The Blue Lagoon, without the crowd
Between 10:00 and 16:00 in August the lagoon holds several thousand people. The water is the same at 08:30 and there are eleven of you in it.
Comino has no residents to speak of and one very famous channel. The Blue Lagoon is the strip of water between Comino and Cominotto, and the reason it photographs the way it does is a white sand bottom in about three metres of water. It is genuinely that colour. It is also, for six hours a day in season, extremely full.
The timing
The ferries from Ċirkewwa start landing at around 09:30 and run until late afternoon. That is the crowd. A private or shared charter leaving Sliema at 08:00 is anchored before the first ferry, and a charter leaving at 15:00 has the place emptying out in front of it.
| Time | What it is like |
|---|---|
| 07:30 – 09:30 | Empty. Flat water, no ferry wake, best light for photographs. |
| 10:00 – 16:00 | Peak. Several thousand people in August, boats rafted three deep. |
| 16:30 – 19:00 | Emptying. Warmest water of the day, softer light, most boats gone. |
The alternative that is thirty metres away
Round the headland to the east is the Crystal Lagoon. Deeper, darker blue, framed by cliffs instead of sand, and usually holding a tenth of the traffic. Most skippers will take you there without being asked if the Blue Lagoon is full. Ask anyway.
North of both is Santa Maria Caves, a set of swim-through arches that only work in a calm sea. If the forecast has any north in it, they are off the table, and a good skipper will say so on the morning rather than after you have paid.
Starting from Gozo instead
Almost nobody thinks of this. Mġarr on Gozo is about fifteen minutes from the lagoon. Sliema is closer to ninety. If you are staying on Gozo, book from Gozo, and you get two extra hours in the water for the same charter.
