Two islands, four thousand years, and a fireworks habit.
Closes 30 August
MICAS — Malta International Contemporary Art Space
A solo exhibition by the American painter Reggie Burrows Hodges at MICAS in Floriana, in the converted Ospizio complex. Works built up from black grounds, figures emerging rather than drawn on. It closes at the end of August, and the galleries are air-conditioned.
Closes 27 August
Valletta Waterfront
A run of Maltese music, dance and folk tradition along the Valletta Waterfront promenade, on since early July and closing on 27 August. Free to walk into, and the restaurants behind the arcade stay open through it.
Free, every Tuesday, twenty minutes
Central promenade, Valletta Waterfront
A free open-air show on the Valletta Waterfront promenade, every Tuesday at 7.30pm, running to 29 September. Twenty minutes of theatre, music and period costume built around Count Cagliostro and an invented corsair heroine, with the Grand Harbour behind the performers. Written by Sean Buhagiar, performed by Jeremy Grech, Analise Mifsud and Sean Briffa.
MICAS - Malta International Contemporary Art Space
MICAS runs creative workshops for children through the summer at its site in the restored Ospizio above Floriana. Booking is through the MICAS box office and sessions run to the end of August. Worth combining with the Reggie Burrows Hodges show, which is in the galleries until 30 August.
110 works, five thematic rooms, one prolific church painter
Il-Ħaġar Gozo Museum
A retrospective of Ġużeppi Briffa at Il-Ħaġar in Victoria, gathering 110 works across five thematic sections — church commissions, drawings, painterly experiments and his engagement with popular imagery. Free, nine to five, and the one exhibition on Gozo that stays open right through the festa season.
Weaving for children and teens inside a working windmill
Xewkija Windmill
Textile artist Alda Bugeja runs free loom-weaving sessions for children and teenagers in the Xewkija windmill, two hours each, two sittings a day. Booking is through the venue and the series runs on Tuesdays until 25 August.
Wednesday night music in Qala square
Qala Square
Qala square hosts live music on Wednesday evenings through August, with Straitahead named on the current listing. Free, outdoors, and aimed at families rather than a late crowd. Runs to 26 August.
Band club doors open, children first
St Joseph Band Club
The St Joseph Band Club in Għajnsielem opens its rooms to the public and runs a children's party alongside, part of the Iljieli Sajfin summer strand. Free, and one of the few chances to see the inside of a Gozitan band club without knowing somebody.
Free live music on the bay every Monday through August
Il Gambero, Marina Street
A Monday-night live music series on the Marsalforn seafront, running from 3 to 31 August. Free, outdoors, and aimed at people already down at the bay for the evening rather than a ticketed audience.
Tuesday-night music in St George's Square
St George's Square
Weekly free live music in St George's Square in Victoria, running from 4 August to 1 September. The square is small and enclosed, so it fills early on the warmer nights.
Xewkija Windmill
A photography exhibition inside the restored Xewkija Windmill, open from 4 to 30 August. Free entry, and it shares the building with the summer loom workshops running on the same dates.
Runs on selected Thursdays to 24 September
Teatru Manoel
A one-hour, family-friendly walk through the Manoel's three hundred years, led by Jeremy Grech — quarrelling knights, and the room where Malta's national anthem was first sung. Thursdays at 3pm through 20 August, plus Tuesday 25 August. €15, €8 for children aged 5 to 12.
Marsalforn Promenade
A children's evening on the Marsalforn promenade every Thursday from 6 August through 3 September. Inflatables, games and entertainers set up along the seafront. Free, and it runs late enough that it works as an after-the-beach stop rather than an afternoon out.
Last date 25 August
Teatru Manoel
An hour inside one of Europe's oldest working theatres, led by actor and guide Jeremy Grech. Thursdays at 11am and 1pm through 20 August, plus a Tuesday on 25 August. €20, meeting at the Teatru Manoel box office. Content shifts week to week depending on which spaces are free that day.
Banca Giuratale
Frances Saliba's exhibition of impressionist landscape painting at the Banca Giuratale on Independence Square in Victoria, running from 7 to 23 August. Free entry, and the building itself — Gozo's eighteenth-century civic hall — is part of the visit.
