Your private guest portal.
Everything you need before and during your stay — check-in details, Wi-Fi, local recommendations and concierge support — quietly gathered in one place.
A calm arrival, arranged in advance.
The guest portal above opens roughly a week before check-in and stays with you for the whole stay. Inside you will find your door code and the exact entrance to use at Alka Apartments on Triq Il-Wied, the Wi-Fi network and password, air-conditioning and hot-water instructions, parking notes for Marsalforn Bay, and the rubbish and recycling collection days for the street. Nothing needs printing — the portal works on any phone, and the codes remain valid until the morning you leave.
Check-in is from 15:00 and check-out is at 10:00. Both can usually flex if the apartment is free either side of your dates; simply ask and we will confirm. If your ferry from Ċirkewwa to Mġarr runs late, the self check-in means the apartment is waiting for you whatever the hour, and we are reachable on WhatsApp throughout the evening.
The portal also carries our own island notes: the bakery that opens at six, the bus stops for Victoria, Ramla Bay and the Citadel, the pharmacy and clinic in the village, the boat trips that leave from the bay, and the restaurants worth booking on a Friday in summer. Anything missing? Message your hosts directly and we will add it before you land.
Getting to Marsalforn from the airport
Most guests land at Malta International Airport in Luqa and travel north to Ċirkewwa for the Gozo Channel ferry, a crossing of about twenty-five minutes across to Mġarr harbour. From Mġarr it is roughly twenty minutes by road to Marsalforn, either by taxi, hire car or the bus via Victoria. Ferries run through the night in both directions, so a late arrival is never a problem. If you would rather not think about any of it, we arrange a private airport-to-door transfer: give us your flight number, landing time, number of passengers and luggage, and a driver will be waiting in arrivals with your name. The fare is fixed and confirmed in writing before you travel, with no surcharges for delayed flights.
While you are here
Marsalforn works best when you slow down. Mornings belong to the bay: swim before the sun is high, walk west along the coast road to the Xwejni salt pans, or take the cliff path towards Wied il-Għasri and its narrow, hidden inlet. Afternoons are for Victoria and the Citadel, the Sunday market, or a lazy hour on Ramla Bay's red sand. Evenings are simple — the promenade fills, the fishing boats come in, and dinner is a short walk from the door.
A few practical notes worth knowing. Tap water is safe but most residents drink bottled water, sold in every shop on the street. Sockets are UK three-pin, so bring an adapter if you are travelling from mainland Europe. Buses are inexpensive and run to almost every village, though they thin out after nine in the evening; taxis and ride apps cover the gaps. Sundays and public holidays are quiet, with many small shops closed by lunchtime, so it pays to buy groceries on Saturday. Pharmacies rotate an on-call rota, listed in the portal, and the health centre in Victoria handles anything urgent.
Leaving, and coming back
Check-out is at 10:00. There is nothing to strip or clean beyond leaving the apartment as you found it — pop the keys back in the lockbox and message us once you are on the road. Late check-out is often possible in the shoulder months, and we are happy to hold luggage for a few hours if your ferry or flight is in the evening. If the stay was a good one, a few honest words on Booking.com or Airbnb help enormously, and returning guests are always offered our direct rate along with a place in the referral circle, which returns 10% cash back when friends book a stay of their own.