Victoria — known to the Gozitans simply as Ir-Rabat — is the capital of Gozo, and staying here puts you at the very heart of island life. As the UK's only dedicated Malta specialist, GotoBeach can arrange accommodation in and around Victoria as part of a wider Gozo holiday, combining the capital's extraordinary cultural offer with the island's finest farmhouses and boutique properties. Speak to one of our specialists today.
Most visitors to Gozo pass through Victoria. Very few actually stop long enough to understand it — and that, Thomas would argue, is their loss.
Victoria is a proper Maltese town. Not a resort, not a tourist village, not a carefully curated version of island life arranged for visitors. It is where Gozitans do their shopping, meet for coffee, argue about football and go about their days in the unhurried way that makes this island so restorative to visit. Spending time in Victoria feels less like sightseeing and more like being temporarily admitted to somewhere real.
The Citadella is the obvious reason to come — and it deserves every word of praise it receives. The ancient fortified city that sits on the hill above Victoria, with its cathedral, its museums and its views across the entire island, is one of the most genuinely impressive historic sites in the Maltese archipelago. On a clear day, from the ramparts, you can see Malta itself on the southern horizon. It is the kind of view that puts things in perspective.
The streets below the Citadella are worth as much of your time as the fortress itself. The covered market, the small squares, the bars where the coffee is strong and the conversation is unhurried — Victoria at its everyday best is a reminder that the Mediterranean still has corners that have not been entirely reorganised around tourism. That is becoming a rarer thing. It is worth appreciating while it lasts.
Handpicked packages featuring the best destinations across the Victoria
