Innside by meliá hotel opens in Buġibba: the 86-room

Prime Minister Robert Abela and Tourism Minister Jo Etienne Abela opened the Innside by Meliá hotel in Buġibba. The 4-star property has 86 rooms, employs around 50 people and cost the Agius family, a Maltese developer, over EUR 10 million. A fast ferry service linking Sliema, Buġibba and Gozo launched in May, improving access to the area.

Government-funded improvements in Buġibba – a refurbished main square, upgraded roads and an improved promenade – complement the hotel opening. At the inauguration, Abela cited tourism figures for January to May 2026: nearly 1.7 million arrivals and almost EUR 1.4 billion contributed to Malta's economy. He said the hotel reflected investor confidence in St Paul's Bay as a destination.

Abela also emphasised quality tourism. He said the government had introduced legislation providing for on-the-spot fines and potential deportation for serious public misconduct in high-concentration tourist areas, presenting that alongside infrastructure investment as part of the same policy direction.