Explore Mdina: the Cathedral, Palazzo Falson & the Walls
Hotels in Mdina- Code:29
- Type:local council
- Population:250 (2023)
- Area:1 km²
- Elevation:200 m
Introduction
Malta's walled former capital holds two major buildings and a genuinely lived-in character beyond its famous quiet lanes: a cathedral tied to St Paul's own legend, a preserved medieval noble house, and bastion walls walked by day-trippers over a town of only a few hundred residents.
Overview
Mdina Cathedral — properly St Paul's Metropolitan Cathedral, distinct from Valletta's St John's Co-Cathedral — stands on a site tradition holds was the villa of the Roman governor Publius, where the shipwrecked apostle Paul is said to have converted him to Christianity. The original cathedral was destroyed in the 1693 earthquake that devastated much of eastern Sicily and Malta alike; its Baroque replacement, completed in 1702 to a design by the Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafà, is the building visitors see today, its dome a landmark on Mdina's skyline second only to the walls themselves. A short walk away, Palazzo Falson is a rarer thing: a genuine 13th-century noble house, restored and opened as a museum, holding a private collection of art, armour, jewellery and furniture assembled by its last owner across decades, and offering one of the only real looks inside Mdina's domestic architecture rather than its public monuments. Mdina itself is car-free beyond residents' vehicles, home to only a few hundred permanent residents behind walls that have sheltered a town since Phoenician times, and the bastion walk along the fortifications gives sweeping views across three of Malta's regions — a genuine reminder that Mdina is a living town, not a museum piece, even as day-trippers fill its lanes.
Discover Mdina
Mdina Cathedral and the Legend of St Paul
St Paul's Metropolitan Cathedral stands on a site tradition holds was the Roman governor Publius's villa, where the shipwrecked apostle Paul is said to have converted him to Christianity after landing on Malta. The original building was destroyed in the catastrophic 1693 earthquake; the Baroque cathedral standing today was completed in 1702 to a design by the Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafà, distinct in every way from Valletta's better-known St John's Co-Cathedral, and its dome remains one of the defining silhouettes on Mdina's skyline alongside the walls themselves.
Palazzo Falson: A Medieval Noble House
Palazzo Falson is a genuine 13th-century noble residence, one of the oldest surviving buildings in Mdina, restored and opened as a museum housing the private collection its last owner assembled across decades — art, armour, jewellery, rugs and furniture displayed through room after room of authentic medieval and later domestic architecture. It offers a rarer angle on Mdina than the cathedral or the walls: a genuine look inside how the town's noble families actually lived, rather than its public monuments.
The Walls and Mdina's Few Hundred Residents
Mdina is car-free beyond residents' own vehicles and home to only a few hundred permanent residents, sheltered behind fortifications that have protected a town on this hilltop since Phoenician times. The bastion walk along the walls delivers sweeping views across three of Malta's regions — genuinely different sightlines from anywhere else on the island — and is the clearest reminder that behind the honey-coloured lanes crowded with day-trippers, Mdina remains a living town rather than a preserved museum piece.
Ways to Experience This Destination
St Paul's Metropolitan Cathedral, tied to the legend of Paul's shipwreck conversion of Publius, rebuilt in Baroque style by Lorenzo Gafà after 1693.
A restored 13th-century noble house museum with a private collection of art, armour and furniture — Mdina's domestic architecture up close.
A car-free walled town of a few hundred residents, with a fortification walk giving views across three of Malta's regions.
Frequently asked questions
What is the legend behind Mdina Cathedral?
Is Mdina Cathedral the same as St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta?
What is Palazzo Falson?
Do people actually live in Mdina?
This overview comes from Visaja's worldwide missions database (visaja.com), checked against official government sources; for binding answers, the mission itself always has the final word.