Għajn Tuffieħa forms part of the Manikata

Manikata

Manikata is a small village in the limits of Mellieħa in the northwestern part of Malta. It oversees the farming areas in the valley between il-Ballut and il-Manikata. Population 539, Families 40....

 village in Malta

Malta

Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...

 which is part of the Mellieħa Local Council.

Close to Għajn Tuffieħa three bays are located with popular beaches among tourists. The beach are separated by natural rock formations and therefore each have their own characteristics.

Golden Bay

Golden Bay (Maltese

Maltese language

Maltese is the national language of Malta, and a co-official language of the country alongside English,while also serving as an official language of the European Union, the only Semitic language so distinguished. Maltese is descended from Siculo-Arabic...

: Il-Mixquqa) is one of the few sand beaches on the north west coast of Malta. It was previously known as Military Bay. The white beach slopes gently allowing swimmers to easily walk into the sea. Golden Bay is the most popular tourist beach of the Manikata region. Several beach clubs and a large hotel are located on the beach. A bus terminus and car park are located at Golden Bay.

Għajn Tuffieħa Bay

Għajn Tuffieħa Bay is a red beach a short distance east of Golden Bay. It is quieter than Golden Bay and often visited by the Maltese themselves. In order to reach this beach one needs to descend a hill using 200 natural stairs. On top of the cliffs west of Għajn Tuffieħa Bay there is an old defense tower built in 1637. It is one of the seven towers built by Grand Master

Grand Master (order)

Grand Master is the typical title of the supreme head of various orders of knighthood, including various military orders, religious orders and civil orders such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Orange Order...

 Jean Baptiste de Lascaris de Castellar, of the Knights Hospitaller

Knights Hospitaller

The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...

.

Gnejna Bay

To the south of Għajn Tuffieħa Bay is the first part of Gnejna Bay. This beach can only be reached by first going through Għajn Tuffieħa Bay, then climbing up a hill and finally making a descend along some rather steep paths between the rocks. The beach and especially the small stone promontory of this part of Gnejna Bay is used as a clothing optional beach as well as a long-time gay-friendly area. This part of the bay is hidden from the main part of Gnejna Bay. Further south, the main part of Gnejna Bay is easily reached by road via Mgarr

Mgarr

Mġarr or Imġarr, formerly known as Mgiarro, is a small town in the northwest of the mainland of Malta. Mgarr is a typical rural village situated in an isolated region, west of Mosta. It is surrounded with rich farmland and vineyards...

. It offers a mixture of rocks, sand and pebbles. Boathouses are carved into the rocks on the south side of Gnejna Bay. Watersports are prominent recreation in Gnejna Bay, but its earlier history as a fisherman's bay has not entirely vanished.

External links

• Pictures of Golden Bay on Maltavista.net
• Pictures of Għajn Tuffieħa Bay on Maltavista.net
• Pictures of Golden Bay on Maltavista.net

Coordinates

Geographic coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on the Earth to be specified by a set of numbers. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represent vertical position, and two or three of the numbers represent horizontal position...

: 35°55′56"N 14°20′50"E