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Three hooded bearers in purple robes, arms round each other, under a statue in the Good Friday procession in Birgu Submit a photo

Holy Week in Malta

21 to 28 March 2027  ·  Birgu and parishes across Malta

Add the six days to your plan

Choose one town for Good Friday evening and stand in its streets as life-size statues pass on their bearers' shoulders. Then give Easter morning to Birgu, where the Risen Christ goes through the streets at a run.

Event guide, Malta. Meridian Dispatch.

When
21 to 28 Mar 2027Good Friday is 26 March
Best
Friday 26 MarchEvening, in Birgu
Cost
FreeFrom the public streets
Season
Late MarchWeather can stop it
Getting there
Ferry or taxiHoliday-timetable boats

Easter fixes the dates. The hours here are each parish's usual ones; 2027's are confirmed in the weeks before.

Dates

When is Holy Week in Malta 2027?

In 2027 the week begins on Palm Sunday, 21 March, and ends on Easter Sunday, 28 March, with Maundy Thursday on 25 March and Good Friday on 26 March. Each parish sets its own procession hours.

Good Friday times

What time do the Good Friday processions start in Malta?

Most set off between 5pm and 7pm, after services at about 3pm. Żejtun usually goes first, at about 5pm, then Cospicua and Qormi at about 5.30pm, and Birgu, Senglea and Valletta from about 6pm.

Which town

Which town is best for Good Friday in Malta?

Birgu has narrow alleys, candlelight and penitents in chains, and it sits within a walk of Senglea and Cospicua. Valletta needs no boat or car for a guest staying in the city. St George's parish in Qormi carries 13 statues.

Duration

How long does a Good Friday procession in Malta last?

About 3.5 to 5 hours, counting the time to leave and re-enter the church. Valletta takes about 3.5 hours and Birgu about three to four, so holding one spot means standing for three hours or more.

Penitents

Why do men walk in chains in Malta's Good Friday processions?

They do it as penance. Hooded men in white drag long, heavy chains from their bare feet, wishing to remain anonymous, and others carry crosses on their backs. Most wear costumes they made themselves, some passed down through families.

Easter run

What is the Easter Sunday run in Malta?

On Easter morning bearers run through the streets carrying the statue of the Risen Christ, after the morning Mass, while the crowd cheers. Cospicua and Senglea usually go out at about 9am and Birgu at about 10am.

Where to stand

Where is the best place to watch the Easter run in Birgu?

On a street that climbs, since the bearers run the statue uphill. Birgu's statue leaves the Collegiate of St Lawrence, which faces the marina, at about 10am.

Seven Visits

What are the Seven Visits on Maundy Thursday in Malta?

A traditional walk to seven churches to pay homage at the Altars of Repose, on Maundy Thursday and into Good Friday morning. It begins after the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper, when the Blessed Sacrament moves to the chapel of repose.

Rain

What happens to Malta's Good Friday processions if it rains?

Parishes decide one by one, sometimes only hours ahead. A procession may be cancelled, moved indoors, or sent out late on a shorter route. The Easter runs come two days later.

Ferry

Does the Three Cities ferry run on Good Friday?

On the operator's Sunday and public holiday timetable, the service starts at 9am and ends at 6.15pm from November to May. That is close to the start of most processions, so the ferry works for the way out and a taxi or bus for the way back. Check the operator's timetable for Good Friday.

Cost

Do you need a ticket for the Holy Week processions in Malta?

No. Watching from public areas along the route is free. Tour operators sell trips with transport to a procession, which are optional. Streets close to traffic around the routes, and parking is hard, so the room and the ride home need booking before the day.

What makes it special

Red-cloaked figures walking a Birgu street on Good Friday, a cross ahead and the crowd either side
Statues on shoulders

Each parish carries its own statues of the Passion through its own streets. Marching bands play funeral marches between them.

