Why Malta? How Jeff and Faye chose Malta for their anniversary trip

People often ask Jeff and Faye, "Why Malta?" or "How did you choose Malta for your anniversary trip?"

The answer is not brief, but once one hears the reasons, the questioner always agrees that Malta was the perfect choice!

Faye and Jeff were in Quebec City briefly at Christmas time with their family. As they admired the Chateau Frontenac, Jeff mentioned to Faye that Uncle Henry and Aunt Avon had spent a week at that hotel their 30^th wedding anniversary. Faye told Jeff,
 "You know, our 20^th anniversary is in March, where are you taking me?"
As Jeff struggled to catch his breath, she continued,
 "I want you to take me somewhere special for our anniversary. Just us, no kids. It had better be romantic. It had better be special. And I want it to be a surprise. I want you to just present me with the tickets. And it had better be good!"

After Jeff regained consciousness, he began to consider the task before him. This was to important a challenge to leave to chance. He would have to do some serious planning. After a few weeks of research and nail biting, he decided to take Faye to Malta. When he presented her the tickets, and after she regained consciousness, she proclaimed,
 "MALTA - It's the PERFECT choice!"

Here are some of the criteria Jeff used to select their trip:

Temperate Climate

March in the midwest is pretty dreary. We are tired of Winter, but Spring is not here yet. It is tempting to go to the tropics, but the sun is hard to resist, and sunburn is the result. In March, Malta has mild temperatures and little chance of rain.

Exotic

To impress Faye properly, Jeff had to think of someplace special. Not a common destination for tourists from mid-America. Somewhere that they could "discover". He didn't want a place that rich Aunt Agatha had already been to - she would certainly have to tell them "how to do their trip" and, afterwards, "how they did it wrong."

Historic Sights

Faye and Jeff really enjoyed the old-town sections of Montreal and Quebec. They love wandering through the streets, admiring the architecture, visiting the museums and churches. Malta is full of historic buildings: Megalithic temples, Roman ruins, walled cities and fortresses, and a church around every corner.

Health and Safety

Though Faye and Jeff are not opposed to a little risk and excitement, this anniversary trip is not the time for that. Jeff wanted to find a place with safe dinking water, good health facilities, and low crime rates. Malta rates very well in these areas.

Prosperity

Jeff wanted to indulge in this bit of selfishness for this trip. Normally, Jeff and Faye are very sensitive to the disparity between rich and poor in the world. It is painful to see people in the streets, in dire need, right next people ostentatiously flaunting their wealth. But for their anniversary, Jeff wanted to hide from such things. Malta has a good standard of living, without obvious abject poverty.

Affordable

Jeff had a certain budget in mind for this trip. He needed to keep airfare, hotel rates, and meal costs to affordable amounts. The airfare to Malta is moderate, but lodging and food can be very reasonable.

Language

To minimize stress in the trip, Jeff thought it would be good to find a destination where he and Faye could communicate with ease. In Malta, English is a co-official language with Maltese, and almost everyone speaks English fluently.

Sea or Mountains

In Jeff's mind, you can't have a real vacation without either the sea or the mountains. In Faye's mind, you can't have a real vacation without the sea. So Jeff figured this vacation had to be near the sea. In the island nation of Malta, you are never far from the water.

Travel Time and Jet Lag

Well, you can't win them all! Malta does not rate as well in this category as destinations in the Western Hemisphere. But it is better than New Zealand...

Good for Short Trip

Faye and Jeff's trip will only be one week long. Some suitable destinations will have to wait for a longer trip (Italy and Greece come to mind). Faye and Jeff would want to see too much, and end up frustrated. Malta is small, and it's major sights can seen (or at least sampled) in a week.

Just for comparison, here are some of the other places that Jeff considered:

Portugal

Lower air fare and less travel time than Malta. History, sea, mountains and climate all good. Health and safety not bad, but not as good as Malta. Niether Faye nor Jeff speak Portugese. Jeff thought that Portugal and Spain would make a good extended vacation some day.

Spain - Seville and Andalusia

Similar pros and cons as Portugal. Faye speaks Spanish well. The sea would be less accessible, and the Costa del Sol did not sound appealing.

Chile - Santiago, Valparaiso, Viña del Mar

Air fare was higher than Malta (though lower than Argentina and Uruguay). Faye speaks Spanish well. Lots of history, but not quite the depth as European destinations. This was Jeff's first choice at the beginning of the search.

Crete

Higher air fare and more travel time than Malta. History, sea, and climate all good. Health and safety rated lower here than other destinations. Jeff knows enough Modern Greek to get by, barely.

Puerto Rico

Air fare and travel time was very attractive, but lodging and meals higher. Jeff preferred a mild weather over hot. Historical sites suprisingly good, but not like Malta. Faye and Jeff would like to take their whole family here some day.

Hawaii

Exotic, sure, but Jeff and Faye know lots of people who have gone there. Also, it didn't fit the "Old European City" theme that Jeff was set on. Another place that Jeff and Faye would like to go with the family someday.