Having just returned from a holiday in Malta and having read the letter To devalue or to sink (TMID 14 March), I thought a first time visitor’s observations might be of interest.
Firstly, when we booked the holiday via our local city travel agents, we were told we were in a minority wanting to visit Malta. Indeed many travel companies have dropped Malta from their “package holidays”, but we still wanted to visit you.
We stayed at the four-star Preluna Hotel in Sliema. The hotel was superb and the staff wonderful but our first surprise, when we arrived, was the appalling condition of the majority of buildings – many are unpainted, falling down and very drab. The roads also were in pretty poor condition.
Next day, we strolled along the promenade only to find unpainted rusty seats, cracked and uneven stones and slabs. We caught a bus to Valletta and were surprised to see the same uncared for look everywhere, with broken buildings, unpainted and un-repaired doors and balconies making up the view.
We visited several tourist-type shops only to find that, in most cases, the goods offered were at least twice the price we pay within other EU countries and at home.
Malta, it seems, has a total lack of foreign investment and few tourists.
It seems to me and other people I have spoken to that your government has a Dom Mintoff mentality, which is fine if you can afford it but in reality is a death wish mentality.
The real reason of Malta’s ills is your rate of exchange. The Maltese lira is grossly overvalued and until you address this you won’t get tourists or foreign investment.
A tourist does not come to places where he cannot spend his money, nor does he come to just visit your churches and historical sites. He comes for value for money, comfort, amenities and tours he and his family can afford.
Sadly, Malta in spite of all the lovely friendly people, doesn’t come up to this standard and until your government realises that we are your bread and butter and wake up to the rest of Europe’s values you will not get the spending tourists visiting you.
Come up to the 21st century please and we will return.
A.Twycross
Leicester
ENGLAND