Solana Hotel & Spa

You come here for a practical North Malta base with a little more going on than a bed and a breakfast room. Solana is a modern hotel in the village of Mellieħa, with 241 rooms, four outdoor pools and several places to eat, so you can keep the evening simple when your legs have had enough for one day.

The rooftop is the hotel's calling card: a pool, a bar and wide views for the sunset hour. Downstairs, the arrangement is more useful than theatrical, with an indoor pool, a spa, a fitness centre, room service and a 24-hour front desk. English is used for the hotel's information, which makes the basics straightforward to plan before you arrive.

You can make this work as a couples' base, but families are catered for too, with family rooms, an indoor play area and a children's play room. Evening entertainment and live performances keep the place from going completely silent once dinner is over.

You are in Mellieħa, Malta, on Gorg Borg Olivier Street, within the village rather than in an isolated resort compound. Mellieħa Bay Beach is 1.2 miles away, with a walk of around 23 minutes; Santa Maria Estate Beach is 0.8 miles away, while Ghadira Bay Beach is 1.5 miles by road. The sea is close enough for a beach outing, but this is not a hotel where you step straight from the lobby onto the sand.

The village setting earns its keep in the evening. Restaurants and cafés are nearby, including Bellini, Ta and LAmigo Pizzeria, while Doms Boutique Living and Schere Café are only a short walk away. That gives you alternatives when the dining plan needs a day off.

For a change of scenery, Ghadira Nature Reserve is 1.5 miles away by road and the Birdlife Sanctuary Center is 2.4 miles away. Malta National Aquarium is 5 miles away, and St Paul's Bay and St Julian are among the places reached by the hotel's shuttle services.

The room choice matters here because the categories are built for different sorts of stay. If you are travelling as a couple and want the room itself to feel like part of the break, the Deluxe Suite is the obvious category to examine. For a straightforward twin arrangement, the Standard Twin Room with Balcony keeps things simple and gives you outdoor space without moving into suite territory.

Studios are the useful option when you prefer a little control over food and drinks in the room: they include a small kitchenette, alongside the tea and coffee maker. Several room categories sleep up to four, with sofa beds used in some of them, so families or small groups have more flexibility than a basic twin room provides. Bed arrangements differ between categories, and the room cards below are worth checking before you book rather than assuming that every twin means the same thing.

Air conditioning is provided, which is welcome when Malta has spent the day turning your wetsuit area into a sauna. You also get satellite TV, free Wi-Fi, a minibar, a wardrobe or closet, a desk and a hairdryer. Daily housekeeping keeps the practical side under control, while room service means you can eat in without putting proper clothes back on.

Balconies and views feature in selected categories, including the Twin Room with View. That is the detail to prioritise if you expect to spend time sitting outside with a drink; if you mainly need a clean, air-conditioned place to sleep, the simpler categories may do the job without paying for scenery you will barely see.

Food is not confined to one restaurant and one heroic buffet. The hotel presents four restaurants, with The Prickly Pear among them, and the kitchen covers Maltese and international cooking. The programme includes themed evenings such as curry night, alongside desserts and options intended for different dietary preferences. Three restaurants are also listed among the hotel's main facilities, so check which venues are operating during your dates rather than treating the full line-up as a nightly guarantee.

Breakfast is buffet-style, with Continental, Full English/Irish, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices. Half-board is available, and dinner comes with self-service beverages including wine, beer, branded soft drinks, mineral water, juices and hot drinks. That is useful when you return hungry and would rather not start calculating every glass before the main course has arrived.

There is a rooftop bar for cocktails, with panoramic views and sunsets doing most of the decorative work. A bar, snack bar and on-site coffee house cover the less formal moments, while live entertainment adds some evening noise for those who have not yet reached the sofa stage. Special diet menus can be requested, and children's meals and a child-friendly buffet are part of the set-up.

Four outdoor pools give you room to change the scenery without leaving the hotel, including the rooftop pool with its own bar. There is also an indoor pool with a hydromassage corner, which is the sensible fallback when the wind picks up or you simply want warm water without additional sun.

The Spa & Wellness centre stays open until 23:00, making it compatible with a diving day rather than demanding that you reorganise your morning around it. Facilities include a relaxation area and sauna, with full-body, back, neck, head, hand and foot massages, as well as couples' massages and spa packages. Pool and beach towels, sun loungers, chairs and umbrellas are also provided around the wellness areas.

If your non-diving companion has energy left, the hotel can arrange excursions to Gozo, Comino, St Paul's Bay and St Julian. Walking tours, local culture tours, themed dinners and cocktail specials are among the organised options. Hiking and watersports take you off site, while the games room, indoor play area, live music and sports broadcasts give you reasons to stay put when the sensible plan is to do very little.

Malta International Airport is 13 miles from the hotel by road, with a drive of around 23 minutes. Airport transfers can be pre-booked, and a shuttle service runs to places of interest around the island. A bus stop on the hotel street connects you with destinations including St Paul's Bay and St Julian, while car hire can also be arranged.

Check-in runs from 15:00 to midnight, and check-out is from 01:00 to 11:00. You need photo identification and a credit card at check-in, and the hotel asks you to give your expected arrival time in advance. The front desk is open around the clock, with luggage storage and an on-site cash machine for the practical bits that tend to appear after travelling.

Private parking is available in the hotel parking garage, with reservation required. Wi-Fi is free throughout the property, upper floors are reached by lift, and laundry, dry cleaning and ironing services are offered. Packed lunches and room service are useful when your schedule does not line up neatly with the restaurant. Children of all ages are welcome, and cots or extra beds can be requested according to the room category.