Catering restaurants at Valletta Waterfront have been ordered not to open for business between Monday night and Wednesday afternoon, due to an international private event for which 7,000 people have been invited to attend.

The large group of people will be arriving on 4 AIDA cruise ships which will berth at Grand Harbour. The actual event, which will take place on Tuesday 23rd September, is being held to celebrate the 40th anniversary of a German financial consultancy company.

A helicopter and speedboat will be filming as the cruise ships enter Grand Harbour on Tuesday afternoon. In the evening, a party will be held with the participation of various DJs and bands. The ships are expected to leave the harbour at 2am on Wednesday.

Restaurant owners have been told to remain closed by Valletta Cruise Ports, operators of the waterfront, which have accepted to host the event. The event however is being organised by On Site Malta. When contacted, the company did not want to give any information about the event to this newsroom, saying the matter is ‘purely confidential’  

It is still unknown whether restaurant owners have been offered some form of compensation, given they have to close their businesses for 36 hours, in what is considered part of the peak season for the restaurant industry.

The public will still be allowed access on Monday 22 and Wednesday 24, however no access will be allowed on Tuesday 23 from 5pm onwards.