Qui-Si-Sana

Waterfront

Waterfront · Sliema, Malta 35.9105°N 14.5105°E

Why you should go

Ninety seconds on Qui-Si-Sana

Best time

Calm sea daysCalmest June to August

Effort

Flat rock shelvesSea entry off the rock

Access

From Tigné PointA few minutes' walk

Water shoes

Do you need water shoes at Qui-Si-Sana?

A pair helps. The rock along this stretch has a rough, prickly texture, so water shoes for getting in and out and a mat to lie on make a big difference.

Best time

When is the best time to swim at Qui-Si-Sana?

On a calm day. Local beach guides advise against it in northerly or north-easterly winds, which send waves onto the rock shelves and make getting in and out of the water difficult. By their figures, August, July and June are the months most often calm all day.

Parking

Is there parking at Qui-Si-Sana?

Not at the shore itself. The paid car parks at Tigné Point are the most reliable option, a few minutes' walk away. Otherwise, come by bus or by ferry.

At the eastern end of Sliema's seafront, you swim off limestone shelves where old bathing pools are cut into the stone, right beside the sea.

What makes it special

Qui-Si-Sana is the rocky stretch of shore at the eastern end of the Sliema seafront, a few minutes from Tigné Point and the town's main shopping streets. Above it sit a public garden and a children's playground.

Like much of the Sliema coast, the shore here is flat limestone rather than sand, laid out in broad platforms with some natural rock pools among them.

The square pools set into it were cut by wealthy families for private bathing in the nineteenth century. They are sheltered squares of contained sea, set beside the open water.

Fond Għadir, further along the seafront on the walk towards St Julian's, has the same kind of old rock-cut baths.

Visiting

Spread a mat on the flat stone by the pools and settle in. To swim beyond them, use the steps and handrails that lead off the rock into deep, clear water, and climb out the same way. There is no beach here to wade in from.

The spot suits a quick swim between shopping, sightseeing or the ferry to Valletta.

Afterwards, follow Sliema Front, the promenade along Tower Road, past more swimming rocks and lidos to Balluta Bay in St Julian's.

Tips

There are no sunbeds, umbrellas, showers or toilets on the rocks, so bring your own shade and a towel to lie on.

There is no step-free access to the sea either, so the shore does not suit a wheelchair or a pushchair. Barbecues and camping are not part of a visit here.