Planning a day by the pool at one of Malta’s many private lidos? Prepare to spend more.

If you are among the many local residents who enjoy a relaxing day by the pool at one of Malta’s many private, luxurious or not-so-luxurious lidos, prepare to fork out a little more for those same seasonal pleasures.

Indeed, the topic of the rising cost of living has been top of the agenda for some months now, with a combination of post-COVID demand, lockdowns in far flung regions of the world wreaking havoc on shipping routes and the seemingly endless war in Ukraine by Russia creating a perfect storm of rising prices across food, electronics, automobiles, leisure activities and more.

With this in mind, BusinessNow.mt took a snapshot of daily rates being charged by some of the country’s most popular lidos around the island. From the information gleaned, some observations can be made:

• Only one lido was observed not to have raised rates between summer 2021 and now
• The most common price hike was that of €5 for the same packages offered as last year
• In addition to an increase in daily rates, food and beverage prices have gone up across the island, so the overall bill of a day by the pool goes beyond the entry and sunbed fee
• Locations of lidos, such as those in tourist hot spots, did not have a great bearing on price changes, exposing how operating costs are increasing across the board

Taking a look at the Bugibba / Qawra location first, a popular destination in the summer months, Amazonia at the Dolmen Complex was found to have raised prices marginally.

In 2021, it charged €15 for a full day by the pool, inclusive of sun bed, from Mondays to Saturdays. This year, it is charging one euro more, €16, for the same offer on Mondays to Fridays.

In 2021, Sundays and public holidays cost €20 per person, while in 2022, weekends and public holidays cost €20, meaning the biggest change from last season to this one is an extra €5 euro charged on Saturdays.

Popular poolside destination Café Del Mar also raised prices and changed the general pricing structure this season.

In 2021, it charged the following rates:

In 2022, the establishment is charging €5-€10 more for each category, barring the luxury beds, which have seen a €30 price increase.

Turning to the St Julian’s area, another tourist and summer hot spot, here’s a look at the rates the popular Corinthia St George are offering, which sees rates for Sundays, Mondays and public holidays increasing, with all else remaining equal.

In 2021, standard entrance from Monday to Friday was €25 for adults, with weekends and public holidays at €30.

In 2022, the rates for Tuesday to Friday remain unchanged at €25 for a full day with a sunbed, with the rates for Saturdays and Mondays – excluding public holidays, set at €30.

For public holidays and Sundays, to enjoy a full day at the pool, the rates have gone up by five euro to reach €35.

Another popular St Julian’s destination, Skybeach at the Intercontinental Malta, in 2021 the establishment required patrons to spend €70 to enter and enjoy a full day with a dedicated sunbed and umbrella, which money is taken as credit to spend on food and drink.

This year, the package remains the same but has been increased to €80 – a €10 difference.

In Sliema, 1926 Beach Club was observed to keep rates steady between last year and this, charging €20 between Monday and Thursday for a standard full day by the pool inclusive of sunbed, and €25 for a standard day by the pool on weekends and public holidays.

Speaking to one lido operator who preferred to remain anonymous, when asked about the increases in pricing at lidos across Malta, he observed that simply purchasing sunbeds, umbrellas and side tables has gone up, so too have daily costs such as food and beverage needed to stock bars, and lastly, in order to retain staff, his company’s wage bill has also gone up.

“There’s tons of lidos across Malta and Gozo, and the fact that everyone is putting up their prices shows that its not being done out of a desire to recoup losses from the lost COVID years, but because operational costs have exploded and we now have to concentrate on survival.”