Onyx Apartments

This part of Malta needed exactly this type of hotel - small, modern and chic. It is fair to say it is was very busy in Malta being the summer months, and yet, when I walked into the doors of Onyx, it was an instant feeling of calm and in a completely different environment with a very warm welcome every time. It is also next to Portomaso harbour which is really peaceful to walk around or to go into the Hilton cafe too. Buses, taxis etc very easy to get from here or walking down the promenade in the evening with all the restaurants.

They have various choices of rooms including digital nomad, and I loved this since I was working while away also. I also had a couple of evenings after a long day out just watching the TV in my room as they have big, good quality TVs with Netflix available.

The breakfast is EXCEPTIONAL with a chef who takes pride in what he does and is very skilled as I had a few conversations with him about his passion for cooking. It is rotated every day for something different. The service from kitchen to front of house was amazing, they worked really hard to clear up quickly and replace finished items.

Any problems were rectified, such as the hairdryer breaking - instantly replaced. If you saw staff as you walked around, they were so polite and friendly.

The pool on the rooftop is really nice to cool down in and relax. It is small so not to swim in, but with benches around it just to unwind and enjoy - I loved it as it was very hot but I am not a fan of AC.

It could get a bit noisy as it is in the centre of a very busy part but I found the windows shut this out really well and it is the nature of being close to everything, which was very useful!

Last detail is the coffee machine, water filter station and vending machine in the little lounge by reception, I found these really handy to have.

Fair to say I recommend and will return.

Unfortunately, our experience at Onyx Hotel was very disappointing. On the second day, the room was cleaned but no shower towels or bath mat were replaced, and the same thing happened in my friend’s room as well. I had to go down to reception with wet hair just to ask for towels, but the receptionist was not nice and spoke in a very rude way, as if I was asking for something unreasonable.

At first, she basically told me “this is what we have” and suggested that I look for something myself. After insisting, she gave me one old gray towel that looked more like a beach towel than a proper hotel towel, and only gave us one towel even though there were two people in the room. When I asked what the second person was supposed to use after showering, she told me I should look for something myself somewhere else.

Honestly, providing clean towels is the bare minimum any hotel should offer. The issue was not only the lack of basic necessities, but also the very unprofessional and unfriendly attitude from the staff.