Malta Camp for Teenagers: Valletta, Gozo and the Coast

Malta is presented by the operator as one of the smallest countries in Europe and one of the richest in things to discover. Lying off Sicily and Tunisia, at the heart of Mediterranean sea routes, the archipelago has always held a strategic position: Phoenicians, Romans, Arabs and the Knights all left their mark on it. The group is based in apartments in the lively Sliema district and works outwards from there, meeting local people and taking in local traditions, sea landscapes and Mediterranean life alongside the set visits.

The price published by the operator covers accommodation, meals, the activities and excursions of the published programme, and insurance. Zigo Tours takes out cover for every participant — assistance and repatriation, individual accident, third-party liability, legal costs and baggage — and advances medical expenses during the stay. Travel is by scheduled flight, Paris to Valletta and back. Pre-travel from regional cities can be arranged by the operator's transport department; it is quoted case by case and is not part of the published price.

The group is housed in apartments in the Sliema district, one of the liveliest parts of the Maltese conurbation and the base for the whole stay.

Catering is co-managed: meals are prepared by the young people themselves, each taking a turn. Breakfast is taken as a buffet at the hostel.

Valletta is the centrepiece: a fortress city holding some 320 monuments across 55 hectares, with St John's Co-Cathedral, the Malta Experience film on the city's history, its quarters, panoramic viewpoints, markets and a laser game session. A full day goes to the fishing village of Marsaxlokk and on by foot to St Peter's Pool, where the natural pools hold clear water. Gozo, reached only by ferry, is walked along the cliffs to the Blue Hole and up to the citadel of Victoria. A boat cruise rounds the island past its many coves, and a beach day at Golden Bay includes a horse-riding session.

The stay is based in apartments in Sliema rather than on a campus, so the district itself supplies most of what the group uses. Movement around the islands is by local public transport, which the operator states meets the country's safety standards, and Gozo is reached by ferry. Supervision is by a qualified director and activity leaders, one adult for every eight young people.

A group of between twelve and twenty-four young people living in apartments in a busy Maltese district, cooking for themselves in turn and moving around the islands on the same buses and ferries as everyone else. A qualified director and activity leaders supervise throughout, one adult for every eight participants.