Intercontinental Malta is a 5-star luxury hotel in the heart of St. Julian’s Bay, on the north side of Malta. It’s very well located with the capital city of Valletta just 20 minutes away by bus/car — meaning you can enjoy Maltese culture by day, and if you’re in the mood to experience Maltese nightlife, St. Julian’s has plenty of bars and restaurants to choose from.
Intercontinental Malta: What you need to know
- Found in the heart of St. Julian’s, Intercontinental Malta is perfectly situated for those wanting to be close to the coast and nightlife
- With a casino, gym, spa, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, Intercontinental Malta has a range of facilities to keep you entertained
- The recently constructed Highline Suites on the 17th & 18th floor are incredibly beautiful and spacious; perfect for a luxurious, romantic getaway
- Guests staying at the Highline Suites also get access to Club Intercontinental — an exclusive lounge area with food/drink served throughout the day — as well as SkyBeach, a beautiful infinity pool area on top of the building. (Sadly, we didn’t have a chance to enjoy SkyBeach because of the winter season.)
- There are good transport links (including the hop-on and hop-off bus that travels the island) close by
- During winter months the hotel’s restaurant selection is rather limited, although there are plenty of local alternatives
Located in the heart of St. Julians, Malta
St. Julian’s is a bustling area full of restaurants, bars, shisha cafes and gentlemen’s clubs. If you’re interested in lively nightlife and entertainment, this is the place to be and it doesn’t hurt that you’re right by the sea, either.
It’s important that you’re aware of what St. Julian’s is like because quite frankly, walking into Intercontinental Malta feels like a complete transition; you go from loud, bustling streets to a tranquil, 5-star luxury hotel in a matter of seconds.
Intercontinental’s lavish Highline Suites
Our Highline Suite at Intercontinental Malta challenges as one of the nicest luxury hotel suites I’ve stayed at.
An open & spacious living area
Intercontinental’s minimalist interior design, neutral colour scheme, high ceilings and wall-to-wall windows give the entire Highline Suite a spacious feel with a very contemporary and sophisticated finish. You even have electrically-controlled curtains to save you the work of dragging them across the suite yourself! (I’m lazy, I know…)
The living area in the Highline Suite is equipped with capsule coffee machines, a very nice Bang & Olufsen TV, sound system and modern furnishings.
Enjoy a sea view from your balcony
Once you pull back the curtains covering those wall-to-wall windows and step outside, you can enjoy a sea view from your own balcony. There’s a substantial amount of space here and the clear glass barrier gives you a good view of St. Julians from the 18th and 19th floor.
It’s worth knowing that St. Julian’s isn’t the most picturesque of places from above; most of what you see are the roofs of nearby buildings and their air conditioning units. (Of course, this is something out of Intercontinental’s hands.)
Even with that caveat, being able to enjoy the Maltese coastline from the comfort of your lavish Highline Suite is fantastic.
Modern luxury in the master bedroom & bathroom
Intercontinental’s master bedroom & bathroom were my favourite parts of the Highline Suite.
The bedroom has that same neutral colour scheme with modern leather furniture, a glass wall overlooking the bathtub and an amazing, plush bed I wanted to take home with me. (Big bonus points for the USB ports above the bedside tables, too!)
Step into the bathroom and you’ll find a couple of beautiful stone basins with Acqua Di Parma toiletries that I loved! ❤ I even packed a few to take home with me… 🙄
The Highline Suite’s bathroom is so large that you get the option between shower and bathtub.
Want a quick shower? Jump into the dedicated shower area with a rainfall showerhead as well as a normal hose.
Prefer a long soak in the bathtub after a day exploring Malta’s beautiful streets? Put the TV on in the bedroom and face it towards the bathroom’s glass wall (there are speakers in the bathroom); fill up the bathtub with Acqua Di Parma bath salts; pour yourself a glass of wine or champagne; turn on the jacuzzi jets and indulge with a relaxing and luxurious night in. We did!