Tenth anniversary, four days, three sites
Gianpula Village and Valletta Ditch
Glitch turns ten with an opening party inside the Valletta Ditch, two main days at Gianpula Village in Rabat and a closing party back at Gianpula. Around 95 acts across nine stages. The festival is sold out apart from a handful of closing-party tickets.
G7 Events & District present
Café del Mar Malta
The masked German house producer plays Café del Mar in Qawra, presented by G7 Events and District. A sunset-into-night set on the seafront, mid-August.
Village square, food stalls, karaoke and a band
Għarb Square
Għarb Square is closed off every Friday evening through the summer for food stalls, live music and karaoke. Free, entirely local, and small enough that turning up alone is not awkward. Runs weekly until 18 September.
UNO Malta
Second Justice night at UNO in Ta' Qali, nine days after the first. It lands on the middle Friday of Glitch weekend, when much of the island's dance crowd is at Gianpula.
171st year, livestock and produce in Villa Rundle
Villa Rundle Gardens
The Gozo Traditional, Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition fills Villa Rundle Gardens in Victoria with prize produce, livestock, artisanal crafts, local wine, oil and honey. Free. The Friday runs from ten in the morning until eleven at night; the Saturday is a short morning session, seven until one.
Vocalist from Way Out West and Chicane, in a bar
Front Bar
Andrea Britton sings a Liquid Spirit session at Front, a small waterside bar rather than a festival stage, which is the point. A warm-up for the Liquid Spirit weekend in September. Starts at eight.
The quietest of the seven
Parish Church of the Assumption, AttardBuilds from 9 Aug
One of the Three Villages, and the most sedate Assumption festa on the island — closer to a village celebration than a spectacle. The San Anton Gardens are a five-minute walk away.
Two band clubs, one small village
Parish Church of the Assumption, GħaxaqBuilds from 9 Aug
A village of a few thousand that sustains two competing band clubs, which is the whole character of the festa — the rivalry is the event.
Parish Church of the Assumption, GudjaBuilds from 9 Aug
A small southern village a few minutes from the airport, which makes this the easiest of the seven to reach on an arrival or departure day.
The largest festa in Malta
Rotunda of Mosta — Basilica of the AssumptionBuilds from 9 Aug
The biggest night in the Maltese festa calendar, staged around one of Europe's largest unsupported domes. The square fills, the facade is lit end to end, and the brass band leads the titular statue out at dusk.
The best aerial fireworks on the island
Parish Church of the Assumption; displays fired from the fields along the village bypassBuilds from 9 Aug
A village of roughly three thousand people that puts on the most ambitious pyrotechnics in the Mediterranean. Two rival band clubs, two rival firework factories, and seven centuries of practice.
Mqabba's rival, one mile south
Parish Church of the Assumption, QrendiBuilds from 9 Aug
The other half of Malta's fiercest pyrotechnic rivalry. Qrendi fires its own pyro-musical display on the same night as Mqabba, close enough that you can watch both from the right field.
With BBC Radio 1 Dance Anthems X and Creamfields
Ta' Qali Concert Area
Calvin Harris closes SummerDaze at Ta' Qali on Santa Marija night, run with BBC Radio 1 Dance Anthems X and Creamfields. Free entry with the three euro cup fee. It clashes with the seven Santa Marija feasts, which is worth planning around.
UNO Malta
Latin and reggaeton night at UNO in Ta' Qali on 15 August, the public holiday for Santa Marija, when most of the island is at a village festa earlier in the evening.
Divine Sinners on the Xlendi promenade
Xlendi Promenade
An open-air set on the Xlendi promenade, part of the Ministry for Gozo free summer series that runs every Sunday through August. Eight until half nine, with the bay directly behind the stage and the restaurants along the front open around it. Come early if you want a table rather than a standing spot.
UNO Malta
Loco Dice plays UNO in Ta' Qali on 16 August, the Sunday after Santa Marija and the day after Glitch closes.
The return of a legend
Café del Mar Malta
Bob Sinclar returns to Café del Mar in Qawra for a Monday-night set. French house from a DJ who has been playing these records for three decades, on a lido that faces west.
Radio 1 Dance at the lido
Café del Mar Malta
BBC Radio 1 Dance X brings Zerb and Sarah Story to Café del Mar in Qawra. This is the Café del Mar date; the larger BBC Radio 1 Dance Malta night at UNO follows on 22 August.
UNO Malta
The Italian rapper plays UNO in Ta' Qali on 19 August. One of a run of Italian-language bookings on the island through August.
