The part of Malta holding most interest for tourists is the Valletta area with its historical associations and its many remains of the past.
From here, however, it is easy to visit the rest of the archipelago, which also offers many sights of first-rate importance which no visitor to Malta should miss, especially the former Maltese capital of Mdina (pop. 930), picturesquely situated on a hill in the southwest of the island a place which the modern age seems to have passed by.
On the main island, Malta, the land rises in stages from northeast to southwest. In the east is a region of gently rolling hills never rising above 330 ft/100 m, which in the west, along a clearly marked fault line, gives place to a plateau of Tertiary limestones, much broken up by karstic action and reaching its highest points along the west coast.
On the east side of the island there are a number of excellent natural harbors and drowned river valleys - while the west coast, edged by sheer cliffs, offers little shelter to shipping. The cultivable land is mostly in the larger basins in the eastern half of the island, and it is in these areas that the main concentrations of population and economic activity have developed.
Malta has an excellent network of roads, radiating from the Valletta area and from the town of Victoria on Gozo. There are no railroads on the islands. There are, however, bus services from these two central points to almost every village in the country. Further away from the centers, it is true, connections between the radial roads are sometimes lacking, so that to get from one peripheral village to another may involve a rather roundabout journey.
The thinly populated areas in the west and southwest are poorly served by roads. Between Malta and Gozo there are two good and rapid ferry services, from Marfa to Mgarr from Valletta to Mgarr (hydrofoil).
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