The caves
Santa Maria Caves are cut into the Comino cliffs at water level, and they can only be entered from the sea by a boat small enough to fit. This is the single most overlooked line on every listing: the big catamarans cruise past the entrance, and the small boats go in.
Quick answer
Only smaller boats enter the Santa Maria Caves. Large catamarans carrying a hundred or more people pass the entrance and slow down; powerboats, small group boats and private charters go inside. Both are honest, and neither says so in the title — so if going in matters, book a small boat.
Why the size of the boat decides everything
A big boat physically cannot fit. That is the whole explanation.
The caves are openings in a cliff face, a few metres across in places. A twenty-metre catamaran with a beam of eight metres cannot physically enter one, and a skipper who tried would be risking the boat.
So the fleet splits. The large day boats run past the entrance, slow down, let everyone photograph it and carry on to the lagoon. The small boats — powerboats, RIBs, the traditional wooden boats and private charters — go inside, where the water turns a deep blue because the light is coming up off the floor rather than down from the sky.
Sea state matters too. In any real swell the small boats do not go in either, because the clearance at the roof disappears. That decision is made on the morning and it is not negotiable.
Trips that go inside
All of them also visit the Blue Lagoon.
$26. Rated 4.9 from 1,419 reviews, and the shortest crossing to Comino of any trip here.
$28. Two and a half to four hours with a small group rather than a crowd, rated 4.8.
$64. Six hours, and the fastest crossing from the south of the island.
From $184. Priced for the boat rather than per person, and the skipper decides the route with you on the day.
Four Malta boat tour formats, and what each is for
The vessel decides more than the itinerary does.
Two decks, shade, a waterslide and a hundred or more people. The most common Malta boat tour and the most comfortable for a full day.
Twelve to thirty people, enters the caves, and usually the highest scores on this page.
Fast, wet and exhilarating. The quickest Malta boat tour crossing from the south.
Your own route and your own deck, priced for the boat rather than per person.
If a listing does not say it enters the caves, assume it passes them. It is the commonest disappointment in the reviews of every large catamaran in Malta.
Which trip is best→Book direct
The four listings small enough to enter the Santa Maria Caves.
★ 4.9 · 1,419 reviews
★ 4.8 · 2,631 reviews
★ 4.8 · 331 reviews
★ 4.9 · 316 reviews
If entering the caves matters, book a small Malta boat tour. No large catamaran in the country can physically get inside them.
Private boats→Six facts about the Santa Maria Caves
The caves are the most misunderstood stop of the day.
Which is why no Malta boat tour reaches them on foot.
A large catamaran physically cannot enter.
Light comes up off the floor rather than down from the sky.
A Malta boat tour will pass rather than enter if the roof clearance is uncertain.
You do not have to choose between them.
If a Malta boat tour does not promise entry, assume a pass.
Common questions
No. Only boats small enough to fit can go inside. Large catamarans pass the entrance and slow down, which is not the same thing.
Powerboats, small-group boats and private charters. On this page that is the four-hour trip from Ġirkewwa, the small-group day, the Sliema powerboat and the private boats.
Sea caves cut into the Comino cliffs at water level, reachable only from the sea.
The light enters through the water rather than from above, and reflects off the pale floor back up through it.
In swell, yes. Small boats will not enter if the clearance at the roof is uncertain, and the call is made on the morning.
If you want to go inside, it is the only way to be sure. It also usually means a smaller deck, which most people prefer anyway.
Go deeper
From $23 for the harbour, and what the full days add.
Blue LagoonNo road reaches it. What the trip is actually like.
The verdictFourteen listings, and the four that are worth your morning.
From SliemaThree departures, and how long the crossing really takes.
From BugibbaFive departures, and the shortest route to the lagoon.
PrivateFrom $184 for the boat, and when it is worth it.
Comino: Blue Lagoon, Crystal Lagoon, and Sea Caves Tour
★ 4.9 · 646 reviews · Free cancellation 24 h