Third edition, four nights in the village square
Mellieħa Square
Eco Market takes over Mellieħa square for four consecutive evenings, seven until eleven, with handmade and plastic-free work from local makers and activities for children. Free to walk into. Falls over the long Santa Marija holiday stretch, when Mellieħa is at its busiest.
22nd year, two nights in Ġnien il-Kunsill
Ġnien il-Kunsill
The Gozo edition of the Delicata festival, held in the council garden at Nadur in the middle of the island's wine country. Same format as Valletta — free entry, a wine purse with souvenir glass and 24 coins, live cooking stalls — but smaller, and the village is the point.
Village square, food stalls, karaoke and a band
Għarb Square
Għarb Square is closed off every Friday evening through the summer for food stalls, live music and karaoke. Free, entirely local, and small enough that turning up alone is not awkward. Runs weekly until 18 September.
Screenings inside the Cittadella walls
Cittadella
Three evenings of short film screened up in the Cittadella, with local and international entries. You watch outdoors with the citadel walls behind the screen. Free, and the walk up through Victoria afterwards is half the appeal.
Malta's summer carnival
Various sites
The summer edition of the Maltese carnival, run by Festivals Malta over three days in August with floats, costumed companies and street dancing. The winter carnival is the bigger of the two; this one is warmer and stays out later.
UNO Malta
Radio 1's dance brand takes over UNO in Ta' Qali on 22 August, on the same weekend as Il-Karnival tas-Sajf in Valletta and the Delicata wine festival in Nadur.
Opens 22 August and runs to the end of the year
The Phoenicia Malta
Hans Zimmer's film scores arranged for a candlelit string ensemble at the Phoenicia in Floriana. The run opens on 22 August and continues to 27 December; you pick a date at booking. About an hour, no interval.
The cheapest way into the Candlelight series
The Phoenicia Malta
ABBA arranged for strings and played by candlelight at the Phoenicia in Floriana, opening 22 August and running to 27 December. Individual dates are chosen at booking. Tickets start lower than the rest of the series.
Gozo's hilltop parish keeps Santa Marija to the following Sunday
Żebbuġ Parish Church
Żebbuġ celebrates the Assumption on the Sunday after 15 August rather than the day itself, so it gets the crowd to itself. The parish sits on the highest ground in Gozo, which makes the fireworks visible from most of the north of the island.
The Kat Collective on the Xlendi promenade
Xlendi Promenade
An open-air set on the Xlendi promenade, part of the Ministry for Gozo free summer series that runs every Sunday through August. Eight until half nine, with the bay directly behind the stage and the restaurants along the front open around it. Come early if you want a table rather than a standing spot.
The rooftop pool night
The Rooftop, Gianpula Village
Gianpula's rooftop pool night, doors from eleven, commercial playlist. One of the few late-August dates on the site's calendar between the two Glitch club nights.
Village square, food stalls, karaoke and a band
Għarb Square
Għarb Square is closed off every Friday evening through the summer for food stalls, live music and karaoke. Free, entirely local, and small enough that turning up alone is not awkward. Runs weekly until 18 September.
UNO Malta
The Turkish producer plays UNO in Ta' Qali on 28 August. Melodic house rather than the harder end of the venue's August programme.
The Glitch series after the festival
Club Phoenix, Gianpula Village
Miss Bashful plays Club Phoenix from ten, closing out the Glitch Club Series fortnight after the main festival. Single room, techno.
The last night of the Nadur summer series
Nadur Square
The closing night of Nadur Saturdays, an open-air series of concerts in the village square through August. Keys & Kris play from 21:00 to 22:30. Free, and the last of three nights in the series.
UNO Malta
The Restricted party lands at UNO in Ta' Qali on 29 August, closing out the venue's summer run before the September festival block begins.
Water-based obstacle event for children
Otters Pitch
Otters ASC run their water obstacle event at the club pitch, aimed squarely at children rather than club swimmers. Same morning as the open water races, so the whole site is busy. Bring a towel and expect to get soaked spectating.
Café del Mar Malta
A named edition of Café del Mar's Sunday session, with Collect 200 on the decks for soulful house into the sunset on 30 August. The regular unnamed CDM Sundays are not listed here; this one is billed separately by the venue.
