Lying between Malta and Gozo, Comino is the smallest inhabited island of the Maltese archipelago. There are no cars, no high-rise buildings, no hunters – just a couple of hotels, a tiny hamlet, a chapel, a disused cemetery, a police station, a piggery and a small chapel where Mass is celebrated once a week. The only vehicles on the island are the Comino Hotel’s Range Rover and a truck for transporting goods. Comino has three little sandy beaches and is surrounded by glorious ultramarine waters and its caves and creeks are ideal for swimming, snorkeling and diving. The iridescent waters of the Blue Lagoon, between Comino and the rocky islet of Cominotto, are irresistible – especially if you get here early in the day, before the cruisers and yachts arrive from Malta. The seabed here is covered with white sand which reflects the sunlight so that the waters take on a glorious turquoise hue. With its many caves the rugged coastline of Comino renders it to a haven to modern sea craft. Marauding crews from the 13th Century onwards found them equally inviting, so much so that in 1411 Comino was described as a pirates den.

The Blue Lagoon is one of the clearest areas of sea in the Mediterranean. Comino is the smallest, really just a big sun-baked, barren rock; but it is a valuable wildlife sanctuary, with no cars or roads, and has only about six permanent residents.