A Boat Day to Comino from Your Doorstep: The Crystal Lagoon, Done Properly

Most people experience Comino as a queue. They arrive by ferry with several hundred others, spend four hours on a crowded strip of the Blue Lagoon, and leave with a sunburn and a photograph that looks better than the day felt. There is a much better version of this, and from Gzira it starts about six minutes from the front door.

In short: charter a boat — skippered or self-drive — and make Comino a private day rather than a group excursion. Take on food and drink before you go, aim for the Crystal Lagoon rather than the Blue, and time your day around when the crowds arrive and leave. Ask your operator how late they can stay out; the hour after the day boats depart is the best hour of the whole trip.

The marinas are your doorstep

This is the part visitors staying inland never realise: the Marsamxett marinas — Manoel Island and Ta’ Xbiex — sit directly in front of Gzira, and boats leave from them. A skippered charter can collect you there, which means your day begins with a short walk rather than a bus to the far end of the island. You board with your own bag, your own music, and your own plan.

The trade-off is honest: Comino is roughly an hour out from Marsamxett, against fifteen to twenty-five minutes from the northern port of Ċirkewwa, where most of the self-drive fleets are based. So there are two good days here. The doorstep day — skippered from the marina in front of you, longer at sea, more of the coast, no logistics. Or the cheaper self-drive day — bus north, take a briefing, and drive the boat yourself with Comino a short hop away. Neither is wrong. The first is a day out; the second is a day at the lagoon.

Provision it properly

The single thing that separates a good boat day from a great one is that you brought lunch worth eating. So before you go: the bakery, and then your own kitchen.

Buy a loaf of proper Maltese bread — crusty, sourdough-ish, still warm if you’ve timed it — and make ħobż biż-żejt, the island’s great contribution to lunch. Bread, ripe tomato crushed into it, good oil, salt, pepper, and whatever else your conscience allows: tuna, capers, olives, a little onion. The bottle of premium organic extra virgin olive oil sitting in your Morrison Court welcome pack exists precisely for this. It’s the one ingredient in the recipe that has to be excellent, which is why we supply it and leave the rest to the baker and the greengrocer.

Wrap the sandwiches, freeze a couple of water bottles overnight to double as ice blocks, and fill the boat’s cool box. A full recipe for ħobż biż-żejt is coming in a later post; for now, err on the side of more tomato than feels sensible.

The rest of the kit is unglamorous and non-negotiable: high-factor sunscreen and then more of it, a hat, a rash vest or long sleeves for the middle hours, twice the water you think you need, a dry bag for phones, and reef-friendly shoes for rocky entries. Malta’s sun at sea is stronger than it feels with a breeze on you. Snorkel gear usually comes with the boat — confirm when booking.

Why the Crystal Lagoon, not the Blue

The Blue Lagoon is famous, shallow, luminous and — in season — extremely full. The Crystal Lagoon, around on Comino’s southern side, is deeper, darker, framed by cliffs and caves, and reachable only by boat. No ferry deposits crowds there. It is the same island, an entirely different day, and it is the single best argument for having your own hull under you.

Do both, though. Swim the Blue Lagoon early, before the day boats land, then move to the Crystal Lagoon while everyone else is queueing for a deckchair. Add Santa Marija Bay, the sea caves, and — if the charter’s range allows — a stop on the Gozo coast for a swim in water nobody else is in.

Time it like a local

Two rhythms matter. The seasonal one: July and August are peak, and the lagoons are genuinely busy; June and September are far kinder; May and October are close to perfect, with the sea still warm and the anchorage half-empty — the shoulder season being, as ever, the connoisseur’s answer. Winter charters are a different, wilder proposition and depend entirely on weather.

The daily one matters more. Ferries and the bulk of the charter fleet arrive mid-morning and turn for home in the late afternoon. Before ten and after five, the water empties. So ask your operator the only question that really shapes the day: how late can we stay out? Some will happily run later, especially on a longer booking. If yours can, take it — the hour when the last day boat leaves and the light goes gold over an almost-empty lagoon is worth the entire charter.

Dinner, one way or another

With a later return you have two very good endings. On a boat with a decent canopy and a bit of deck, eat aboard — the second round of sandwiches, cold drinks, the sun going down somewhere off Comino, nobody hurrying you. Or aim the bow at a coastal restaurant on the way back and step off for dinner by the water before the final run home.

Either way you arrive back in Marsamxett in the dark, with the lit bastions of the capital on one side and Manoel Island on the other, and walk home. That last part is the argument for staying here rather than at the far end of the island: everything reachable, nothing requiring a car, and your own bed at the end of it.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the Blue Lagoon and the Crystal Lagoon?

The Blue Lagoon is the famous shallow channel between Comino and Cominotto, reachable by public ferry and busy through summer. The Crystal Lagoon sits on Comino's southern side, is deeper and darker blue, and can only be reached by boat — which is why it stays comparatively quiet even in August.

Can you hire a boat to Comino without a licence?

Yes. Self-drive boats are widely available in Malta with no licence required, after a safety briefing, and skippered charters are the alternative if you'd rather not navigate. Most self-drive fleets are based at Ċirkewwa in the north, closest to Comino; skippered charters will collect you from the central marinas.

When is the best time of day to visit the Blue Lagoon?

Early or late. Day-trip ferries and most charter boats arrive mid-morning and leave in the late afternoon, so before about 10am and after about 5pm the water empties dramatically. Ask your operator how late they can stay — an evening swim with the crowds gone is the whole trick.

Morrison Court is five self-contained apartments in Gzira, a few minutes’ walk from the Marsamxett marinas — with the olive oil already on the counter and the coffee ready for the early start. Plan your boat day at morrisoncourt.com.