The feast the Għajnsielem summer programme has been building towards
Għajnsielem Parish Church
Għajnsielem's titular feast, and the end point of a month of tombla nights and band events in Pjazza Madonna ta' Loreto. The church is the large neo-Gothic one you see from the Mġarr ferry, and the fireworks go up over the harbour.
The Barefoot Lions on the Xlendi promenade
Xlendi Promenade
An open-air set on the Xlendi promenade, part of the Ministry for Gozo free summer series that runs every Sunday through August. Eight until half nine, with the bay directly behind the stage and the restaurants along the front open around it. Come early if you want a table rather than a standing spot.
Sea races off the Gozo coast, all ages
Otters Pitch
Otters ASC open water races start at half nine, with distances for club swimmers and for anyone who fancies it. Sea temperature at the end of August is about as good as it gets. Spectating is free from the shore.
Four nights of trance, thirty-plus acts
Gianpula Village
Captured brings four nights of trance to Gianpula's open-air arenas outside Rabat, with more than thirty acts billed. Gianpula Fields is one of the larger purpose-built festival spaces on the island, so the main stage nights are genuinely big. Runs Thursday to Sunday.
One night only, and the only thing on the Manoel stage before mid-October
Teatru Manoel
The Shanghai Chinese Orchestra plays Teatru Manoel for one night, on traditional Chinese instruments — erhu, bamboo flute, sheng, ruan and zheng. Presented with the China Cultural Centre for its 25th year in Malta. Runs an hour and a half, no interval listed, ages six and over.
Village square, food stalls, karaoke and a band
Għarb Square
Għarb Square is closed off every Friday evening through the summer for food stalls, live music and karaoke. Free, entirely local, and small enough that turning up alone is not awkward. Runs weekly until 18 September.
Ten days, with the march through Valletta at the end
Valletta and around
Ten days of Pride week run by Allied Rainbow Communities, centred on Valletta, with the march itself at the back end of the programme. Talks, film screenings and parties around it. Dates re-confirmed this run on the organiser's own countdown page.
Three weeks inside a restored windmill
Xewkija Windmill
A collective art exhibition led by Mary Debrincat, hung inside the restored Xewkija Windmill on Gozo. Free, open half eight to eight daily, and the building is worth the detour on its own. Runs for just under three weeks in September.
Worried About Henry's drum and bass weekender, back on Armier Beach
Armier Beach and partner venues
Three days of drum and bass with more than a hundred artists, headlined by Shy FX and Wilkinson, Hybrid Minds and Hedex, with custom stages built on Armier Beach and boat parties as add-ons. Passes from around 129 pounds. New to this dataset.
His only full concert in Malta this year
MFCC — Malta Fairs and Conventions Centre
Aidan plays the MFCC at Ta' Qali on 5 September, billed by the venue as his only full concert of 2026. The set covers the Cowboys Don't Cry material and 'Bella', Malta's Eurovision 2026 entry, with special guests. Doors 18:00, ends 23:00.
Techno at Club Phoenix, opposite the Captured main stage
Club Phoenix, Gianpula Village
Neolitika and VELTAX take Club Phoenix from eight on the Saturday of Captured weekend, running against the trance programme next door. Separate billing, same site.
First Saturday of September
Café del Mar Malta
Two Rocks play Café del Mar in Qawra on the first Saturday of September, when the sea is at its warmest and the August crowds have thinned. Seafront terrace and pool deck.
Four Italian music veterans on the Granaries, second edition
The Granaries (Fosos)
Loredana Berte, Fausto Leali, Patty Pravo and Raf on one open-air stage at the Granaries in Floriana, hosted by Lorella Cuccarini and Keith Demicoli. The Four Italian Tenors open the evening, and Berte is presented with an award for a fifty-year career. Doors at 18:00, music from 19:00, standing from fifty euro.
A bay chapel feast, not a parish one
Kappella Madonna tal-Karmnu
Our Lady of Carmel is kept at the small chapel above Xlendi Bay, so the procession runs down to the water rather than around a village core. Smaller and quieter than a parish festa, and you can swim the same afternoon. Free.
Melodic house at sunset
Café del Mar Malta
District welcomes CamelPhat to Café del Mar in Qawra for a Monday night. The Grammy-nominated Liverpool duo play a west-facing lido, so the set starts in daylight and ends well after dark.
