Open Day at Villa Frere

The blissful silence in the gardens of Villa Frere is broken only by the lapping of water in the ponds, birds chirping and insects buzzing among the blooms. A visit on Sunday 5th February, between 9:30am and 4:30pm will surely leave you feeling revived and at peace.

Villa Frere was created by British diplomat, poet, scholar, and philanthropist John Hookham Frere, after the demise of his wife in 1831, as a means of comfort for his sadness. From this garden, which enjoyed wide-open views spanning from Mdina to Valletta, he could also look out at the Msida Bastion Cemetery, where his wife reposed. Villa Frere became a sanctuary for numerous academics, most famously Mikiel Anton Vassalli who reportedly discussed with Frere how to establish Maltese as a written and taught language. This romantic story and Villa Frere’s garden faded away with Frere’s death in 1846. The site fell into neglect until forty years later when the villa became the residence of Captain Edward Price. A notable garden enthusiast, he gave life back to the property, earning it the title of a botanic garden. The place became a prominent attraction, both to locals and foreigners.

Today, just over a third of the original area survives (including the house), yet the mystique is still there.

NGO Friends of Villa Frere has been working hard to protect what remains and to restore the gardens with life.

𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲: €𝟱 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗲. 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗼 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘀.

Parking inside St Luke’s hospital grounds behind Karen Grech hospital. Please follow the signs from the gates of St. Lukes.

𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝘁 𝗟𝘂𝗸𝗲’𝘀 𝗛𝗼𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹, 𝗣𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗮`