Which of these destinations has English as an official language?

Malta. Maltese and English are its official languages. In Cyprus they are Greek and Turkish, in Sicily Italian, in Mallorca Spanish and Catalan, and in Lisbon Portuguese.

Which have a nonstop flight from New York JFK?

Malta (Delta, three a week from June to October), Catania in Sicily (Delta) and Lisbon (Delta and TAP). Cyprus has none, and Mallorca and Palermo are served from Newark.

Which is closest to London by air?

Mallorca, at 2h25 to 2h35 from Heathrow, then Lisbon and Palermo at about three hours, Malta at 3h20 and Cyprus at 4h40.

Which drive on the left?

Malta and Cyprus. Sicily, Mallorca and Lisbon drive on the right.

Malta compared with Cyprus, Sicily, Mallorca and Lisbon

The Saluting Battery’s gun platform from above: black cannons along the parapet, white cocktail tables, red geraniums and the Grand Harbour beyond — The Saluting Battery above the Grand Harbour, Valletta

Colours of Malta compared Malta with Cyprus, Sicily, Mallorca and Lisbon on flights, language, conference halls, weather and public funding.

Every figure below has a source, and all were checked on 15 October 2026.

Side by side

Malta, Cyprus, Sicily, Mallorca and Lisbon compared for incentives and conferences
	Malta	Cyprus	Sicily	Mallorca	Lisbon
Main airport	Malta International (MLA)	Larnaca (LCA) and Paphos (PFO)	Catania (CTA) and Palermo (PMO)	Palma (PMI)	Lisbon (LIS)
Flight from London Heathrow	3h20	4h40	Palermo 2h55 to 3h00. Catania has no Heathrow flight (Gatwick 3h10 to 3h20).	2h25 to 2h35	2h50 to 3h00
Flight from Frankfurt	2h35	3h40 to 3h45	Catania 2h30, Palermo 2h20	2h05 to 2h15	3h15
Flight from New York JFK	9h10 to 9h20, Delta, three a week, June to October	No nonstop	Catania 9h10, Delta. Palermo from Newark, 8h50, United.	No nonstop from JFK. Newark 8h00, United, in summer.	7h05 to 7h10, Delta and TAP
Schengen Area	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Currency	Euro	Euro	Euro	Euro	Euro
Official languages	Maltese and English	Greek and Turkish	Italian	Spanish and Catalan	Portuguese
Time zone	UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer	UTC+2, UTC+3 in summer	UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer	UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer	UTC+0, UTC+1 in summer
Driving side	Left	Left	Right	Right	Right
Largest conference hall, theatre style	1,920, the Sacra Infermeria Hall at the Mediterranean Conference Centre	1,130, The Forum at City of Dreams, Limassol	800, the Four Points Catania congress centre	1,966, the Palau de Congressos de Palma	2,500, the Rio Pavilion at the Lisbon Congress Centre
July and August average high	31.8°C and 31.9°C	33.0°C and 33.3°C (Larnaca)	34.1°C and 34.5°C (Catania)	31.6°C and 31.8°C	27.8°C and 28.6°C
Months averaging 20 to 28°C	April, May, October, November	April, May, November	April, May, October, November (Catania)	April, May, October	April to July, September, October
Public funding for foreign events	MTA: €35 to €55 per foreign delegate for 201 or more. The last call closed on 28 February 2026.	Up to €35,000 per corporate conference and €20,000 per incentive, 2026 to 2029 (as reported)	None found	None for meetings	Portugal Events: up to €50,000 per event. Applications for 2027 events are open.
Airport to the main conference hotels	Valletta 11 to 16 minutes, St Julian’s 19 to 28 minutes, by airport bus	Larnaca airport to Limassol, 52 minutes	Catania airport to Taormina, 1h25 by bus	The Palau de Congressos is 5 minutes from the airport	The city centre is about 15 minutes away

Flight times are the airlines’ filed schedules in October 2026 and can change by season. Temperatures are 1991 to 2020 averages, measured at the airports except in Lisbon.

Malta compared: common questions

Which of these destinations has English as an official language?: Malta. Maltese and English are its official languages. In Cyprus they are Greek and Turkish, in Sicily Italian, in Mallorca Spanish and Catalan, and in Lisbon Portuguese.
Which have a nonstop flight from New York JFK?: Malta (Delta, three a week from June to October), Catania in Sicily (Delta) and Lisbon (Delta and TAP). Cyprus has none, and Mallorca and Palermo are served from Newark.
Which is closest to London by air?: Mallorca, at 2h25 to 2h35 from Heathrow, then Lisbon and Palermo at about three hours, Malta at 3h20 and Cyprus at 4h40.
Which drive on the left?: Malta and Cyprus. Sicily, Mallorca and Lisbon drive on the right.

Sources

Weighing Malta for a programme?

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