Last minute tours to Malta

The independent British Commonwealth nation of Malta consists of the main island of Malta, the adjacent islands of Gozo and Comino, and the uninhabited rocky islets of Cominotto, Filfla and Selmunett. It is located in the Central Mediterranean at the end of the Sicilian channel, 93 km from the southern tip of Sicily and 180 km from the Tunisian coast and this neighborhood makes the hot tours to Malta popular with tourists. The islands extend from northwest to northeast for a distance of about 27 km.

The Maltese Islands are the last remnants of the earth bridge that connected Sicily to North Africa and the Mediterranean during the late Tertiary and Pleistocene glacial periods.

On the main island of Malta, the land rises from northeast to southwest. To the east is a region of rolling hills no higher than 100 m, and to the west is an area of Tertiary limestone plateaus. On the eastern side of the island there are many excellent natural harbors in the river valleys. On the west coast, on the other hand, the cold, steep cliffs, there are few places for navigation. Arable land is mainly found in the large basins on the eastern side of the island. It is in these areas that the population and economic activity are concentrated.

The neighboring island of Gozo is separated from Malta by a channel, which is divided into two parts (Comino Channel North and Comino Channel South) by the small island of Comino. Like Malta, Gozo gradually rises to the southwest, although here the limestone hills are lower and the cliffs on the southwestern coast are correspondingly less formidable.

The northeast coast has no natural harbors like the main island.

Last minute tours to Malta The climate of the Maltese archipelago is characteristically Mediterranean. In summer, the country lies entirely within the subtropical high pressure belt, while in winter the entire Mediterranean is covered by sub-polar low pressure troughs. Accordingly, summers are hot and dry, and winters are mild but rainy. In July the average temperature is 27°C, while in January it drops to less than 12°C. There is no frost on the islands, which makes hot tours to Malta popular. From April to September, the climate of the Maltese islands can be classified as arid: that is, the total rainfall is less than the moisture loss by evaporation.

На Мальте растут средиземноморские вечнозеленые кустарники, известные как гарриги. Среди ее основной растительности – ковыль, тимьян, можжевельник и фисташки. Также для Мальты характерна такая флора, как рожковое дерево, сосна Алеппо, опунция, агава и олеандр. Около 900 г. до н.э. острова были также покрыты деревьями, которые обеспечивали финикийцев и карфагенян древесиной для судостроения. Уничтожение лесов привели к резкому падению содержания влаги в почве и к увеличению эрозии. Эти два фактора значительно сократили сельскохозяйственный потенциал земли.