The end-of-year celebration is one of the few occasions when everyone in a company finally shares the same space – and it is often the evening a team remembers most warmly for the year to come. Everything from the food to the service, the setting to the ease of the journey there, has the capacity to make or break a festive event.
The choice of venue, therefore, is paramount. The Phoenicia Malta has been where the island marks its milestones since it opened in 1947 – and the best December dates tend to go early. For guests arriving from abroad or local guests staying over, its 132 rooms and in-house spa, Phoenicia Spa & Wellness, are just a floor away, while Valletta itself is just a stroll from the hotel’s lobby.
The hotel’s range of spaces accommodates most of the forms a corporate evening takes. The Grand Ballroom, a fixture for Malta’s grander occasions for almost eight decades, includes a private entrance and a built-in stage for the speeches that open the night and the live music that serves as its backdrop. Set beside it, the Maryanski Porch opens through full-height glass doors onto a terrace that overlooks seven acres of private gardens and can be joined to the Grand Ballroom when the guest list expands.
Not every business celebration calls for a ballroom, however. A smaller team is often better served by the three interconnecting Green Lounges, which divide when a department wants a space of its own. Well-placed for a board meeting, the Knights’ Room offers an intimate panelled setting that seats around 16 people around one table.
A celebration need not wait for December, either. The Phoenicia Malta’s signature restaurant, Contessa – named after the hotel’s co-founder, Countess Margaret Strickland – offers a comfortable and compelling setting for a team long lunch. Here, milestone moments and client or partner recognition dinners are marked beneath the glass of Contessa’s garden conservatory, where cocktails and the restaurant’s celebrated tiramisu are handcrafted at the table from specially designed trolleys.
The Phoenicia Malta’s Sparkling Weekend Brunch returns to Contessa from 12th September, served on Saturdays and Sundays from midday until 3pm. The popular brunch now features a selection of bottomless Spritz packages with non-alcoholic options, all poured or mixed tableside – an unhurried way to thank a team for the year so far, or to kick-start the final quarter of 2026. For something more casual, afternoon tea in Palm Court Lounge remains one of Malta’s more elegant ways to savour a delicious menu of freshly prepared finger sandwiches, cakes and pastries among friends and colleagues.
The hotel team loves to celebrate Christmas and takes a lot of pride in putting together its festive calendar – with a very early start in planning the festive decorations, which have become renowned as some of the most special on the island. Each December brings a Christmas party for the staff’s children, and the surrounding months bring appreciation days across departments and recognition for long service, in a hotel where lengthy careers are the norm rather than the exception – award-winning Brand Ambassador Neville Juan Cardona has been welcoming guests since 1993. Indeed, the team entrusted with a company’s celebration at The Phoenicia Malta understands exactly what excellence feels like from a guest’s perspective – and prides itself on delivering every detail.
“We look forward to welcoming guests to our many festive celebrations every bit as much as our guests look forward to them,” says Robyn Pratt, General Manager at The Phoenicia Malta. “Each event helps us appreciate the many ways we can create memorable experiences at this time of the year, and when a company trusts us with its celebration, we take this seriously and plan each event with the care and attention they deserve.”
To begin planning an end-of-year celebration at The Phoenicia Malta, contact the hotel’s events team at events@phoeniciamalta.com or visit their website.
Featured Image: The Phoenicia Malta
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