Every year, Malta celebrates its accession to the European Union with a spectacular fireworks display. Since 2004, the event has been a way for local fireworks factories to show off their skills in competition. Since 2006, the Fireworks Festival has become an international event, open to other countries such as Austria, Canada, Croatia, Poland and the United Kingdom.

Each contestant has 14 minutes to show off their skills, which must be accompanied by music from their own country. The competition usually lasts more than three days in the Grand Harbor of Valletta. In 2012 the format of the Malta International Fireworks Festival changed. Organized by the MTA, the festival will now run for just over a week. This gives local fireworks producers who are not competing an opportunity to showcase their hard work to the general public. The event will no longer be limited to Valletta, but will now take place in various locations across the island and Gozo. Floriana, Mdina, Mellieha, St Paul’s Bay, Grand Harbor and Garb in Gozo will have exhibits.

Malta has a long history with fireworks. Dating back to the Knights of the King, cannons and muskets were sounded to celebrate the return of an important dignitary, announce the birth of a prince, or commemorate the appointment of a new grand master or pope. It is this visual and noisy display that is believed to have inspired the use of fireworks in all manner of celebrations today. Without the bonfire, it’s thought that fireworks like Musketterija (rooftop fireworks), Solfarelli D’aria (a colorful series of shots into the sky), and Jigjifogooh (St. Catherine’s wheel) might not be as good. popular today on the island.

More recently the island entered the history books by making the world’s largest pinwheel or Irdieden as the Maltese know it. On June 18, thousands gathered to witness Malta break the Guinness World Record. Designed by the Lily fireworks factory in Mqabba, the diameter of the wheels measured an impressive 32.044 m (105 ft 1.56 in). This beat the previous record holders, England. His wheel was only 26 m (85 ft) long and he held the world record for 12 years.

The production of fireworks has and remains a long tradition on the Maltese island. There are more than thirty-five different factories in Malta, which still manufacture fireworks. The production of fireworks can be seen throughout the year with an international fireworks symposium taking place every two years.

The main competition is held in Valletta every year, with boats taking people out to sea for a better view. Accommodation and vacation rentals in Malta are highly sought after at this time. Visitors and locals alike look forward to catching a glimpse of the fireworks, whether from the sea or from land.