Fort Rinella

What makes it special

Fort Rinella is in Kalkara, one of the Three Cities, on the eastern side of the Grand Harbour across from Valletta. It is a gun battery rather than a true fort, so it also goes by the Rinella battery.

The gun sits on top of the battery, fully restored. The rooms that worked it are still in place below: the engine room, loading chambers, magazines and lift-shafts.

The approach keeps its original defences too, with a bent entry, a dry ditch, caponiers and defensible barracks. Its Guthrie bridge has been restored to full working order.

Indoors, the Soldiers of the Queen exhibition covers the British Victorian Army and the life of the garrison. The battery had fallen into dereliction before its restoration, so the tunnels and rooms you walk through are the result of that work.

Visiting

The film on the fort and its gun runs every hour, so you can catch it before or after the guided tour of the fort and museum.

Your guide wears period uniform. Re-enactments show loading drills, historical weapons and cavalry tactics, and the tour includes musketry firing. Visitors single out the guides as knowledgeable and engaging, with tours that bring the fort to life.

Leave enough of the afternoon for the film, the full tour and the drills, since those are what make the visit run long.

Tips

Seeing the gun alone takes under 15 minutes, so decide before you arrive whether you want the full programme. In warm weather, carry water and wear shoes with good grip.

In Birgu, the Malta at War Museum sits at the front gate, two minutes from the bus station. The operator usually holds an open day in late April or early May, so check its site if your trip falls then.