Red cloaks and a cross on a Birgu street, Good Friday.
A barefoot man in a brown robe, chained at the wrists, in the Good Friday procession in Birgu
Barefoot, in chains

Penitents walk as an act of penance and keep their faces hidden. Some drag long chains from bare feet and some carry crosses. The chains began in Birgu, with the slaves and convicts who once walked here.

A penitent in chains in Birgu's procession.
The Collegiate Church of St Lawrence in Birgu, its bell tower and dome under a clear sky
The run on Easter morning

Two days later the mood turns. Bearers who have trained for it run the Risen Christ uphill through Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua, and the street cheers them on.

St Lawrence's in Birgu, where the Risen Christ comes out on Easter Sunday.
How many nights do you have?

Five nights (Wed 24 to Mon 29 Mar): every day from the Wednesday, with the Seven Visits and a spare day.

  1. 24MarArrive, first sight of Birgu
  2. 25MarBirgu by day, seven churches
  3. 26MarGood Friday, pick a town
  4. 27MarTemples, palace, the Vigil
  5. 28MarEaster morning, the run
  6. 29MarFly home
  7. Gold marks the days in your plan. Palm Sunday, 21 March, opens the week.
Wed 24 Mar

First sight of Birgu

Check in and walk to the Upper Barrakka Gardens. From the terrace you look across the Grand Harbour at Birgu, and the lift at the end of the gardens drops to the wharf for tomorrow's ferry.

Tonight Birgu's Sewda, the Black procession, leaves the Crucifix Oratory at about 8pm.

Fort St Angelo on the point at Birgu, seen from the air over the harbour
Fort St Angelo on the point of Birgu, straight across from the Barrakka terrace.
Thu 25 Mar, Maundy Thursday

Birgu by day, seven churches at night

Cross on the ferry and walk the waterfront to Birgu. In the Inquisitor's Palace, end in the rooms on Maltese traditions, where one covers Good Friday and Easter.

After the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper, the Seven Visits begin: a walk to seven churches to pray at their Altars of Repose. Do it on foot in Valletta tonight, or keep some churches for Friday morning.

Birgu's waterfront and church domes seen from a boat on the harbour
Birgu from the water, the way the ferry brings you in.
Fri 26 Mar, Good Friday

Good Friday: one town, one night

Heritage Malta shuts every museum, fort and temple today, so keep the day slow in Valletta and eat before you cross. The statues come out after each parish's afternoon service.

  1. 3pmServices in the parish churches
  2. 5 to 7pmProcessions leave, parish by parish
  3. 6.15pmLast holiday-timetable boat
  4. 3.5 to 5 hrsFirst statue out to last one home

Pick your town

Birgu, Senglea and Cospicua touch, so you can walk to a second. For a first Good Friday, take Birgu.

Grand Harbour Ferry VallettaBirguSengleaCospicua ← Qormi 5 km Żejtun 4 km ↓
The candlelit one

Birgu

Leaves about 6 to 7pm · 3 to 4 hours

What you see
No electric light, only candles, in lanes about four metres wide. This is the town to watch for the penitents in chains.
Where to stand
The church door is where the statues come out, and it fills first. Further in, the crowd reaches back hundreds of metres, so take one stretch of lane and stay.
Getting home
Take the ferry over. Book a taxi home in the morning and walk clear of the closed streets to meet it.
Easter
About 10am, the run this plan is built around.
Open the Birgu guide
Across the creek

Senglea

Leaves about 6pm

What you see
Its Christ in the Olive Garden is a statue of two figures, Jesus and an angel.
Where to stand
Anywhere on the route, then walk round the head of the creek to catch Birgu's later statues.
Getting home
The same ferry out and a taxi back.
Easter
About 9am, and the bearers run here too. Take a taxi, since the first boat is too late.
Where the ferry lands

Cospicua

Leaves about 5.30pm

What you see
The church owns most of the costumes here. Elsewhere the participants own theirs.
Where to stand
By the church for the first statues out. The early start leaves time to walk on to Birgu.
Getting home
A taxi, booked in the morning.
Easter
About 9am, then a short walk to Birgu for its run at about 10am.
No boat, no car

