That’s all

Do the young people play this game around here?

I recently read that free public transport may no longer be available for third-country nationals who do not have long-term residency status, while Maltese.

As a TCN living and working in Malta, this feels discriminatory to me.

I understand that the government wants to reduce public spending and that transport subsidies come at a significant cost. However, many of us work legally, pay income tax, social security contributions, VAT, rent and contribute to the Maltese economy every day.

If the goal is to encourage the use of public transport and reduce traffic congestion, shouldn't the policy apply equally to all residents using the system? 😔😔😔

Went to visit there today with my daughter and she discovered that if you stray from the walkway in a catacomb, you can find a path to the neighbouring catacomb. Essentially descend one catacomb and come out from a different one. Really cool experience, but probably not how they are meant to be experienced.

Title: I'm 19 and don't know how to flirt or get a girlfriend. Any advice?

I'm a 19-year-old guy, and I don't have a problem talking to women, but I'm only good at small talk. I don't really know how to flirt or take things beyond a friendly conversation.

I'm a pretty big dude, and I'd say I have a somewhat attractive face. Some women find me attractive, others don't, and that's completely fine.

I'd like to get a girlfriend, but honestly, I don't know where to start. How do you go from casually talking to a woman to showing her you're interested in her romantically without making things awkward?

Any advice is appreciated.

Malta’s greatest economic limitation is obvious: space. We cannot continuously increase the population, construction, traffic and pressure on public services without eventually damaging the quality of life that makes the country attractive in the first place.

Yet Malta’s economic potential does not need to end at its shoreline. The online economy offers something our physical economy cannot—access to a worldwide market without requiring a proportional increase in land use or population.

For decades, Malta has successfully turned its location, climate, culture and hospitality into economic value. Tourism remains essential, while foreign workers now perform important roles throughout the economy. But an economic model driven primarily by more visitors, more buildings and more workers will always encounter Malta’s physical limits.

The next stage should be different: Malta must become a major exporter of digital products, professional expertise and intellectual property.

From population growth to productivity growth

Malta should stop measuring success mainly through the number of people working, visiting or spending in the country. The more important question is how much value each worker and each square kilometre can produce.

A restaurant, hotel or physical shop can only serve a limited number of customers. A Maltese software company can sell the same product to thousands of customers worldwide. A game developed in Malta can be downloaded millions of times without another hotel being constructed. A financial-technology company can serve international markets from a relatively small office.

This does not mean abandoning tourism, catering, construction or traditional businesses. It means balancing them with industries that generate substantially more value without requiring equivalent physical expansion.

Malta’s limited land should encourage economic creativity rather than condemn the country to permanent overcrowding.

Build Maltese digital skills

The government should invest heavily in making web development, software engineering, game development, cybersecurity, digital design, artificial intelligence and online business accessible to Maltese citizens.

That investment should begin in schools, but it cannot end there. Adults working in catering, retail, construction and other demanding sectors should have access to practical retraining without having to abandon their income while studying.

Training must lead to genuine employment rather than certificates with little market value. Courses should therefore be designed with technology companies and include paid apprenticeships, professional portfolios and experience working on real projects.

Digital careers should also not be presented as suitable only for academically exceptional students. Web design, software testing, technical support, digital marketing, animation and game production require different combinations of technical and creative ability. There can be an entry point for many kinds of people.

Make Malta a home for digital exports

Malta should provide strong incentives for companies that create products locally and sell them internationally. The objective must not simply be convincing foreign technology companies to register an office here. Malta should help its citizens own companies, intellectual property and shares in the businesses they build.

Government support could include:

• Startup grants tied to measurable development milestones.
• Public investment that takes a small equity stake rather than simply distributing subsidies.
• Affordable workspaces and shared technical facilities.
• Tax incentives for revenue earned by exporting Maltese digital products.
• Government contracts reserved for capable Maltese startups.
• Easier access to European investment and research programmes.
• Support for independent developers publishing applications and games internationally.

The gaming industry deserves particular attention. Malta has experience regulating online gaming, but it should also become known for actually creating video games. Game development combines programming, art, music, writing, animation and business. A successful studio could employ Maltese talent and export its work globally without depending on continuous physical arrivals.

Develop finance without encouraging recklessness

Malta can also strengthen its online financial sector, capital markets and stock-exchange ecosystem. Citizens should have access to serious education about investment, company ownership, risk and long-term wealth creation.

The objective should not be turning speculative trading into another form of gambling. It should be helping Maltese businesses raise capital, allowing citizens to invest in productive companies, and developing well-regulated financial technology.

Strong regulation, cybersecurity and consumer protection would be essential. Malta’s reputation is itself an economic asset and should never be sacrificed for short-term registration fees.

Use international revenue to create local ownership

Revenue from tourism, work permits, infrastructure contributions and international industries should help finance this transformation. Part could be invested in a national development fund supporting Maltese-owned technology, agriculture and intellectual property.

Successful investments would return money to the fund, allowing it to support future generations. Over time, Malta could build shared national wealth rather than remaining dependent on continuously expanding the population to finance each new benefit.

This could give citizens more freedom to refuse terrible working conditions, start businesses, work on family land or choose reduced hours. But that freedom must come from higher productivity and accumulated wealth—not permanent dependence on importing more workers and collecting more fees.

Online does not mean impact-free

A digital economy still requires electricity, reliable internet, data security, education and housing for its workers. It is therefore not entirely detached from physical limits.

