Malta With Kids — What to Do While One Parent Dives

A good number of the divers I train and guide aren't travelling alone — they've got a partner and kids in tow who are very happy to sit this one out. Fair enough. Trimix isn't for everyone. So here's the guide I always end up giving verbally at the boat: what to actually do with the family while someone in your group is underwater.

The good news is Malta is a genuinely easy island for this. Everything's close — nothing is more than 45 minutes from anywhere — so a parent doing a two-tank morning can be collected and straight into a beach afternoon before anyone's even hungry.

The sandy beaches

Most of Malta's coastline is rocky and gorgeous for diving, less so for a toddler building sandcastles. For that you want the north. Mellieħa Bay is the big one — the largest sandy beach on the island, shallow enough that kids can wade out a long way before it gets past their knees, and fully set up with sunbed rental, snack bars and shade. It's popular for a reason, so go early if you want a decent spot.

Golden Bay, a short drive further round the north-west coast, is quieter and arguably prettier — proper golden sand, clear water, and a sunset that makes the whole day worth it even after a long one. Both are easy half-days that need zero planning.

Waterparks — the guaranteed win

Splash & Fun Water Park in Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq is Malta's big one — slides for every nerve level, a lazy river, a dedicated splash zone for younger kids, and an animation team running games through the day. It's a full day out and it solves the "what do we do" problem completely. Book online in high season; it gets busy.

For younger kids specifically, some of the beach resorts and Popeye Village itself run small pools and splash areas in summer alongside the main attraction — worth checking if you've got under-10s who'll tire of sightseeing fast.

Popeye Village — still charming after all these years

Built as a film set for the 1980 Robin Williams musical and now a permanent fixture on Anchor Bay, Popeye Village is exactly the kind of slightly bonkers, brightly-coloured attraction that works brilliantly for families. Wooden houses on stilts over the water, boat rides, games, and — in summer — pools and water slides for the smaller kids. It photographs beautifully too, which is handy, because the bay itself (visible from the film-locations post) is one of the prettiest corners of the island regardless.

Playmobil FunPark — a rainy-day or too-hot-outside backup

Indoor and outdoor play spread across themed zones, with a basket of Playmobil figures handed out at the door to use throughout. There's a pirate ship outside for the energetic ones. Genuinely useful if the weather turns or if the midday sun is too much for little ones — a good midweek filler between beach days.

Making the logistics work

If you're the diving half of a family trip, here's the practical bit: Malta's small size means your non-diving crew can genuinely do a beach morning, a waterpark afternoon, and still be back in time for you to tell them about the wreck over dinner. Nobody's stuck waiting around a hotel pool for six hours. Tell me your dates and who's travelling, and I'll help you build a schedule that works for the whole group — not just the diver.