Festaval Tourist Village - Malta - Stepped Holiday Apartments with Angular Limestone Supports

Abandoned holiday apartments at Festaval Tourist Village in Malta, featuring distinctive sloping limestone supports, stepped terraces, graffiti-covered façades and overgrown grounds.

This photograph shows a row of abandoned holiday apartments at the former Festaval Tourist Village in Malta, offering a particularly clear view of the complex’s distinctive architectural design. Large, sloping limestone supports divide the accommodation units and extend from the upper terraces towards the ground, creating a striking geometric appearance. The building is arranged on different levels, with the roofs of lower accommodation units apparently serving as terraces for the apartments above. Empty doorways, exposed masonry and colourful graffiti reveal the deteriorating condition of the structure, while dense shrubs and bright green vegetation have spread across the once-maintained grounds. The warm limestone façades stand out against the clear blue sky, emphasizing the unusual angular construction of the former holiday accommodation.

The stepped architectural arrangement of Festaval Tourist Village reflects a practical approach to developing holiday accommodation on Malta’s uneven coastal terrain. Rather than constructing conventional multi-storey hotel blocks, the apartments were arranged in terraces that followed the natural contours of the hillside. This design allowed the available space to be used efficiently while providing individual outdoor areas for guests. The prominent inclined supports are among the most recognisable features of the surviving buildings, giving the development a distinctive architectural character. During its operational years, the complex would have offered visitors accommodation within a holiday village environment, combining private living spaces with shared recreational facilities. Following its abandonment, the buildings have gradually deteriorated, with vegetation spreading across former pathways and terraces. Graffiti now covers many exterior surfaces, while damaged walls and empty openings expose the neglected interiors. This photograph documents the original architectural concept particularly well, preserving a view of the stepped apartment layout and its unusual structural features before further deterioration alters the appearance of the abandoned tourist village.