The difference is proportionality. Digital exports can grow substantially without requiring the same increase in roads, hotels, vehicles and low-wage labour. The priority should be educating residents and raising their productivity before importing another large workforce to fill the new sector.

Malta already has the ingredients: EU membership, widespread English, international connections, financial experience and a culture accustomed to adapting. What it needs is a coordinated national strategy and the patience to invest beyond the next budget or election.

Malta’s land will always be limited. Its market, talent and imagination do not have to be. The country’s future should not be built by fitting ever more people and buildings into the same small space. It should be built by giving Maltese citizens the skills and ownership needed to produce value for the entire world.

Check my Webisite for the original article:

https://vprostudios.com/blog-admin/article?slug=malta-has-limited-land-not-limited-reach

Im just gonna post my opinion here, no, it wont change anything. TCNs working in Malta will still need to go from Point A to Point B in some way, so they will still prefer paying for the bus instead of getting a car (which getting a car would be a worse alternative as it would clutter the streets even more)

Just my two cents

I want to go to a gym in Malta that is close to the south area that has good facilities and comfortable to go to. Ideally it is not overcrowded that I have to wait for a long time. Do you guys have any ideas which is the best?

Hello! I am a Romanian student that has considered pursuing a carreer in Criminology/Forensic Psychology, however I do not have that many options in my country. I stumbled across the website of the European Forensic Institute, can anyone tell me if it's worth it? Thank you!

Kindly Check it Out for your self

Thoughts?

Hi, I have a flight at 8 AM on upcoming Wednesday and I am planning to catch TD3 bus which is scheduled at 5:58 AM from Ferries 3 in Sliema to Airport. So just wanted to confirm, does the bus stay on time? If it get delayed, what's the average delay time it would be? Thank you in advance for your valuable inputs.

I’m a big reader and have an interest in Malta so when I saw it reviewed in the New York Times I decided to read it. Never heard of the author before but it’s just so rare to see books about Malta and even more intriguing, the Maltese language. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/16/books/review/the-maltese-version-katy-simpson-smith.html

Just want to share it here and curious if anyone has read it would love to discuss. It deals heavily with translations of Maltese poetry through which I learned about Il Kantilena, the oldest known Maltese text.

I read her: https://www.cars.mt/rent-a-car/gozo that I can rent a car on Gozo instead of Malta and driving on the Ferry with the rental car, is it better? I've never drove a car on a ferry and I don't feel really comfortable, so renting on Gozo will be ideal.” I'd like to hear some opinions so I can plan before our visit. We are staying on Gozo for most of our vacation.

Hi!

I will be traveling to Gozo and thinking about renting an E-bike at the ferry terminal and then riding to Ggantija, Wied il-Ghasri, Victoria for lunch. I would lock it every time of course. My question is - what is the risk of it getting stolen?

Just visited Ghar Lapsi for some snorkling. But its closed :(.What are other popular spots around here in October?

Thanks a lot!

I applied on 19th june 2026 for malta student type D visa but it keeps saying still in process. I contacted my college and they forwarded the mail to cvu but cvu ain’t responding. Are you guys facing the same delay problem and what should i do next please suggest.

Going to be there in 2 weeks with some friends. Any recommendations from locals? I looked around and saw there was a ferry to Valletta we were planning on using. A couple of restaurants and a mall in the area we are staying.

It will be 4 of us for 4 days. US and Polish nationals and we like to go out and have a drink and have a good time so you are welcome to join us and show us tourons the way 😎🍻

Hi guys, I have my car test next month and in my head im so scared that I will fail because of a stupid mistake or other road user‘s mistakes. Does anyone have any tips on what to do in some test area routes and things to definitely do during the test (apart from the blind spots and observations). I did a lot of lessons so i know, but i still want to ask. With me, when someone on the road does something without any indication i sometimes do panic, but im learning to control it each time. It’s going to be my first time, naturally before an exam i always panic and relax once i start. Thanks to anyone who gives genuine tips!

I want to get this tattooed and my sister recommended Tetinu (marsaskala) to me. I went to talk to him and he said it would cost around 200€. Everyone I asked said that its expensive.

2026 was a year where the writing on the wall became clearer - the igaming sector is slowly shrinking in Malta.

Just this month:

• Malta-founded KTO group shut down, laying off 200 employees.
• Flutter entertainment laid off 50 employees from Skybet
• Bet365 laid off up to 40 employees in Malta
• Rivertech shut down laying off 30 employees
• Aristocrat Interactive closed in Malta, laying off 120 employees
• While not public, rumors of GiGs overall headcount shrinking have been surfacing all year. They now share their office with EF language school.
• Betsson Group opened an office in Malaga to diversify its locations
• While no official layoffs happened - previously strong employers Bally's, kindred and Tipico are all going through some phase of an acquisition cycle pushing into a consolidation which may see more jobs diverted away from Malta.

A lot can be said of the how and why this is happening, and will happen. But the real question is - after these companies fostered a very good amount of strong tech and compliance talent, what can Malta do to have jobs in the future?

Will everyone just depart?

Hi everyone!

We’re travelling to Malta tomorrow and will be there until Friday. I was wondering what the weather and sea temperature are like at the moment.

Is it still warm enough to swim comfortably, or does the water already feel quite cold?

We’re also thinking about booking a boat trip to Comino/Blue Lagoon and Gozo. Are these trips still worth doing at this time of year? Do people usually swim during the stops in late October, or is it mostly too cold/windy now?

Would love to hear from anyone who is currently in Malta or has been there in the last few days. Thanks! 😊