Secrets of St John's Co-Cathedral - Guided Tour
Description
Discover the secrets waiting for you in St John's Co-Cathedral - all the things the audioguide doesn't tell you! Built by the Order of St John, this church is one of Tripadvisor’s Top 25 Attractions in Europe and has “the most beautiful floor in the world” consisting of more than 400 marble tomb slabs. This tour will reveal fascinating stories of the Order’s Grand Masters and their knights, and teach you the hidden meanings of the symbols left for you to examine on their tombs. You’ll also discover the secrets of two Caravaggio paintings found within the church, hear why the talented but troubled Caravaggio was kicked out of the Order and learn the incredible story of how one of his paintings was recovered by a Maltese priest/detective after it was stolen from the cathedral. Finally, you'll learn the strange reason why this is a “co-cathedral”.
Tour Options
Itinerary
You'll see the stunning interior of this high baroque church, which includes "the most beautiful floor in the world," as well as the Sacristy, various chapels belonging to the Order of St John and the Oratory where there are two paintings by Caravaggio.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(36)
Our third and final tour of our Malta holiday was the St John's Co-Cathedral tour, and I honestly can't recommend it highly enough. If my teacher at school had been as engaging, knowledgeable and entertaining, I would have studied history! I've learnt so much, especially about the darker side of Malta's fascinating past, and every minute of the tour kept us interested. This was our third tour with Mario, and each one has been outstanding. We'll definitely be back on our next visit to Malta, and I'll be looking forward to booking even more tours. Thank you so much, Mario, for making history come alive and giving us such a memorable experience!
Mario was an excellent guide, very knowledgeable and witty. He taught the information with such passion! He shared his expertise in every space.
This tour was exceptionally informative. Despite having visited St. John's Co-Cathedral on numerous occasions, this experience provided a unique perspective, revealing aspects I had not previously encountered. I wholeheartedly recommend this tour to all. My sincere thanks to Mario.
This is my third tour with Mario / Dark Malta Tours. These tours are so interesting, the stories are intriguing, he’s so knowledgeable and passionate! It is worth every penny and you definitely get your money’s worth! The Co-Cathedral itself is a must see if you are in Malta…it’s one of the most unique and beautiful churches I’ve ever been in and I’ve been in all the bigs ones. Mario’s tour is the best way to see this incredible site…or really any of his tours will be uniquely special!
We did this tour previously in June 2025 with a large group and enjoyed it so much we rebooked in June 2026 with friends, another couple. Having a smaller party and starting early made it even better as we had a more personalised experience and less crowds in the Co-Cathedral. Mario was our guide. He is professional, very knowledgable, shares great insights and is fun. We thoroughly recommend Dark Malta Tours and Mario in particular.
Great to see you guys again, thanks very much for the booking and I'm glad I could unlock some of the secrets of the amazing St John's Co-Cathedral for you all.
A Dark Malta tour is a must-do when in Malta! Mario’s passion and knowledge of Malta’s history was clearly evident as he guided us around St John’s co-cathedral and shared interesting facts and stories connected with the building’s long history. He is a great story teller, and took his time in sharing his knowledge and answering our questions. We will definitely book another of his tours next time we visit Malta!
Glad you enjoyed your time in the Co-Cathedral! Thanks for coming, and I hope to see you on the dark side of life again soon 💀
The tour was everything we expected and more. Some of the information (ie the protector of history ‘Bruno’) made the whole tour very special. Mario was punctual professional and very friendly. Clearly a well known and respected guide given his treatment by venue staff. His subject knowledge was excellent and delivered in easily understood manner. Overall great tour.
Thank you for booking me and I'm happy to hear that you enjoyed your tour around St John's Co-Cathedral. It is a remarkable place and I'm pleased that I got to show you some of its secrets.
We had a fantastic tour of St John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta with Mario as our guide. He was easy to deal with from the start and made the entire experience seamless. His knowledge was outstanding, blending detailed historical facts with engaging storytelling that kept everyone interested. Even our 15-year-old was fully engaged, especially when Mario explored the darker side of the cathedral’s history while still grounding everything in real, accurate context. He struck the perfect balance between informative and entertaining. Mario is truly a top-tier guide, and we would highly recommend this tour to anyone visiting Malta without hesitation today.
Thanks for your very kind words, Charles. Was a pleasure to take your lovely family around St John's Co-Cathedral, I'm glad you enjoyed this fascinating and unique place. Have a great rest of your trip.
Mario's tour is an extremely entertaining, thorough and unique way of getting to know about the history of the co-cathedral and it's legends. Highly recommend to join him!
Thank you, Ziro! St John's Co-Cathedral is one of my favourite buildings in the world, so I'm glad you enjoyed hearing about its stories as much as I enjoy telling them.
This guy is on another level! He's a great story teller and really passionate about what he's talking about. Great sense of humour, interactive stuff and amazing everything, can't have enough words to describe how great this tour was
You're very kind Miruna! Thanks so much for your enthusiasm and for the Romanian chocolate treats afterwards! 🍫🖤🙏🏻