Valletta

Leaves about 6pm · 3.5 hours

What you see
The capital's statues, on the straight streets of the grid.
Where to stand
Republic Street near St John's Co-Cathedral.
Getting home
On foot to your bed.
Easter
Mass with the Archbishop at St John's, mid-morning.
Open the Valletta guide
Thirteen statues

Qormi

Leaves about 5.30pm

What you see
St George's parish carries 13 statues, among them a Last Supper and a Pietà, and every bearer belongs to a fraternity.
Where to stand
Near St George's Church, as the statues go out.
Getting home
Bus on the holiday timetable, or a taxi. Leave the car: parking is very hard.
Easter
About 9am, with two parishes, St George and St Sebastian, each running its own.
The first out

Żejtun

Leaves about 5pm

What you see
The statues leaving St Catherine's Church, one by one, over about 90 minutes.
Where to stand
Outside St Catherine's, facing the door.
Getting home
Bus on the holiday timetable, or a taxi. Parking is very hard.
Easter
About 10am, the same hour as Birgu, so choose one.

If the wind gets up

Wind and showers can stop a procession, and each parish makes its own call on the day.

  1. Decide lateSome parishes decide only after the afternoon service. Wait for your parish's word once it ends, then cross.
  2. Keep a second townOne parish can cancel while the next goes out. If Birgu's is off, walk to Senglea's.
  3. Try the churchA parish that stays in may still show its statues inside the church. Ask at the door.
BringA waterproof, a warm layer, and shoes that grip for Sunday.
LeaveThe car. Streets close, and in Żejtun, Qormi and Valletta parking is very hard.
ExpectHoliday bus timetables, diversions and a wait as the crowd leaves.
Sat 27 Mar, Holy Saturday

Temples, a palace, the Vigil

Go to the Tarxien Temples in the morning, by bus 84, 85 or 88 from Valletta. Spend the afternoon in the Grandmaster's Palace on St George's Square.

Ask a bakery for figolli, the almond-filled pastries of a Maltese Easter. After dark the Vigil opens outside St John's with the blessing of the new fire, and you can watch that part from the forecourt.

Skip the Vigil if you are taking an early taxi to Senglea or Cospicua on Sunday.

Sun 28 Mar, Easter Sunday

Easter morning, the run

At about 10am the Risen Christ comes out of St Lawrence's on the marina, and its bearers take it up the hill at a run.

The clocks go forward an hour overnight, so set the alarm with care. The first boat, at 9am, gets you to Birgu in time.

Senglea and Cospicua go out earlier, at about 9am; to see one as well, take a taxi over and walk on to Birgu. St John's is closed to visitors today, so give the afternoon to Senglea.

Senglea from across the water, its houses stacked above the harbour wall
Senglea above its harbour wall, a short walk from Birgu for the afternoon.
The dome of the Carmelite church and the spire of St Paul's Pro-Cathedral above Valletta's rooftops
Where to stay

Valletta

Sleep in Valletta, with the city's own procession and the ferry for Birgu both on foot. Our pick is Iniala Valletta on St Barbara Bastion; ask for the harbour side, which faces the Three Cities.

Explore

More of Malta

Birgu and its marina
Town

Birgu

The town of the chains and the Easter run, on the marina.

 Valletta
Town

Valletta

Your base, with the harbour a short walk from the bed.

 The Inquisitor's Palace in Birgu
Palace

Inquisitor's Palace

Tribunal hall and cells.

 The Tarxien Temples
Temples

Tarxien Temples

Carved spirals on a raised walkway, in Tarxien.

 The Grandmaster's Palace in Valletta
Palace

Grandmaster's Palace

State Rooms and Armoury.

Add the six days to your plan and the app holds the order of each one, with the boat times in the notes.

Add the six days to your plan
Sources 5

The official pages this guide was checked against.

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