The gardens were set up originally some 200 years ago, lapsed into neglect, were restored some time later. But then lapsed into neglect.
Eventually about 2010 they were taken under the wing of a volunteer group "The Friends of Villa Frere" this group have been working since then on a tight budget to restore the gardens and the properties on the site They are now part of Heritage Malta, and hope to be able to do more in the future.
However, if you want to see the site today, you can only do so on the first Sunday of each month. In addition, at present, the entry is through the Main Gate of St Luke's Hospital, and then a long, badly signposted route to the Gardens
We found the Gardens fascinating. It is very much a work in progress, so do not expect to see a polished garden, more an idea of what was there. In addition to the gardens, the group had restored some of the buildings, but have yet to get hold of the Villa Frere itself. They told me they expect the current occupiers to move out in a few weeks, and then they will draw up a restoration plan. I would encourage anyone interested in gardens or in the history of Malta, to have a look round And we did enjoy a mug of Mulled Wine and cakes to warm ourselves up, before we left
Click on any of the thumbnail photos for a larger version
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| In its hey day it attracted royalty.Queen Mary of England in 1912 |