Last night we spent an enchanting evening at Phoenicia Malta – the ideal setting for unforgettable moments. A big thanks to the exceptional team for their warm hospitality! Here’s to cherished conversations about business, current affairs, and building stronger connections.

970,636 passengers travelled with Air Malta between the start of April and the end of last August, Executive Chairman David Curmi confirmed on Thursday.

The figure represents a 26 per cent increase from the performance of the same period last year, with the highest number of passengers being carried last month with 213,963.

“As we move into the sixth month of our summer 2023 programme, we continue to see a strong demand for travel with our airline,” Mr Curmi stated.

He added that during the reporting period, Air Malta operated to 23 destinations and performed a total of 3,238 rotations with a monthly average of 637 and a weekly average of 154 rotations. The total rotations came out at 28 per cent higher than in 2022, with the highest number of rotations being performed for routes including London Heathrow, Rome Fiumicino, and Catania.

Italy remains the top destination when it comes to passenger loads with 249,730 passengers, followed by France, the United Kingdom and Germany. The airline’s most frequented airport remains London Heathrow, followed by Munich and Rome Fiumicino.

Mr Curmi noted that it gives him “great pleasure” that despite the addition of five new routes, Air Malta still achieved an average seat load factor of 88 per cent during the five months reported. The airline recorded a high average seat load of 92 per cent during August.

“14 out of 23 routes achieved a seat load factor of over 90 per cent. The highest seat load factors were achieved on the Lisbon, Amsterdam, and London Heathrow routes at 99 per cent, 96 per cent, and 95 per cent, respectively,” he continued.

“I attribute this successful performance to the hard work, dedication, and commitment of our people across the company,” Mr Curmi concluded.

Despite the positive results, Air Malta’s future remains uncertain, with it awaiting a verdict from the European Commission on whether Government’s request to inject state aid into the airline will be approved. Back in April, Mr Curmi had said that the airline is set to wind down operations by the end of the year, with a new flag-carrier set to take its place.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/air-malta-carried-970-636-passengers-between-april-and-august-2023

Meet Davide – Colours of Malta at Malta Booth Number: E1616 at imex America, Last Vegas, Mandalay Bay between October 17-19, 2023.

Colours of Malta has been operating as a Destination Management Company (DMC) across the Maltese islands since 1998.

Our core specialization lies in the management of MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions). Over the years, we take pride in having established robust relationships with suppliers and independent operators.

We handle events of every scale, ensuring that each receives our specialized care and attention to detail. Our multilingual and versatile team works meticulously, aiming to fulfill the needs of our clients and turning their visions into unforgettable experiences.

Continuous learning is a cornerstone of our ethos. Our staff consistently participates in seminars and workshops, focusing on training, managerial roles, and sustainability. This ensures we continually expand our market knowledge. At Colours of Malta, ethical practices and corporate conduct are paramount. We have set policies and controls in place to adhere to both local and global anti-corruption laws and regulations.

We hold the distinction of being a Quality Assured DMC, certified by the Malta Tourism Authority. Colours of Malta was also appointed as the Official Partner DMC by the European Union to organize all the events for the EU presidency in 2017 in Malta and has handled groups of 20 delegates up to 3500 delegates.

We possess a general liability insurance coverage and partner exclusively with suppliers who have adequate insurance to ensure maximum safety.

Living up to our company motto, we believe, “The difference between the ordinary and extraordinary is the little ‘extra’.” – Colours of Malta.

Read more: https://imexamerica.com/newfront/exhibitor/colours-of-malta-7fc7dc8e

Air Malta is further expanding its Winter 2023-24 scheduled flight operation with the addition of:

2 x extra Paris CDG rotations on Days 1 & 5 respectively

See the above table for the updated schedule for both Paris airports.

This increased capacity should help cater for more inbound GROUP and MICE traffic to Malta, as well as increase connectivity to Francw  and beyond for the local Malta Market.

We are available should you require any further information or assistance with flights.

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Bajtar tax-xewk (“prickly pear”) is a seasonal summer fruit that grows all over the Maltese islands. In the past farmers used the plant as a boundary planted near their field walls to keep intruders or other wandering livestock from entering their fields or between boundaries as a wind breaker.

According to many farmers this fruit is best harvested in the morning between August and September. During the peak of summer we can see the plant flowering with different magnificent colours which then would reflect the colour of the fruit.

Prickly pears are not just famous for their various colours but also for their health benefits. It contains magnesium, amino acids, antioxidants, vitamins C and B, beta-carotene, iron, calcium, potassium, and many other nutrients and is thus a good source of a considerable part of the daily need of many vitamins and minerals. Although in the old times it was also used as a fodder to pigs, the fruit is nowadays used for jams, liquors, syrups and also for cosmetics in Sicily.

The Argotti Botanic Gardens is proud to state that it is now one of 83 botanic gardens worldwide that attained Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) Accreditation.

The Argotti Botanic Gardens & Resource Centre forms a part of the University of Malta and is situated within the Argotti Gardens in Floriana.

