Suncrest Beach Vacation Club Malta

Set on one of the island’s most spectacular bays, the beachside Suncrest Beach Vacation Club’s timeshare accommodation is equally suitable for couples, families and friends travelling together. As this is an older complex, accommodation varies, with ocean-facing rooms on the higher floor preferable. There’s a choice of 80 suites.

Known as the Seashells Resort at Suncrest, this resort offers all-inclusive almost all-year-round budget breaks in the Maltese holiday town of Qawra some six kilometres from St Julian and eight kilometres from historic Valletta, Malta’s capital. The rooms and suites offer either sea or garden views, and 24 interconnecting family rooms are also offered.

The accommodations are standard three-star hotel-style, with ensuite bathrooms aircon or central heating, a ceiling fan, maid service and satellite TV. Coffee and tea making facilities can be hired, and a mini-bar is provided. The suites sleep two to four persons and come with the usual amenities including a fridge, direct dial phone, balcony and daily housekeeping.

Four twin/double-bedded rooms with accessible showers are set aside for special needs guests, and the building is equipped with wheelchair ramps where necessary. Buffet suppers and Sunday lunches are served in Le Pavilion Restaurant, and summer guests can enjoy entertainment and drinks under the stars at the Sun and Surf Beach Club.

Family foods as well as pizza are had at the Tal-Kaptan restaurant with its stunning sea views and, for traditional Maltese cuisine, Qawra’s It-Tokk restaurant is open during the high season. For a quiet, on-complex drink or two, the Lounge Bar is the meet-and-greet place to be for cocktails and conversation. Breakfasts are served in the La Place sandwich bar during the summer season.

Tripadvisor reports favour the helpful, friendly staff, typical of the Maltese people in general, and the hotel is popular out of season with older travellers, mostly couples.

Malta is steeped in the romantic Crusader and Knights Hospitaller history, and a day exploring Valletta’s historic centre is a trip back in time. Set in the island’s centre is the ancient capital, Mdina, a city fortress set high on a peak and surrounded by scenic Rabat. Malta’s unique megalithic stone structures are the oldest temples in the world, and the southern part of the island holds the oldest and loveliest religious buildings.