Selmunett – Malta Homestay

We stayed for 2 weeks in September as two Maltese Australians of 3rd and 4th generation - myself and a teen son with no living close relatives in Malta. I specifically didn’t choose a town where I know there is a lot of noise, dancing or action at night like Sliema or Bugibba on this occasion. We had very quiet nights in after prioritising resting following touring/history/seeing sights/swimming all day which was our preference. Our sleeps were restful and peaceful in this location. The breakfasts were outstanding, varied and my priority was to experience the local flavours which were more than met. Such was the quality/quantity that we did not need to eat a huge lunch or dinner and often ate lightly thereafter for the rest of the day. Selmunett is located 10 minutes away by walk to a very well stocked supermarket close to the Naxxar church for supplementary food, snacks, drinks and typical supermarket needs with everything you can think of on sale as in Australia. We used tour buses to get around via an excellent and highly recommended affordable tour company that Roger will refer you to and public buses also when we created our own tours. The designated tour bus meeting point was close to Selmunett being 5 min walk away (St Paul St), the nearest public bus stop being in the same location. Roger and Maria the hosts of Selmunett are entertaining conversationalists and can tell you anything you need to know about Malta and its history. The Wifi which I was heavily relying on worked great, hot showers and electricity all good and no disruptions. Towels well stocked and room was maintained daily. Hiring a car would be slightly more convenient but such is the ease of doing tours and taking public buses there is no absolute need to do so. It is also a 10 minute walk to the amazing venue Palazzo Parisio which was my local highlight of Naxxar. It was like a dream to visit it and is a real converted Palazzo. The garden at Selmunett was a draw card for me and not disappointed on seeing it in person. Very tranquil and shady. Its best for potential first time tourists to Malta to read a Lonely Planet/similar book about Malta before you go so that you are not caught unawares by weather, footwear or the ruggedness of parts of the islands etc....I did not need to use the air con in September and used the overhead fan instead which provided the perfect temperature for day or night when we were in our room. Overall we were quite satisfied coming from Australia with standards of accommodation and food quality here.. The hosts provided us with filtered glass bottles of cold water for drinking each day which was more than enough for two. The reception we received from the local Maltese we encountered around Malta who owned shops and businesses/served us food, or drove us in taxi's/buses and the lovely Maltese tour guides (as above) who spoke multiple Euro languages was awesome, caring, friendly and funny and truly made our stay ! The main point about Malta is it is still small group of tiny islands. Expecting everything on a little island to run like a German stopwatch or a massive European city of millions is pretty naive and disrespectful. Best you go back to Lonely Planet and read it ! It was really nice to see other non Maltese tourists loving the history and religion and architecture and magnificent churches and basilicas. Obnoxious and needy other tourists being the only negative - though we ignored them and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly ! Well done Selmunett.