Dwejra is the wild western edge of Gozo, a bay of grey limestone shelves, sea caves and cliffs that face nothing but open Mediterranean until Tunisia. It was famous for the Azure Window, a natural rock arch that collapsed into the sea during a storm in March 2017. People still arrive expecting it. What they find instead is a coastline that never needed the arch to be extraordinary.
By Gozo Activities Team 5 September 2026 3 min read
The Inland Sea
The Inland Sea is a small round lagoon of shallow, clear water enclosed by cliffs and connected to the open sea by a natural tunnel about 80 metres long. Fishermen keep their boats and huts here, and in summer they run short boat trips through the tunnel and along the cliffs outside. The moment you pass from the calm lagoon through the dark of the tunnel into the deep blue of the open sea is the best two minutes of any Gozo day. Trips run when the sea is calm, which is most summer days and fewer winter ones. You can also swim in the lagoon itself, which is sheltered and shallow.
Fungus Rock
The tall rock standing just offshore in Dwejra Bay is Fungus Rock, named for a plant that grew on top and that the Knights of St John believed had medicinal powers. They guarded it so closely that the rock was smoothed to stop climbers and a cable car was rigged to reach the top. It is now a nature reserve and off limits, but it makes the view from the bay.
The Blue Hole and the Azure Window site
Walk across the rock shelf to the south of the Inland Sea and you reach the Blue Hole, a vertical shaft in the limestone, roughly 10 metres across and 15 metres deep, connected to the open sea by an archway under the surface. It is one of the most famous dive sites in the Mediterranean, and even from the surface with a mask it is spectacular. Next to it is the flat platform where the Azure Window stood. The collapsed arch now lies on the seabed in pieces and is itself a dive site.
Swimming here is for confident swimmers on calm days only. The rock is sharp, the entry and exit are from ledges, and there is no lifeguard.
The chapel, the tower and the sunset
Above the bay, the small chapel of St Anne and the 17th-century Dwejra Tower watch the coast. The tower is open some days with a flag flying when it is. Stay for sunset: the sun drops straight into the sea in front of you and the cliffs go orange, then pink. It is the best sunset in Gozo and one of the least crowded.
Practical notes
- Getting there. About 20 minutes by car from Victoria through San Lawrenz. Buses run from Victoria in season. By bike it is our favourite eBike route.
- Facilities. A café near the Inland Sea, toilets and a car park. Nothing at the Blue Hole.
- Boat trips. Cash, and only when the sea allows. Ask the boatmen on arrival.
- Shoes. The rock shelves are rough. Sandals with grip or reef shoes.
- Wind. A north-westerly makes Dwejra unswimmable and the boat trips stop. Go when the forecast is calm.
Dwejra sits naturally on any Gozo day plan, usually in the afternoon so that you end with the sunset. The Victoria Citadel and Ta’ Pinu are on the way.
