Gżira on Malta has one feast in the 2026 church calendar: Our Lady of Mount Carmel on Sunday, 12 July 2026.
Sunday, 12 July 2026, Gżira parish
The biggest one is the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, run by the Gżira parish.
The 2027 date comes when the Archdiocese publishes it. Most feasts move to a Sunday that suits the parish, so we do not guess.
A festa is a village party for the saint of the parish church. The church is lit up with thousands of bulbs and the streets are hung with flags and statues.
The days before the feast are full of band marches. On the eve there are often fireworks. On the day itself the statue of the saint is carried through the streets.
Anyone can go. It is free, it goes on late, and there is usually a stall selling nougat and hot snacks. Wear comfortable shoes and expect crowds near the church in Gżira.
Parking near the church is hard on feast days. Take the bus, or leave the car at the edge of Gżira and walk in.
Fireworks are loud, so small children and dogs may not enjoy them. To go inside the church, cover your shoulders and knees.
Times change from year to year. The parish office and the local band club share the full programme a few weeks before the feast.
Parish church: Knisja Parrokkjali tal-Madonna tal-Karmnu
Gżira's feast is Our Lady of Mount Carmel in July. The parish church is the Knisja Parrokkjali tal-Madonna tal-Karmnu, and the parish office is at 119 Triq Manoel De Vilhena. The Archdiocese tells the story behind it: on 10 July 1902 some drunken sailors threw a stone at a street niche of the Madonna by the Gżira bridge, and the stone stuck to the glass of the picture. A chapel followed, became a parish church in 1921, and the present church was built between 1921 and 1935 and consecrated on 23 May 1959.
The church is a street back from the Gżira seafront facing Manoel Island, so the fireworks go up over Marsamxett harbour. Every bus between Valletta and Sliema passes the front. Parking on the seafront is not an option on feast nights.
Sources: Archdiocese of Malta, Gżira parish.
Gżira has no weekly market of its own, but one is a short drive away.
Towns close to Gżira have their own feasts in the same month.
More local shops and makers a short trip from Gżira, nearest first.
Every festa, market and event we know about, sorted by date. See what's on in Malta and Gozo
Dates from the Archdiocese of Malta feasts calendar for 2026, checked on Thursday, 24 September 2026. Parishes sometimes change plans, so check with the parish before you travel.
