Strait Street

Landmark

Landmark · Valletta, Malta 35.8989°N 14.5125°E

Why you should go

Ninety seconds on Strait Street

Best time

Late eveningLivelier as night goes on

Cost

FreeOpen street, day and night

Effort

665 m end to endNarrowest in Valletta

Season

April to NovemberNo street tables in winter

Guide

Not neededGo on your own

The Gut

Why is Strait Street called The Gut?

The nickname comes from the street's old reputation as the seedy underbelly of Valletta. From the late 19th century to the mid-20th, it was where sailors and soldiers from ships in the Grand Harbour went for a night out.

Closing time

What time do the bars on Strait Street close?

Most bars on Strait Street close between midnight and 2am. Venues on the street may play music until 1am, up from the usual 11pm, provided the volume stays moderate after 11pm.

Guided walk

Is there a guided walk of Strait Street?

Yes. A guided walk on the theme of sailors in Valletta lasts about 45 minutes and is followed by a theatre show of about 40 minutes. Reservations are recommended, because the shows are popular.

Under British rule this lane was one of the Mediterranean's famous entertainment streets, and after dark you can still take a cocktail or a glass of wine here to live music.

What makes it special

The jazz, swing, blues and DJ nights in today's bars follow a long run of music on this street. Big bands still played here in the mid-1950s, before the jukebox and rock 'n' roll took over.

The bars open now came back after a long gap. Independence brought a steep fall in the number of British and American servicemen on the island, and from the 1970s the street closed down.

The Valletta 2018 programme set out to revive it. Its plan was to restore the buildings, conserve the historic wall paintings and signs, and bring exhibitions, street theatre and night events back to the lane.

The Splendid, a neglected hotel that began its life as a brothel, is the street's events venue. It is used for occasional events, from fund-raising pop-up markets to unorthodox Shakespeare plays, so look for what is on there during your stay.

Visiting

Walking it in daylight comes first. Take the stretch between Old Theatre Street and Archbishop Street, reading the painted names on the facades, then carry on to each end of the lane and back.

Have dinner somewhere else first. Most bars stay quiet until about 9pm, and they run on a walk-in basis: you find a free seat rather than book a table.

Choose one bar to start, and move on to a second later if the music next door sounds better. After a show at the Manoel Theatre, on Old Theatre Street, the bars are a short walk away.

Tips

St John's Co-Cathedral is a two-minute walk from the street, close enough to pair with the daylight walk.

If live music is what you want, look at each bar's own listings for that night's band before you set out. Some keep their live sets for weekends.

Valletta residents have complained to police about loud music late at night, so keep your voice down on the walk home.

Know before you goAs of November 2026, some of the smaller bars open on fewer days from December to February, and a few close on Mondays in low season.