Salient Points
- During the third quarter of 2026, trips, vehicles and passengers rose by 19.5 per cent, 1.0 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively, when compared with the same period of 2025.
- September accounted for the highest share of Mġarr–Valletta trips (34.4 per cent), while August recorded the largest passenger share (34.7 per cent).
- The fast ferry service between Mġarr and Sliema via Buġibba carried 143,761 passengers, with Mġarr–Sliema and Sliema–Mġarr recording the highest volumes.
Commentary
Sea transport between Malta and Gozo
Between July and September 2026, a total of 14,417 trips were carried out, carrying a total of 2,141,312 passengers (Table 1). September was the busiest month recording a total of 4,830 trips or 33.5 per cent of total trips for the quarter (Tables 3, 7 and 9).
Sea transport between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa
A total of 1,654,505 passengers travelled between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa during the third quarter of 2026, a decrease of 3.3 per cent when compared to the corresponding quarter of 2025. The highest number of passengers, 573,847 or 34.7 per cent of the total for the quarter, was recorded in August. When compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year, the number of vehicles increased by 1.0 per cent, totalling 606,745 (Tables 2 and 3).
The number of trips during the third quarter amounted to 9,286, an increase of 0.5 per cent over the same period in 2025 (Table 2). August registered the highest number of trips, 3,140 or 33.8 per cent of total trips for the quarter (Table 3).
During the third quarter, vehicle traffic originating from the Mġarr terminal was highest on Sundays and Mondays, while passenger traffic peaked on Sundays and Saturdays. On the other hand, vehicle traffic originating from Ċirkewwa was highest on Fridays and Saturdays, while passenger traffic originating from Ċirkewwa was also busiest on Fridays and Saturdays (Charts 4 and 5).
Sea transport between Mġarr and Valletta
During the third quarter of 2026, a total of 2,991 trips were carried out, carrying a total of 343,046 passengers (Table 6). When compared to the same quarter in 2025, the number of trips increased by 5.8 per cent and the number of passengers decreased by 9.1 per cent. September registered the highest number of trips – 1,028 or 34.4 per cent of total trips for the quarter, while August registered the highest number of passengers – 118,878 or 34.7 per cent of the total for the quarter (Table 7).
Sea transport between Mġarr and Sliema via Buġibba
During the third quarter of 2026, 1,067 trips were operated on each of the Buġibba–Mġarr and Sliema–Mġarr routes, while 1,073 trips were operated on each of the Mġarr–Buġibba and Mġarr–Sliema routes. Passenger volumes increased in September compared with the previous two months across all four routes. The Sliema–Mġarr and Mġarr–Sliema routes registered the highest passenger numbers during this quarter, carrying 42,803 and 42, 811 passengers, respectively, while the Buġibba–Mġarr and Mġarr–Buġibba routes carried 29,010 and 29,137 passengers, respectively (Table 9).
Map 1. Distribution of trips between Malta and Gozo during Q3/2026
Chart 4. Vehicles to and from Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by day of the week
Chart 5. Passengers to and from Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by day of the week
Tables
- xlsx Table 1. Total sea transport between Malta and Gozo by year and quarter 19.29 KB
- xlsx Table 2. Sea transport between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by year and quarter 18.97 KB
- xlsx Table 3. Sea transport between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by year and month 20.40 KB
- xlsx Table 4. Sea transport to and from Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by year and month 20.75 KB
- xlsx Table 5. Sea transport between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa by year and day of the week: January-September 19.62 KB
- xlsx Table 6. Sea transport between Mġarr and Valletta by year and quarter 19.09 KB
- xlsx Table 7. Sea transport to and from Mġarr and Valletta by year and month 21.10 KB
- xlsx Table 8. Sea transport between Mġarr and Sliema via Buġibba by year and quarter 15.71 KB
- xlsx Table 9. Sea transport to and from Mġarr and Sliema via Buġibba by year and month 16.74 KB
- xlsx All Tables 58.17 KB
Methodological Notes
1. The source of the data included in this release is administrative information provided by the Gozo Channel Co. Ltd and Transport Malta.
2. The fast ferry service operating between Mġarr and Valletta commenced on 1 June 2021.
3. The fast ferry service operating between Mġarr and Sliema via Buġibba commenced on 5 May 2026.
4. The table below illustrates the vehicle and passenger capacity of each Gozo Channel vessel:
| Vessel | Vehicles | Passengers |
|---|---|---|
| MV Gaudos | 72 | 900 |
| MV Malita | 138 | 900 |
| MV Ta' Pinu | 138 | 900 |
| MV Nikolaos | 160 | 650 (Summer) / 350 (Winter) |
Periods when vessels were out of service for docking purposes:
MV Gaudos: 08/11/2023-30/11/2023 and 08/01/2026-05/02/2026.
MV Malita: 09/01/2024-30/01/2024.
MV Ta’ Pinu: 09/01/2023-02/02/2023, 27/02/2023-02/03/2023 and 07/01/2025-06/02/2025.
MV Nikolaos was put temporarily out of service between 18/04/2023-26/04/2023, 15/02/2024-25/03/2024, 05/05/2025-19/05/2025 and 05/03/2026-17/03/2026.
5. The table below illustrates the passenger capacity of each fast ferry service vessel:
| Vessel | Passengers |
|---|---|
| Your Wisdom (Gozo Fast Ferry) | 296 |
| Your Faith (Gozo Fast Ferry) | 296 |
| Gozo Express (Virtu Ferries) | 308 |
| San Franġisk (Virtu Ferries) | 316 |
6. The two fast ferry service providers (Gozo Fast Ferry and Virtu Ferries) have merged and are providing service under one company, namely Gozo High Speed.
7. Data for passengers travelling between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa comprises foot and vehicle passengers and vehicle drivers. The fast ferry service does not allow for the transport of vehicles thus, only foot passengers are included.
8. Different approaches to data collection are being applied at the Mġarr and Ċirkewwa harbours regarding the Gozo Channel service. On the Mġarr side the data source is based on the Automated Ticketing System (ATS), while data for the Ċirkewwa side is dependent on the manual clicking system.
9. The data is not normally subject to revision.
10. More information relating to this news release is available in the Sources and Methods.
11. A detailed news release calendar is available online.
12. References to this news release are to be cited appropriately. For guidance on access and re-use of data please visit our dedicated webpage.
13. For further assistance send your request through our online request form.
