Żejtun

Żejtun is a city of 11,000 people (2016) in Malta Island, Malta. It is the largest city in the south of the island and one of the oldest cities in Malta.

Understand
Żejtun is considered to be the hub of Maltese folk singing, l-għana, and the city has given Malta many of its most respected folk singers.

By car
Route 1 is the main route coming into Malta and is the highway that serves most of Malta Island. No part of the route is motorway standard, but is a dual carriageway.

By train
There is no train station in Żejtun.

See
Żejtun has a number of important religious heritage sites, such as St Catherine's Parish Church, St Catherine's Old Church – known as St Gregory's, and numerous votive chapels. The parish of Żejtun is one of the oldest on the islands and already existed in 1436. The original parish church was built in the 12th century, and rebuilt in 1492.



Do

 * Each September, Żejtun hosts an annual festival celebrating the olive picking season and olive pressing for oil. The aim of the festival is to highlight the intimate link between the city and olive trees, and the promotion of local olive cultivation. The activity starts with a defilé delivering the olive harvest, including the reading of a proclamation, and the blessing of the olives prior to pressing.
 * The Feast of Saint Gregory is held on Easter Wednesday. The procession begins at the Chapel of Saint Clement, which is just over a kilometre away from the church of Saint Gregory. On the way, it enters the current parish-church of Żejtun, then continuing to Saint Gregory's. On arrival, a mass is celebrated by the Cathedral Chapter's dean, with the archbishop presiding the ceremony. Traditionally, after the ceremony those in attendance go to the nearby harbour of Marsaxlokk for their first swim of the year. Traditional food stands and fairs are held throughout the day.
 * The feast of St Catherine of Alexandria is celebrated in summer. On this day Żejtun's two rival musical bands, the Banda Beland and the Żejtun Band, perform in Gregorio Bonnici Square.

Drink
The city is also known for its wine production, with the Marnisi wine producing estate.

Go next

 * Cottonera
 * Marsaxlokk
 * Żabbar