Sliema Point Battery

Fortress

Fortress · Sliema, Malta 35.9141°N 14.5071°E

Why you should go

Ninety seconds on Sliema Point Battery

Best time

Summer eveningsPromenade busy late

Season

Open dailyFrom 9am till late

Access

Tower RoadSeaside promenade

What it is

What is Sliema Point Battery?

A British artillery fortification on the Sliema shore, begun in 1872 as Malta's defences were modernised for a new age of naval warfare. It now houses a bar and restaurant.

Who runs it

Who runs Sliema Point Battery?

Fortizza Bar and Restaurant, commonly called Il-Fortizza, which uses the old fort as its premises. The battery is open to the public only as that restaurant, so a visit runs on the restaurant's hours.

Where

Where is Sliema Point Battery?

On Tower Road in Sliema, a road named after the 17th century Saint Julian's Tower. The battery sits along the stretch of coast lined by the Sliema Front, and the entrance is through the restaurant.

Stop at Sliema Point Battery to see a British artillery battery from the 1870s that you can sit inside, because the fort now trades as a bar and restaurant.

What makes it special

Sliema Point Battery stands on Tower Road, on the peninsula between Marsamxett Harbour and St Julian's Bay. It is built in the Gothic Revival style, and the feature to look for is its distinctive main gate.

The British started work on it in 1872, one of the upgrades Malta's defences needed once iron-plated warships and powerful rifled guns arrived. The battery was later used as a searchlight position.

The restaurant inside is called Il-Fortizza, The Fortress, so the old fort is now a place to eat and drink.

It is one of several British works on this shore. Cambridge Battery, built later, stands above the water between this battery and Fort Tigné.

Visiting

Reach the battery on foot along Tower Road, one of Malta's most popular seaside promenades. The promenade that lines this coast, known as the Sliema Front, is a common place for walking and jogging, and a meeting place for locals through the summer season.

At the battery, the way in is through Il-Fortizza, which is open to the public as a restaurant. Ask at the door whether you can look around without ordering; otherwise take a table and see the old fort from the inside.

Tips

For a second old defence, look for Saint Julian's Tower, the 17th century tower that gave Tower Road its name. Its tower and battery are also a restaurant now, It-Torri, so you can compare the two forts over a drink in each on the same evening.

Know before you goIl-Fortizza also takes bookings for private functions, large groups and special events, so book a table ahead for an evening visit.