that, I ...

Reykjavik Domestic Airport (RKV)

Flying from Reykjavik Domestic Airport (RKV) was thought to be one of the highlights of my trip to Iceland in ...

Riding The Malpensa Express

Milan-Malpensa Airport (MXP) is the major of the two airports serving the North Italian city. However, there is one issue ...

Salzburg Airport (SZG)

I had a couple of trips to Salzburg and neighboring areas in recent past. While some have been rail trip, ...

My Top 15 Airports Flown – With Some Brief Thoughts

Even though I do have a couple of airport reviews on Flyctory.com, I so far missed a lot of the ...

Bolzano Airport (BZO)

South Tyrol, the German speaking region in Northern Italy is quite popular among tourists. The Dolomite Mountains attract many people ...

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ)

Flights directly from city to city - needless to say that one key driver of success of Billy Bishop - ...

Akureyri Airport (AEY)

In Iceland, Akureyri is called the Capital Of The North. Excluding the Reykjavik Metropolitan Area, it is the largest city on ...

Lübeck Airport (LBC)

I remember having a flight from Lübeck / Lubeck Airport (LBC) in the very early 2000's. At this time, I ...

Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI)

Millions of tourists just cannot be too wrong: after Madrid Barajas (read my review of Terminal 4) and Barcelona El ...

Saarbruecken Airport (SCN)

Majorly in order to check out the DAT (Danish Air Transport) connection from there to Hamburg, I happened to fly ...

Flying from Paderborn / Lippstadt Airport (PAD)

Even though I had to delay my flight from there for medical reasons, I was really excited to have my ...

Las Palmas / Gran Canaria Airport (LPA) – Airport Review

My December 2020 trip to Gran Canaria / Grand Canary has been the first longer distance trip since quite a ...

Sylt / Westerland Airport (GWT)

There are a lot of discussions in Germany whether domestic flights are really necessary - and the argues against them ...

Berlin Brandenburg Airport Terminal 1 (BER) – My First Review

I originally planned a flight to the new Berlin Brandenburg Airport in late October 2020. Due to all the pandemic ...

A Walk Through Cologne / Bonn Airport Terminal at Covid-19 Times (Pictured Story)

Travelling in Germany has been turned down to an absolute minimum. Hotels are just able to accept business guests and ...

Flying Dortmund Airport (DTM)

The city of Dortmund in the Northeast Ruhrgebiet region is maintaining its own airport. Dortmund Airport, which is officially called Dortmund ...

Long Beach Airport (LGB)

On the fifth day of my Pittsburgh Penguins West Coast trip in February 2020, I had my first flight from ...

My First PCR Test (Centogene Dusseldorf Airport)

While I have a couple of "PCR professionals" in my circle of contacts, it took me until December 2020 until ...

Flying Under Covid-19 conditions from Venice Airport (VCE)

On 5th September 2020, I had my very first flight from Venice Marco Polo Airport (VCE), flying with Eurowings to ...

Tenerife North Airport (TFN) Review

If you have a direct flight from continental Europe to Tenerife, you likely arrive at Tenerife South Airport (TFS) close ...

Traveling Through Germany at Covid-19 Times – A special Trip Review

Coming back from London from the (finally cancelled) Country To Country Festival 2020 was the last trip I took before ...

Frankfurt Airport during Covid-19

Apart from some hiking and a number of drive-in cinemas, I did not generate any new contents for Flyctory.com on ...

Cologne/Bonn Airport during Covid-19 Times (Pictured Story)

Regarding passenger flights, my hometown airport Cologne / Bonn is only the seventh biggest in Germany, servicing some 12 million ...

Jersey Airport (JER)

During my short visit on the Channel Island Jersey in January, I was flying to and from Jersey Airport for ...

Planespotting at In-N-Out Burger Los Angeles Airport

The Californian In-N-Out Burger chain is generally quite well known under West Coast tourists. Aviation nerds especially praise the restaurant ...

SAS Lounge Stockholm Arlanda (Terminal 5)

While my Lufthansa Senator Status typically grants me access to the SAS Gold Lounge next door, a Eurowings BizClass flight ...

Flyctory.com Best Ones 2019

While I so far made an semi-annual look back in time, the "Very Important Postings", I decided something with my ...

Sharjah Al Mahatta Historic Airport Museum

If you look at the mega-airport of Dubai International nearby, it is hard to believe that Sharjah once was the ...

The Christmas Market at Munich Airport

After reviewing four Christmas markets in Cologne recently, I did not expect to get in touch with any additional ones ...

George Best Airport Belfast (BHD)

Belfast and Northern Ireland have two airports: while Belfast International Airport is West of the capital and out of city ...

Newcastle International Airport (NCL)

In 2019, I twice had flights to and from Newcastle Airport: the first time, I travelled to Sunderland in July ...

Dusseldorf Airport Photo Tour

Though it just processes about a half of the number of passengers of Munich Airport and even just a third ...

Loganair From Glasgow To Barra Airport (BRR)

Barra Airport is a very special place for any aviation enthusiasts: the airport located on the largest island of the ...

Riding the Arlanda Express

If you want to travel from Stockholm's major airport Arlanda to city center, you have multiple options. Undoubtedly, the strongest ...

Singapore Kallang Airport Today

During my business trip to Singapore, I decided to have a look at the grounds of the historic airport grounds ...

Luxembourg Airport (LUX)

Starting my trip to the United States on my Weird Al & Grass Court Tennis trip 2019 was the second ...

Billund Airport (BLL) Review

On my trip with Sun-Air of Scandinavia, I had the opportunity to visit Billund Airport. My stopover time there was ...

Concorde Technical Tour at Manchester Airport

On the return trip from Singapore and Malaysia, I had more or less a whole day around Manchester before I ...

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)

Though I finally did not manage to touch down there, flying from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) was definitely ...

Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA)

After my first Chattanooga experience was already part of my trip following the Weird Al Yankovic Tour 2018, I made ...

Jewel Changi Airport (Singapore)

Singapore Changi Airport (SGP) regularly tops international airport rankings like Skytrax. Nevertheless, they seem to be constantantly working on making ...