San Anton Gardens

San Anton was laid out in the 1620s around the country villa of Grand Master Antoine de Paule, and the villa became the British governor's residence and is now the presidential palace. The gardens were opened to the public in 1882 and have stayed so: formal walks between mature trees, some of them planted in the seventeenth century, fountains, an aviary, and beds that are replanted seasonally. The Malta International Arts Festival uses the gardens in summer.

What you actually see

• The mature trees - specimens dating back to the garden's seventeenth-century planting.
• The fountains - the formal water features along the main walks.
• The aviary - the bird collection kept in the gardens.
• The palace facade - the presidential residence seen from the garden side.

When to go

Year round; spring is best for the planted beds. Summer evenings are pleasant when the heat drops. Parts close for state functions.

Honest expectations

The palace itself is not open to visitors. Sections of the garden close without notice for official events. It is a public park and busy at weekends.

Nearby

Attard surrounds it, and Mosta is north.