MALTA
Holiday-makers have long flocked to the island of Malta and its smaller sibling Gozo for year-round balmy weather, red-sand beaches and the crystalline waters of its star attraction, the Blue Lagoon. Easily explored on foot, its Baroque capital, Valletta, is charming at every turn: a stroll here can take in cobbled alleyways, a gilded cathedral and cinematic sunsets over the Grand Harbour. There’s much to experience beyond its impressive Renzo Piano-designed city gate: head west for golden crescents of unspoilt sands, east to the history-laden Three Cities, or south to Megalithic
