About Local Attrcations

Attard is right at the centre of the island. In Attard you will find the presidential residence and the magnificent San Anton Gardens. San Anton gardens were laid out by Grand Master Antoine de Paule as grounds to his summer residence, San Anton Palace.

From 1802 until 1964, San Anton Palace was the official residence of the British Governor, after which it remained a state building and is now the residence of the Maltese President. Various heads of state have visited the gardens over the years and numerous plaques mark their ceremonial tree planting.

The garden is a botanical joy with mature trees, old stone urns, fountains, ponds and formal flower beds. The garden is formal with rustic touches and holds a wide variety of plants and flowers, such as Jacaranda trees, Norfolk Pines, Bougainvillea and roses.

Right next door to San Anton gardens you can enjoy a tea, lunch or dinner in the charming house of character and splendid gardens. The Melita Gardens, situated directly next door to San Anton Gardens, is a rare gem of a property in the heart of Attard. The house has been completely restored to its original splendor, retaining all of its old world classical features. The Restaurant and Pizzeria are enclosed in a tremendous glass atrium, so you always feel like you are dining outside. Melita earned a strong reputation for its high standards of food and service at very reasonable prices. The restaurant offers a vast menu of starters, pasta, pizza, main courses and fresh fish. At Mezzanin Wine Bar we offer a selection of local and foreign wines in a calm, relaxed and soothing atmosphere. The Melita Gardens cafeteria is open all throughout the day.

About History

Attard, like all the other villages and towns in Malta has its own parish church. It became a parish in 1575 which catered to the 655 residents living there. Some of Attard's earliest buildings of note were in fact chapels: these included the sixteenth century 'tas-Salvatur' and 'tal-Lunzjata' up to the Notabile Road; these two chapels were hit in Nazi raids in 1942 and have sadly ceased to exist. These was a smaller still functioning chapel on the Zebbug side of the same route, as well as the Sant'Anna chapel, previously dedicated to Santu Rokku, in a little pjazetta in the heart of the old village. Another chapel, which has recently been restored, was that in the valley, dedicated to St. Paul, Malta's patron saint, which also venerated St. Publius. A long time ago Sunday Mass started being said in this little church, which was later rebuilt. Two more chapels, one dedicated to the Madonna 'Tal-Pilar' dating back to the Grand Masters, and another associated with Russian royalty during the British period, well before the Russian refugees from the Bolshevik Revolution early this century, are to be found in Sant'Anton Palace. Mass is still said regularly in the former, while the walls of the latter were in recent years adorned with paintings in the Russian Orhtodox style.