Its development as a botanic garden dates back as far as the early 19th century when the first Chair of Natural History was established.

BGCI is an organisation forming the world’s largest plant conservation network, representing over 800 botanic gardens in 118 countries.

Obtaining this accreditation signifies that the University’s Argotti Botanic Gardens is officially recognised as upholding a global standard for botanic gardens.

The BGCI criteria for accreditation include showing strategic direction and governance, the ability to manage and curate a plant collection, as well as engaging in public education, conservation actions and scientific research.

Argotti gardens are now the first Maltese gardens to join the distinguished list of the world’s top gardens that have received this recognition.

Article credits: https://www.guidememalta.com/en/wow-malta-s-argotti-botanic-gardens-becomes-one-of-83-gardens-worldwide-to-obtain-bgci-accreditation

A painting discovered behind a blocked arch at the Gran Salon within the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta has been confirmed as an image of Neptune, the Roman God of the Sea, following a conservation project held by Heritage Malta with Bank of Valletta’s (BOV) support.

The painting, which sees the god hold a trident in his hand, was first discovered in 2021 during the project. It stands above what used to be a recessed arch with a fireplace that was blocked and redecorated.

As they were removing the pointing of the blocked-off access, conservators witnessed decorative elements completely different from the current decorative scheme of the Gran Salon, and a small opening was thus made, revealing details of a trident.

Following discussions of the findings with several professionals, the conservation team and Heritage Malta experts, with the approval of the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, continued to meticulously remove stones blocking the archway to reveal a painting of Neptune that could possibly date to the late 17th or early 18th century.

Neptune is seated in the centre of a large seashell, resting his left hand on a jar with flowing war, while holding the trident in his right hand. He is depicted in a green colour, with the experts claiming it might have been done so he imitates bronze statues. As part of the decorative scheme there are also some architectural features among other shells and fish. They claim that to date, this is the only surviving element of the original decorative scheme of the Gran Salon, a majestic hall in the Auberge de Provence – now housing the National Museum of Archaeology – which was most probably fully decorated during the Knight’s period, yet was redecorated during the British Period.

The restoration of the hall commenced in 2017 through a partnership between BOV and Heritage Malta, with the bank’s participation in the project forming part of its commitment to “support and assist the community in which it operates”, going beyond the provision of financial services but as an “active citizen of this community”.

BOV CEO Kenneth Farrugia and Chief Operating Officer (COO) Ernest Agius recently visited the Gran Salon to witness the discovery, and they were greeted by Heritage Malta COO Kenneth Gambin and the conservation team, who provided an update on the conservation process.

“As a bank celebrating its 50th anniversary next year, and with over 200 years of history in Malta, the local heritage is very close to our hearts and forms an integral part of BOV’s Community Programme,” Mr Farrugia said.

“We are indeed very excited to form part of this exciting discovery together with Heritage Malta and we are keen to follow any new information that this discovery will shed on the history of this magnificent hall,” he added.

Mr Gambin expressed his delight at the discovery of this early decorative scheme, which “further enhances” the Gran Salon’s value and beauty. He lauded the efforts of Heritage Malta’s conservators who had a crucial role in the project, and also thanked BOV for its “unwavering support”.

He remarked that Heritage Malta is eager to make this discovery accessible to the public, in line with its commitment to “bring Malta’s cultural heritage within the reach of the widest audience possible”.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/bov-and-heritage-malta-partnership-sees-exciting-discovery-of-neptune-painting-in-national-museum-of-archaeology

Malta’s blockbuster year for tourism is showing no signs of slowing down, with Malta International Airport (MIA) registering its busiest ever month in July 2023, beating the previous monthly record, held by August 2019, by more than 25,000 passenger movement.

The airport welcomed 848,716 passengers in July, a new record that may be overtaken as soon as this month, with the August holiday rush “set to bring busier days”.

Traffic is expected to peak on 17 and 24 August, with each one of these days forecast to see more than 32,000 passengers, the airport said.

In its announcement, MIA said that aircraft movements during the month remained in line with July 2019 levels, while seat capacity saw an increase of 3.8 per cent as a result of larger aircraft being operated on flights to Malta.

Despite the increase in the number of seats available, the monthly seat load factor rose by 2.1 per cent over pre-pandemic levels to reach 89.1 per cent, as demand for travel remained very strong for yet another month.

Being Malta’s most connected market through flights to 20 airports, Italy showed no signs of ceding the top spot to the United Kingdom, which was the second most popular market for the month.

The French market continued to perform exceptionally well, registering growth of 52 per cent over 2019 and outperforming Germany to rank third. Five airlines currently connect Malta International Airport to 10 French airports, contributing to this market’s increasing popularity.

Passenger traffic from Spain grew by a marginal 1.2 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels, with this market retaining the same position it has held since May 2023.

Article credits: https://whoswho.mt/en/malta-international-airport-reports-busiest-ever-month