Terraced fields and valleys in the Maltese countryside below Mdina

Challenging

Mdina, Rabat & Buskett Woods

Inland and uphill into the Silent City, then down into the island's only real forest.

Distance: 36.2 km
Climbing: 446 m
Riding time: ≈ 2 h 55
Shape: Loop

The ride

Malta's interior is a different island: terraced fields, drystone walls, villages that empty out at noon. This route climbs gradually across the middle of the island to Mdina, the walled medieval capital that has been nicknamed the Silent City since the court moved out in 1530. You enter through the baroque main gate, ride the ramparts road, then drop into Rabat and on to Buskett — an Knights-era hunting garden that counts as the closest thing Malta has to woodland. The cart ruts at Misraħ Għar il-Kbir on the way back are 4,000-year-old grooves cut into bare rock and nobody has satisfactorily explained them.

Terrain: Steady inland climbing, rural lanes, some rough surface around Buskett. Suggested rental: full day.

Good to know: • Mdina is car-free and bike-free inside the walls. Lock up at the gate and walk in. • This is the route where the battery matters most — the climbing is constant rather than steep. • Ta' Qali crafts village on the way back out is a good coffee stop.