Għar Tuta

Useful Information

Location:	Triq Għar Tuta, Mellieħa, Malta. From Mellieħa follow Highway 1 north towards Cirkewwa Passenger Terminal. After the roundabout with the turnoff to L-Armier take second road on the left. Single lane road, turn right 50 m before the end of the road. (35.9774415, 14.3286331)
Open:	no restrictions. [2025]
Fee:	free. [2025]
Classification:	Collapse Doline
Light:
Dimension:
Guided tours:
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Għar Tuta, Tel: +356-.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

Description

Għar Tuta (Blackberry Cave) is als known as Il-Latnija and as Mellieħa Cave. It is actually not really a cave, it is a collapsed caver or sinkhole, with vertical or overhanging walls. The debris from the ceiling forms a slope on the northern side of the sinkhole, this slope allows to descent into the sinkhole. There are several small caves at the foot of the cliff, or at least shallow shelters. The visit is quite easy of a trail, the entrance is marked by a door in a dry wall. The cave has quite spectacular overhanging walls with stalactites opposite the slope.

The doline is quite popular among climbers, the limestone is quite nice for climbing and there are about 30 routes. There is a well-established climbing community on the island, e.g. the Malta Climbing Club (UIAA affiliated) or the Malta Rock Climbing Club in Malta, or Stevie Haston in Gozo. They equipped the routes with titanium bolts and anchors, further bolting is despised, as it unnecessarily destroys the rock.

If you have more time, there are several interesting things to see nearby. First there are actually two ways to descent the nearby cliff, a door in the wall followed by a long staircase built on the cliff, and a narrow staircase which was cut into the cliff and ends at the slope below. As there is no jetty and no road below it is actually unclear why they were built, when and by whom. Obviously they are both not recent. But you may use them to walk down to the coast where the Natural Window is located, a natural bridge created by the erosion by the waves. And if you keep your eyes open, there are numerous karst related sites in the surroundings, mostly dolines and polje-like closed depressions.