UNO Malta
The Dutch duo play UNO in Ta' Qali on 8 September, two days after WAH Malta clears out of the same venue and ten days before FUSE moves in.
Nativity of Our Lady, on Victory Day itself
Xagħra Basilica
Xagħra is one of the four main parishes dedicated to the Nativity of Our Lady, so its feast lands on 8 September alongside the national Victory Day commemorations. Basilica, band clubs, and fireworks over the plateau. Free.
State ceremony in the morning, rowing race in the afternoon
Great Siege Square and the Grand Harbour
Victory Day marks the end of three sieges, and splits into two halves. Morning is formal: flowers at the Great Siege monument in Valletta, an Armed Forces parade, wreaths at Fort St Angelo and Senglea. The afternoon is the Grand Harbour Regatta, when the harbour towns race traditional rowing boats and take it extremely seriously. Watch from Senglea point or the Valletta side.
New Maltese writing, staged in a public garden
Villa Rundle Gardens
An evening of live theatre in Villa Rundle Gardens showing original work by local scriptwriters, with awards at the end, run by Beta Entertainment Theatre Academy and Limestone Pictures. Free, from eight until eleven, outdoors. New to this dataset.
Two nights of Gaza against Gully, at Ta' Qali
Ta' Qali Concert Area and UNO Malta
A four-day dancehall festival at Ta' Qali, opening at UNO Malta on the Thursday and moving to the Ta' Qali Concert Area from Friday to Sunday. Vybz Kartel and Mavado headline both weekend nights. Over-18s, cashless, boat parties sold separately. New to this dataset.
Chucky & Tazer return
Café del Mar Malta
Chucky and Tazer are back in Malta for RnB & Slow Jams at Café del Mar in Qawra. A change of register from the house and techno that fills most of the venue’s summer calendar.
Rudi Flores and Sébastien Giniaux, ninety minutes
Malta Society of Arts
A ninety-minute workshop with Rudi Flores and Sébastien Giniaux at the Malta Society of Arts on Republic Street, opening the Valletta Guitar Festival. Four in the afternoon, before the evening concert at the Manoel.
Opening concert of the Valletta Guitar Festival
Teatru Manoel
The opening night of the Valletta Guitar Festival, staged at Teatru Manoel on Old Theatre Street. Half seven until half nine in a room that seats fewer than seven hundred, which is the whole argument for going.
Sagrestia Vault, Valletta Waterfront
The Dominic Galea Trio with guest vocalist Nadine Axisa in the Sagrestia Vault at the Valletta Waterfront, 7.30pm on Thursday 10 September. The programme draws on the Great American Songbook — Van Heusen, Arlen, Mancini, Levant — and marks the centenary of John Coltrane's birth. Booking details had not been published when this was checked.
New for 2026, three days across Valletta
Teatru Manoel and Malta Society of Arts
A new Festivals Malta strand covering classical, flamenco, jazz and contemporary guitar, spread across Teatru Manoel and the Malta Society of Arts over three days. Concerts in the evening, workshops in the afternoon, all inside walking distance of each other.
Village square, food stalls, karaoke and a band
Għarb Square
Għarb Square is closed off every Friday evening through the summer for food stalls, live music and karaoke. Free, entirely local, and small enough that turning up alone is not awkward. Runs weekly until 18 September.
Ninety minutes with the Paris-based Maltese guitarist
Malta Society of Arts
Sandro Zerafa leads a jazz guitar workshop at the Malta Society of Arts, five until half six, on the second day of the Valletta Guitar Festival. Practical rather than a lecture; bring an instrument if you play.
Xewkija Square
An open-air music night in Xewkija Square on 11 September, 20:00 to 23:30, free to attend. It runs the same evening as the Valletta Guitar Festival concerts on the main island, so it is the Gozo alternative rather than a clash of scale.
Multiple pop-up venues including Marsalforn and Xlendi
Fourth edition of the boutique soulful-house festival on Gozo, running from 8pm Friday to 4am Tuesday as a series of pop-up events across villas, beaches, pools, restaurants and boats rather than one site. Soul, disco, boogie and deep house. Resident passes available to Gozo ID holders.
Eleven days of racing, Ta’ Xbiex to Ramla Bay
Royal Malta Yacht Club and Ramla Bay
The Royal Malta Yacht Club and Yachting Malta run eleven days of sailing, from an offshore passage race to Sicily through keelboat and dinghy racing off northern Malta and Comino. Much of it is visible from shore, particularly the Ramla Bay racing in the final weekend. Free to watch.