Club Intercontinental Lounge
Staying in Intercontinental’s Highline Suites gets you exclusive access to the Club Intercontinental lounge on the 15th floor. Open all day, this lounge provides breakfast, afternoon tea, evening drinks & canapes, and very conveniently it’s also where you can privately check-in and check-out.
Being the greedy foodie that I am, I made sure I tried everything Club Intercontinental had to offer throughout the day. 🙄
If you’re not in the mood for the buffet options of scrambled eggs, sausages and bacon for breakfast, you can order freshly made eggs to your taste like omelettes, Eggs Royale (my favourite), Eggs Benedict and so on.
And if you have a sweet tooth, the chef can even prepare pancakes or waffles. It goes without saying: this made me very happy! 😜
Afternoon Tea was one of my favourite times of day at Club Intercontinental because there was a wide choice of delicious — and beautifully decorated — pastries, cakes and sandwiches. Look for yourself!
Later in the day, Intercontinental serves Pre-Dinner with a massive selection of drinks, with a few light snacks like cheeses, meats and traditional hot canapes like pastizzi: a Maltese pastry filled with peas or cheese.
For a couple looking to unwind — which we were — Club Intercontinental was a brilliant place to grab a glass of wine (or three), enjoy some delicious food, kick back and enjoy. I can only imagine how much nicer it will be in summer when you can go outside and enjoy the huge balcony overlooking St. Julian’s and the coastline.
I have to add a special note about the service at Club Intercontinental. Throughout the day, the staff was incredibly attentive and friendly which made the experience even more memorable!
Spa experience at Carisma Spa
No relaxation getaway would be complete without indulging in a cheeky spa session. Am I right, or am I right? 😉
On the 5th floor is where you’ll find the Carisma Spa, as well as Intercontinental’s indoor swimming pool and gym facilities. I’ll get onto the Intercontinental facilities shortly, but for now, let’s talk about Carisma Spa’s hammam & massage experience!
A traditional (and bubbly) Turkish Hammam experience
The Turkish Hammam in Carisma Spa, Malta. Photo credit: Carisma Spa
Until now, my hammam experiences have involved having a lady scrub the life out of me until my skin felt as soft as a baby’s bottom (🍑).
Carisma Spa focuses on more of a traditional Turkish Hammam experience; you’ll still get that wonderful bathing experience but they also cover you in bubbles. Lots and lots of bubbles!
As a first step, you’re taken into a stunning hammam room, decorated with beautiful, hand-crafted marble tiles and several basins surrounding a central marble platform. The entire hammam room has a very lavish feel to it! Once I was done gawping at the room, the therapist asked me to lie down on the central platform — which is heated marble, by the way — so that we could start the treatment.
The therapist then scrubs you with a course mitt to remove any dead skin, and once you’re feeling super clean, they cover you with a mountain of soft, foamy bubbles and give you a gentle massage. Your head gets shampooed (and massaged) before they wash you again at one of the basins to finish up the process.
Overall, it’s a wonderful & relaxing experience that I’d definitely recommend!
Basins where the therapists wash you down after your treatment. Photo credit: Carisma Spa, Malta.
Winding down with a massage
Carisma Spa has some very nice massage rooms for both individuals and couples — all very nicely decorated with a warm, relaxing vibe.
A very romantic-looking couples massage room. Photo credit: Carisma Spa, Malta.
We enjoyed a 30-minute full body massage after our Turkish Hammam experience and let me just say that I went back to our Highline Suite floating after that.
Intercontinental Malta: Verdict
Intercontinental Malta is a luxury hotel well-worth staying at if you’re planning to visit Malta. You’ll be ideally located for the buzz of St. Julian’s, close to the sea and there are plenty of convenient transport links to the rest of the island.
The hotel’s facilities like Club Intercontinental and Carisma Spa make it an indulgent getaway. Top that up with their amazing roof-top infinity pool SkyBeach, I’m confident the experience will be even better during warmer months!
If you do opt for the lavish Highline Suites you’ll enjoy everything Intercontinental has to offer, and after my first visit, I can’t wait to go back.
In fact… my family was so impressed by Intercontinental Malta that they’ve booked their own Maltese getaway at the hotel too!
