scubish.com: Scuba diving Comino - Malta

Comino is an island that forms part of the country of Malta. It is by far the smallest inhabited island of the Maltese islands with a grand total of 8 permanent inhabitants, as well as an hotel which caters mostly for overseas visitors on all-inclusive package tours. Comino is famed for it's Blue Lagoon which offers crystal clear waters for swimming in.

Understand

Comino was for a long time uninhabited and was used by corsair pirates as a resting place until in the 17th century the Knights of St. John constructed the Santa Maria Tower to secure the island. This tower is in use by the Maltese military until this very day. It's set in a very impressive location on a clifftop and seems more like a midsize fortress until you approach it and realise it's rather small. Like many other locations in Malta it can be seen in the recent film The Count of Monte Christo. During the British reign a leprosy colony was established on Comino because of its remote location; it was abandoned and its building is now used by the locals as convenient housing.

For more information, visit the VisitMalta tourist information site for Comino and Gozo .

Get in

Comino is located in between Malta and Gozo and can be reached by a small ferry leaving from Ċirkewwa (on the north-western tip of Malta - the same place that the much larger ferries to Gozo depart from) or from Mgarr in Gozo. Sailings are irregular - check with the Comino Hotel.

Many tourist boats from both Malta and Gozo head for the Blue Lagoon on a daily basis.

Get around

There are thankfully only 2 or 3 cars on Comino, belonging to the hotel and locals, if you're staying at the bungalows there is a minivan to shuttle you back and forth to the hotel itself. One can rent mountainbikes if one is staying at the hotel, this is a pleasant way to explore but not entirely cheap. Otherwise, Comino is only 2.5km by 1.5km in size, so you can hike around the whole island in an hour or two.

See

The island only has a few structures on it, the Santa Maria Tower, the former leprosy colony building which is now used by the locals to live in, the chapel, the police station, and a medium size hotel and a group of small bungalows belonging to it. The only sights are the Blue Lagoon and the Tower.

Do

The main reason for visiting the island for by far the most people is the so called Blue Lagoon, a stunning lagoon located on the northwest side of the island which has exceedingly clear azure-blue water. Unfortunately between 10 and 4 in the high season several hundred people swamp it each day, snackbars are set up on the pristine waterfront, deckchairs are rented out and all kinds of different craft go in and out of the lagoon ferrying visitors back and forth. The best time therefore to come is early in the...