Two and a half hours at the Manoel
Teatru Manoel
A long evening concert of Latin American guitar at Teatru Manoel, eight until half ten, closing the second night of the Valletta Guitar Festival. The Manoel is small and wooden and rewards sitting near the front.
String quartet by candlelight at the Phoenicia
The Phoenicia Malta
A string quartet plays eighteen Disney songs by candlelight in a room at the Phoenicia in Floriana, licensed by Disney Concerts. Sixty minutes, no interval, and no entry once it has started. Seating is unreserved within each priced zone.
Guitar and orchestra in the roofless theatre
Pjazza Teatru Rjal, Republic Street
The Valletta Guitar Festival closes outdoors at Pjazza Teatru Rjal — the bombed-out Royal Opera House, left roofless and turned into an open-air stage. From 20:30, with the Valletta bastions behind the orchestra.
The last of the Gozo village feasts before the season closes
Munxar Parish Church
Munxar keeps its feast of St Paul on the second Sunday of September, in and around the parish church on Triq San Pawl. Band marches, the procession with the titular statue, and the village square given over to it for the evening. Free, and small enough that you are in it rather than watching it.
Sanctuary feast in Victoria, away from the Cittadella
Our Lady of Divine Grace Sanctuary
The sanctuary of Our Lady of Divine Grace keeps its feast on the second Sunday of September, a devotional occasion rather than a fireworks one. Worth it if you want to see a Gozo feast at the quieter end of the register.
Seven days of poker at Portomaso
Portomaso Casino
The Festival Series takes over Portomaso Casino in St Julian's for a week, with the NLH Main Event, a mixed-game main event, the Hendon Mob Championship and a Mystery Bounty. Buy-ins run from small side events upward, so it is not only for the deep-stacked. Fills what is otherwise a quiet week in the calendar.
World Sailing’s festival for women and girls
Royal Malta Yacht Club
Three days of introductory sailing for women and girls, run by the Royal Malta Yacht Club as part of World Sailing’s global Steering The Course initiative. It also opens routes into coaching and race officiating for those already sailing. No experience needed.
Runs from mid-September into late November
The Phoenicia Malta
Candlelit string arrangements of Coldplay and Imagine Dragons at the Phoenicia in Floriana. The run opens on 18 September and continues to 27 November, with individual dates chosen at booking. Same format as the rest of the Candlelight series: about an hour, no interval.
Two catalogues, one string quartet
The Phoenicia Malta
Queen and Beatles songs arranged for strings and played by candlelight at the Phoenicia in Floriana. The run opens on 18 September and continues to 6 November, with individual dates selected at booking.
Three days across Ta' Qali, Treehaus and Castello Zammitello
Ta' Qali National Park
FUSE runs three days across several Maltese sites, with Ta' Qali National Park new this year as the Sunday closer and Treehaus handling the smaller, harder rooms. An opening party at Castello Zammitello the Thursday before is separate from festival access. Sunday runs into the early hours of Monday.
Last Friday of the run
Għarb Square
The final Għarb Friday of the summer. Food stalls, live music and karaoke in the village square, free, and the last of the weekly outdoor nights on Gozo before the season closes.
Racing returns to Ramla Bay
Ramla Bay
Four days of keelboat racing off northern Malta and Comino, reviving the Ramla Bay Regattas of earlier decades. IRC 1, IRC 2 and SB20s sail three races a day; IRC Cruisers and RMYC Club boats sail two coastal races. Watchable from the northern shore.
Malta's dinghy title decider, free from the shore
Royal Malta Yacht Club
Malta's national dinghy titles are decided off the Royal Malta Yacht Club at Ta' Xbiex over three days, across Optimist, ILCA, RS Feva and Topper classes. Racing starts at 9am each day. Competitor entries have closed, but watching from the seafront costs nothing.
National holiday marking 1964
Valletta
Malta marks independence from the United Kingdom on 21 September, a public holiday with an official ceremony in Valletta and band activity in the towns. The detailed programme is usually published by Festivals Malta a couple of weeks ahead.
UNO Malta
A five-day festival at UNO in Ta' Qali running 24 to 28 September, overlapping the back end of Mighty Hoopla and Science in the City. This is the only multi-day event in the last full week of September.
