Sea transport between Malta and Gozo
Between October and December 2024, a total of 11,463 trips were carried out, carrying a total of 1,655,197 passengers (Table 1). October was the busiest month recording a total of 3,949 trips or 34.5 per cent of total trips for the quarter (Tables 3 and 7).
Sea transport between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa
A total of 1,406,265 passengers travelled between Mġarr and Ċirkewwa during the fourth quarter of 2024, a decrease of 2.4 per cent when compared to the corresponding quarter of 2023. The highest number of passengers was recorded in October – 519,888 or 37.0 per cent of the total for the quarter. When compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year, the number of vehicles increased by 1.3 per cent, totalling 507,089 (Tables 2 and 3).
The number of trips during the fourth quarter amounted to 9,059, an increase of 6.4 per cent over the same period in 2023 (Table 2). October registered the highest number of trips – 3,083 or 34.0 per cent of total trips for the quarter (Table 3).
During January-December 2024, passenger traffic from the Mġarr terminal was busiest on Sundays and Saturdays, while vehicle traffic was highest on Sundays and Mondays. On the other hand, passenger and vehicle traffic originating from Ċirkewwa was busiest on Fridays and Saturdays (Charts 4 and 5).
No Data Found
Sea transport between Mġarr and Valletta
During the fourth quarter of 2024, a total of 2,404 trips were carried out carrying a total of 248,932 passengers (Table 6). When compared to same quarter in 2023, the number of trips increased by 43.8 per cent and the number passengers increased by 44.6 per cent. October registered the highest number of trips – 866 or 36.0 per cent of total trips for the quarter and the highest number of passengers – 111,503 or 44.8 per cent for the quarter (Table 7).
Annual Perspective
Including both the Gozo Channel ferry service and the fast ferry service, during 2024, the number of trips went up by 2,428 or 5.8 per cent, when compared to 2023. Vehicle movements between the islands increased by 47,314 or 2.3 per cent, over the previous year, while the number of passengers went up by 296,596 or 4.5 per cent (Table 1). During 2024, August recorded the highest number of trips totalling 4,099, and also the highest number of vehicles and passengers, with 205,246 and 698,310 respectively (Tables 3 and 7).
Reference months - October to December
No Data Found
Reference months - January to December
No Data Found
Reference months - January to December
No Data Found
Reference months - January to December
No Data Found
Reference months - January to December
No Data Found
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 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.
MV Malita: 06/01/2022-10/02/2022 and 09/01/2024-30/01/2024.
MV Ta’ Pinu: 09/01/2023-02/02/2023 and 27/02/2023-02/03/2023.
MV Nikolaos was put temporarily out of service between 25/04/2022-29/05/2022, 18/04/2023-26/04/2023 and 15/02/2024-25/03/2024.
4. 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 |
*The fast ferry service vessel, Gozo Express (Virtu Ferries) replaced San Pawl (Virtu Ferries) on 17/05/2022.
5. The two service providers (Gozo Fast Ferry and Virtu Ferries) have merged and are providing service under one company, namely Gozo High Speed.
6. 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.
7. Different approaches to data collection are being applied at the Mġarr and Ċirkewwa harbours with regards to the Gozo Channel service. Data source for the Mġarr side includes Automated Ticketing System (ATS), while data for the Ċirkewwa side is dependent on the manual clicking system.
8. The data is not normally subject to revision.
9. More information relating to this news release is available in the Sources and Methods.
10. A detailed news release calendar is available online.
11. References to this news release are to be cited appropriately. For guidance on access and re-use of data please visit our dedicated webpage.
12. For further assistance send your request through our online request form.