Mulberries

Mulberries suits divers who want a base with a little character rather than a resort arranged around a pool and a buffet queue. The setting is in Żabbar, with garden spaces, outdoor seating and a shared lounge where you can slow down without having to manufacture an activity every five minutes.

The hotel’s English-language website makes the property easy to approach for English-speaking guests, although no hotel staff languages are specified. Air conditioning, soundproofing and daily housekeeping cover the practical side of a diving stay, while the private entrance and lift make the building easier to navigate with luggage.

There is also a spa and wellness centre, an indoor swimming pool and sun loungers. That gives you options when the sea has already had its say for the day: stretch out, take a swim, or book time in the spa and let someone else worry about the knots in your shoulders.

You are in Żabbar, in the south-east of Malta, rather than directly on the coast. That matters if your ideal morning begins with a few steps from the room to the water: here, beaches are reached by car. Zonqor Beach is about 1.5 miles away, while St Thomas Bay Beach is about 1.5 miles away as well; both are around a five-minute drive.

The location puts more than swimming within reach. The Three Cities are about 1 mile away, the Tarxien Temples about 2 miles away, and the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum about 2 miles away. Valletta’s City Gate is around 3 miles away, with the Upper Barrakka Gardens and the National Museum of Archaeology in the same general direction.

Malta International Airport is about 3 miles away, with a drive of roughly eight minutes. Nearby dining includes Martinas Pizzeria, around 0.7 miles away, and Zeffies Bistro & Pizzeria, around 0.8 miles away. The map is therefore practical for combining dives with food, history and a quick airport run, but this is a town stay rather than a beachside one.

For two divers travelling as a pair, the double rooms keep things straightforward: a king-size bed, private bathroom, air conditioning, wardrobe space and a refrigerator for cold water after a hot day in Malta. Tea and coffee-making facilities are useful for an early start, while free WiFi and a flat-screen TV take care of the quieter part of the evening.

The room categories mainly change the amount of breathing space and the way you use the outdoor area. The smaller double rooms are the sensible choice if you plan to spend your waking hours outside. The larger superior and deluxe options make more sense when you want room to unpack properly, read, or avoid living entirely out of a dive bag. Garden-view rooms bring the outlook into the room, while the balcony and terrace options give you somewhere to sit without retreating to the shared areas.

For a group of up to four, the Two-Bedroom Loft Apartment is the practical outlier. It has three bathrooms, which is the sort of detail that prevents a post-dive queue from becoming the evening’s main entertainment. It gives a group more room to spread out, although the standard double-room categories are designed for two guests.

Soundproofing should help when you are trying to sleep between dive days, and the combination of air conditioning and heating covers Malta’s changing temperatures. Private bathrooms include a shower or bath, towels, toiletries and a hairdryer. Daily housekeeping keeps the room in order while you are out, and the lift saves some unnecessary stair work when your legs have already spent the day finning.

Breakfast is a continental buffet, with local specialities alongside fresh pastries, cheese, fruit and juice. It is the sort of spread that lets you build a proper plate before heading out, rather than relying on a heroic cup of coffee and optimism. Special-diet menus are available on request.

The hotel has outdoor dining areas as well as outdoor furniture, so breakfast can move outside when you want air with your first meal. Tea and coffee-making facilities are also available in the accommodation, useful when your alarm goes off before the rest of Malta has decided what day it is.

There is no hotel restaurant or bar described in the available property details, so the evening meal is an outing rather than an in-house routine. Martinas Pizzeria is the nearest named restaurant, around 0.7 miles away, with Zeffies Bistro & Pizzeria around 0.8 miles away. For a drink, Chapters Bar and Speak Easy Bar are each about 1.1 miles away, while Joe Joe’s Bar is around 1.2 miles away.

The indoor swimming pool is the obvious post-dive reset when you want movement without arranging another excursion. Sun loungers, a sun terrace, a patio and a garden give you several places to sit, and the outdoor seating area works for a slower coffee or a book. No medals are awarded for filling every hour, particularly on a diving holiday.

The spa and wellness centre offers massages, facials, a hammam, sauna, jacuzzi, mud bath and body wraps. That is a useful menu after repetitive boat days or a week of carrying kit around. Treatments are available at the spa, so you can trade the usual post-dive shoulder complaint for a more organised version of the same conversation.

Away from the hotel, walking tours, cultural tours and snorkelling are available. Hiking is also listed as an off-site activity. For a couple mixing diving with sightseeing, the Three Cities, Tarxien Temples, Malta at War Museum and Fort St Angelo give the non-diving days some substance without requiring a grand expedition across the island.

Check-in starts from 14:00 and check-out is at 11:00. You need photo identification and a credit card at check-in, and the property asks you to share your expected arrival time in advance. The minimum age for check-in is 18, while children over 13 are welcome. Extra beds for guests aged 13 to 17 can be requested, subject to the accommodation option.

Private parking is available on site, with a parking garage, and a reservation is needed. WiFi is free throughout the hotel. A lift, accessible bathroom features, facilities for disabled guests and private check-in and check-out add useful practical details, particularly if you would rather keep arrival and departure uncomplicated.

Laundry is available as a paid service, and daily housekeeping is included in the hotel’s services. Malta International Airport is about 3 miles away, around an eight-minute drive. An airport transfer service is not listed, so plan your arrival around your own transport arrangements rather than assuming a resort shuttle will be waiting at the terminal.

The property accepts cash. Pets are not allowed, and the accommodation is non-smoking throughout, with a designated smoking area. Special requests depend on the accommodation chosen and availability, so check the details of your selected room before confirming.

The hotel takes a practical approach to materials. The property has reclaimed tonnes of local stone and other materials, turning waste into building resources rather than sending everything away. Materials sourced from nearby areas help reduce transport, while flooring and wall tiles that could not be obtained locally were selected from responsibly managed suppliers.

The hotel also uses a solar-powered water-heating system and harvests rainwater run-off. There is no named environmental certification attached to the property, but the measures are concrete: reuse local materials, limit transport where possible, use the sun for hot water and collect rainwater.