Things to do in Malta in the Day: Segway Tours!
We recently had a colleague visiting from Latvia and as we don't get to see him often we wanted to plan a day of fun activities. This is no easy task in Malta, especially in Winter but the amazing Antonia suggested we look into a segway tour. I had a little google and came across Malta Segway Tours. I liked the idea of a tour around Malta rather than just renting it and running up and down the same road 10 times and we decided on Dingli as it's pretty and we have a few new starters who haven't properly seen that side of the island yet.
I booked the Dingli Funtastic Segway Tour which is €49 per person and takes 1.5 hours. I emailed before booking to make sure the tours were still running (as it's Winter) and double checking what happens in case of bad weather. Adrian responded and he was so helpful. He advised that the tours can go ahead in most weather but if there was a full blown storm he'd happily refund. He also really helped me out when I had to change the date last minute, after I'd booked and paid. Really great service!
The tour was given by a lovely gentleman named Carmel. He was modest, patient and a pleasure to be taught by and ride with. On the way home our driver told us he was, in fact, Carmel Busutil- the best and most experienced football player to come out of Malta, who has played locally and internationally on a professional level! We met him at 13:00 at Dingli Police Station and then went to his warehouse where we all got a practise on the Segways to learn how to move, turn and stop and to feel a little more confident on them. Once we established we weren't in any immediate danger we took them outside and practised a little more in the carpark. Once everyone was confident they could keep upright and move, we set off.
Carmel took us out on the road which was, thankfully, very quiet, always riding ahead so he could see the traffic and direct the rest of us across. We followed some quiet lanes to Buskett Gardens. All along Carmel would ride up and down the line to make sure we were all OK. We stopped for a while in a small field by Buskett where he told us a little about the castle and we got to ride around a bit and take some photos.
After Buskett we went along some country lanes until we reached the cliffs and rode along them taking in the beautiful scenery, stopping for photos every so often. We were really lucky with the weather- glorious sunshine all day, hardly a cloud in the sky and nothing but a gentle breeze. It is January though so you needed a jacket and mine and Antonias fingers were absolutely frozen by the end of it- wear gloves!!
The route was perfect, we got to see so much nature and greenery as well as the stunning cliffs and the sea. Carmel was a great tour guide. The segways themselves were so much fun. I was terrified at first and it felt so unnatural, I was sure I was going to fall but it doesn't take long to grow in confidence and soon your body begins to just move automatically. I did run into the back of people twice- sorry V and A!- but that was my fault and no one came to any harm!
I wholeheartedly recommend Malta Segway Tours (you can also find them on facebook). The tour and experience is worth every penny and it's a great idea for a work event or if you have visitors over to Malta. Make sure you do it at least once in your life!