Review
This review covers a seven night family stay at Hilton Malta during August 2025. We booked two Family Deluxe Marina View rooms.
At the time of booking the room was 60,000 HHonors points or €279/night per room. The American Express Rewards card bonus can be a helpful way of working towards a points booking.
The Hotel
Hilton Malta is a five-star waterfront resort located in the upscale Portomaso Marina area of St. Julian’s, just a 15-minute drive from Valletta and around 25 minutes from Malta International Airport. The hotel offers 413 rooms and suites, many with sea or marina views.
The property features extensive leisure facilities including four outdoor pools, a heated indoor pool, a beach club, tennis court, a full-service spa, and a modern fitness centre. Dining options range from the award-winning Blue Elephant Thai restaurant to Mediterranean buffets at Oceana, along with several stylish bars. With family-friendly services, an executive lounge, and meeting spaces for over 1,300 delegates, Hilton Malta caters to both leisure and business travellers seeking a luxurious base in a prime coastal location.
Check in and Service
The service we received throughout our stay was generally very good, however it wasn’t always consistent. We arrived early on our first day and, whilst allowing for the fact that we were checked in by a member of staff who was ‘on training’, the process took a very long time and felt quite confused. We were provided with very little welcome or information about the hotel and when I tried asking some questions the responses were very uncertain. It felt like either a script or supervision from a more experienced colleague was required. Contrasting this, moments later I observed another guest getting a much more comprehensive check in, including information leaflets about the hotel and area.
This theme continued throughout the stay – generally staff were very friendly, but the information and options provided seemed to depend on who you got. For example, at breakfast we didn’t realise there was an option to sit outside until we heard another guest being offered this on our 3rd day (we’d always just been pointed to a table), some days we were offered coffees and others we weren’t and we witnessed some guests getting a more detailed introduction at breakfast on their first day, which we didn’t receive.
That said, every member of staff was polite, friendly and helpful. We particularly liked the little extra touches when our room was serviced:
Our Hilton Gold status was recognised, however we were unable to get an upgrade or even connecting rooms. Whilst some Hilton hotels now allow you to book connecting rooms on the website, this isn’t possible at Hilton Malta. In addition there was some confusion about which room types have connecting options – the website lists this as a feature for Family Deluxe rooms, but we were later told that connecting rooms isn’t possible for this room type. For a family stay, getting this clearer and having an option to pre-book would be positive.
Finally, one very positive benefit in relation to Hilton Gold status was that breakfast was included for all guests on both rooms. There were 6 of us, including 2 over 16’s and we had expected to only get free breakfast for 2 adults and children under 12. Given breakfast costs around €25 at Hilton Malta, extending this benefit to all guests over the full week had substantial value for us.
The Rooms
Our Family Deluxe Marina View rooms were fantastic, we were located in 207 and 209. They were well presented and maintained, clean and pretty spacious even travelling as a family of 6. As mentioned, we didn’t get connecting rooms, but were located on the same corridor (one room in between) – it was a shame not to have at least 2 neighbouring rooms, but it worked OK. Both rooms had a bath and shower, two double beds, fridge and tea and coffee making facilities. On arrival we received 2 bottles of water, some Maltese coffee and salt. To reduce waste, the room has a separate drinking water tap to use throughout your stay. There was also an ice machine in a room opposite (which we used lots).
One room has a larger terrace and the other a small balcony. Both overlooked the marina and provided an amazing space to sit, read and watch the boats come in and out.
Facilities and Local Area
The facilities at the hotel are fantastic. There are 4 pools available, including an indoor pool (with sauna, steam room and plunge pool), an outdoor infinity pool (over 12’s) a larger family pool and an adults only (16+) beach club. We used all of these extensively, with each offering different options. The family pool was always busiest and whilst there were many guests who reserved poolside loungers first thing in the morning, generally we didn’t have an issue finding a decent spot at any time. This was perhaps easiest in the beach club, which was the most relaxed area. QR codes in the outdoor pool allow you to order food and drinks to your lounger and, for a five star Hilton, prices were pretty reasonable (approx €4 for a small beer). Service was also fairly quick and very friendly.
There was also a kids club (which we didn’t use), a fitness centre (which my sons used every day) and multiple restaurants. The quality of spaces throughout the hotel was very high, every space was well maintained, clean and had a luxury feel.
Yet, we had one major issue… some of the areas surrounding the hotel are very grotty. If you take a handful of steps from the beach club onto the beach, don’t expect a pleasant coastal walk! The rocky beach was literally covered in cigarettes, glass bottles and other unsavoury items. Bins are overflowing and it seems like there is minimal effort to keep the area clean. Whilst this area isn’t owned by Hilton, given it’s surrounded by multiple relatively expensive high end resorts (Hilton, Hyatt, Radisson, Westin Dragonara, etc.) and guests are charged a tourist tax, I am surprised some effort hasn’t gone into solving this issue. Essentially if walking from the hotel you turn left (the marina, Spinola Bay) the areas are perfectly maintained and have a high end feel, if you turn right (beach, Paceville) expect something very different!
If you walk the right way, there are loads of great restaurants and some beautiful views of the marina.
Food
We had breakfast in the hotel every day. The breakfast offering was great, loads of choice – including a special local treats area with Maltese dishes and pastries. Breakfast is served in the oceana restaurant, which is a great space.
The hotel was full at the time of our stay, so breakfast was busy at times. We found that arriving at 8.30-ish worked very well and we never had to wait or queue. However sometimes we noticed queues building as we left. These seemed to clear quite quickly, but we noted that it was worth avoiding arriving 9.15-9.45. Breakfast is served 7.00-10.30.
Summary
Hilton Malta is a great location for a family break in the sun, it’s a beautiful hotel and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay – that said, with minor work on service consistency and some action to address the very grotty adjoining beach it could be even better.
Other Hilton hotel reviews you might be interested in:
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