Winters in Malta

Bad?? This winter was the mildest in decades apparently- I was here the one before last and although it was a bit rainy and quite windy, being from Canada (and having lived on the rainy west coast for 13 years), trust me- winters here are fine! I know exactly what you mean by '40 days and nights if rain'! You'll need a good indoor heater but otherwise, I think you'll like it.

the winter is fine, the houses are not built for winter though. 

Imagine sleeping outside, it's worse than that because these houses get colder than outside.

Had the houses been properly isolated for winter it would be lovely, but the houses are built to make summers comfy not winter

Hi. I moved here in January this year, so can't comment on previous winters,  and yes been told the weather this winter has been good compared to those before , it can get chilly of an evening, but we just put on gas heater or wear warm clothes in house at night. I moved from Aberdeen, Scotland, so even these nights are better than daytime back home. I've certainly no complaints about weather here so far.

It's been a very mild winter. I'm so happy for you guys! We were freezing in our apartment in 2013/2014.

Its not the temp but the humidity that makes it so cold. The houses / flats absorb the moisture and it transfers into the rooms making the inside feel very cold.
Gas heaters make the situation worse so avoid using them.
Your clothes will go black along with the walls and furniture in unheated / unventilated rooms.
A dehumidifier is an essential item and helps to keep the rooms feel warmer.

Terry

Clothes, bedding... ahh fun times. We don't like gas heaters so went for a electric-fan heater. It was pointless.

Honestly if you happen to find a good property with double glazing, ACs and get a dehumidifier you should be fine.

Thanks All for the information, Just another 101 decisions to make to see if Malta is the place I want to stay in.

macaulayrg2003 wrote:

Hi am I from Glasgow and looking to retire next year and was looking to move to Malta mid 2017. I have seen various threads about the winters in Malta are they really that bad?. Cause we have had 40 days and nights of rain, cold weather etc. etc. and one of the reason I want to move is the weather.

You can put up with the winters although we have not really had one this year as the summers are so
good, hot and dry.

July and Aug are horrible- might want to go back to Scotland for those months!

I doubt it, I know it get very hot, but that's what I want. looking for dry, sunny, very sunny and hot place most of the year. Plus I don't have any other real criteria for wanting to move to Malta maybe location i was thinking the south of the island Pretty Bay, not politics, welfare or social issues.

macaulayrg2003 wrote:

I doubt it, I know it get very hot, but that's what I want. looking for dry, sunny, very sunny and hot place most of the year. Plus I don't have any other real criteria for wanting to move to Malta maybe location i was thinking the south of the island Pretty Bay, not politics, welfare or social issues.

Another place worth looking at is Cyprus, which if anything is slightly warmer.

Ray

The mould problem depends on the house. I don't have a dehumidifier but do use a gas heater in the room I occupy in the day and an elecric blanket on the bed.

The gas heater causes no problem in the room where I live but does cause a lot of condensation on a large picture window in a connecting room. There is some green mould in this other room, but this is related as much to the lack of a damp proof course than the use of the gas heater. The green mould is much less now that I am living here. When the house was unnoccupied, the green mould looked like a coat of paint. I have never seen any black mould on walls, clothes or anywhere else.

To me, they are pleasant, but I would hesitate to tell anyone else what winter will feel like to them. The temperature is very dependent on the sun - the air is quite chilly, and as soon as the sun sets, the temperature drops considerably. Also, if you live in a building primarily built of limestone, without modern insulation and materials, the walls can absorb a lot of the heat in your home. Then, if it's a damp winter, it feels even colder.

It's funny to see the range of clothing people wear from November to February. I'm usually in a few light layers - tshirt or blouse, sweater, jacket, that sort of thing - and roasting on the bus because the heat is on and people won't open the windows. But you see people in heavy (Scotland-weight) wool sweaters and winter coats and scarves and hats, and then you see people (tourists?) in (Scotland-)summer clothes.

I suspect that acclimation plays a big part, too. If you stay five or ten years and get used to the summer heat, the winters probably do feel colder - and if you bundle up and overheat yourself in the winter, maybe the summers don't feel so extreme?