The London pop festival's four-day Malta edition
Cafe del Mar, Gianpula Village and Ta' Qali
Mighty Hoopla brings its pop billing to Malta for four days across Cafe del Mar in St Paul's Bay, Gianpula Village and Ta' Qali. Four-day passes from around 140 pounds, with a new two-day option covering the Saturday and Sunday. New to this dataset.
Puppets Without Borders — three days in Għarb Square
Għarb Square
Three days of puppet theatre in and around the square at Għarb, with companies from several countries performing for adults as well as children. Programmed by the Għarb Local Council under the theme Puppets Without Borders. Free, and open air.
Fifteenth edition — Research, Resist, Reimagine
Triton Fountain and central Valletta
Malta's national science and arts festival takes over Valletta for two evenings, part of European Researchers' Night. Experiments, robots, hands-on installations and performance around the Triton Fountain and up Republic Street. Free to walk into; some performance strands are ticketed.
Runs 19-25 September, daily 09:30-12:15
art..e Gallery
Tomoko Fait, a Japanese painter based in Rome, shows recent work at art..e Gallery on Library Street in Victoria. Open 09:30 to 12:15 on the day, free to enter.
Josanne Mifsud Pikutzki, daily 09:30-12:15
art..e Gallery
Oils and acrylics of the sea by the Gozitan painter Josanne Mifsud Pikutzki, at art..e Gallery on Library Street in Victoria. Marine landscapes worked in heavy texture. Mornings only, 09:30 to 12:15, and free — it opens the day the Archetypal Self show closes.
The last feast of the Gozo season
Nazzarenu Church
Xagħra's second feast of the month and effectively the close of the Gozo festa season. Held at the Nazzarene church rather than the basilica, with a procession in the late afternoon. Free.
UNO Malta and partner venues
The house label's fifth Malta edition runs 1 to 4 October across UNO's stages, The Ditch, Cafe del Mar and a set of boat parties. It opens on the last day of this research window, so only the first night is inside it.
Four days of pre-1976 racing around Mdina
Mdina road circuit and Mtahleb hill climb
Four days of classic motorsport built around Mdina. It opens with a hill climb at Mtahleb, then a judged historic car and motorcycle show inside the walls, then two days of racing on the road circuit outside them. Sunday is the Mdina Grand Prix proper, in its sixteenth edition.
Valletta Waterfront
Free weekend activities along the Valletta Waterfront promenade through October, Saturdays and Sundays from lunchtime into the afternoon. Bouncy castles, oversized seasonal games and the 1752 vaults open if the weather turns. Opens on 3 October, the last weekend of this window.
City-wide
Valletta's free all-night arts festival. Palaces, churches, museums and government buildings that are normally shut open late as venues for concerts, performances and installations, and the streets stay busy until the early hours.
Fifth edition, in aid of the ARKA Foundation
Villa Fiorita
The Ewfonija Chorus and Orchestra under Mariella Spiteri Cefai, with professional soloists and younger singers, at Villa Fiorita in Żebbuġ. Arias, choruses and orchestral set pieces from the standard repertoire. Proceeds go to the ARKA Foundation.
The first thing on in Gozo after the festa season ends
Republic Street, Victoria
A road race and fun walk starting from Republic Street in Victoria at 7.45am on Monday 5 October. It is the first Gozo fixture after the last festa on 27 September, and the last day inside this window.
Three nights on the Grand Harbour quay
Valletta Waterfront
Oktoberfest along the Valletta Waterfront quay, under the Grand Harbour bastions. Maltese craft brews alongside imported beers, German food and live music across three evenings. Proceeds go to the ALIVE Charity Foundation, which funds cancer research in Malta.
Free, one hour, Victoria
Aula Mgr. G. Farrugia
An hour of opera at the piano in the Aula Mgr G. Farrugia in Victoria: transcriptions of Verdi and Wagner alongside arias sung by a guest soprano or tenor. Put on by St George's Basilica and free to attend.
The last village feast of the Gozo year
Għasri Parish Church
The patronal feast of Għasri, the smallest parish on Gozo, held at the parish church on Triq Dun Karm Caruana. Procession, band marches and church services across the day. It falls well after the summer festa season has closed, so it draws the village rather than the coach trade. Free.