October weather in Malta: warm spells, rain episodes and an autumn wind shift

October gave the forecast more than one job

October in Malta can begin an argument between the weather app and the contents of your suitcase. There may still be an inviting afternoon in the forecast, but the wind and rain increasingly deserve their own inspection. Our two saved October series show why the month is better described through its changing spells than through one seasonal label.

The available Mosta temperature days averaged 22.8°C in 2024 and 21.4°C in 2025. Average daily highs were 25.2°C and 23.5°C, while average daily lows were 20.6°C and 19.6°C. The 2025 profile sat at a lower general temperature level without losing every warmer afternoon.

The 2024 temperature record has 29 complete dates, October 1–29, against all 31 in 2025. Comparing those same opening 29 dates still gives about 22.8°C and 21.4°C. The rain figures cover those same available dates, leaving the missing closing dates in 2024 blank. The charts make those details visible without replacing the story with a spreadsheet lecture.

The warmer hour could still turn up late

The highest hourly value in the 2024 Mosta series was 29.5°C on October 3. In 2025 the peak was 26.2°C on October 26. The different timing is useful: the cooler overall year still produced its warmest hourly temperature fairly late in the month.

The lowest hourly values were 18.6°C on October 20, 2024 and 18.2°C on October 20, 2025. Those similar endpoints sit beneath two different monthly profiles. The lower general level in 2025 is clearer in the means and average daily highs than in the single minimum.

That is a familiar archive lesson with a distinctly October application. A late warm spell does not cancel the seasonal change, and a cooler morning does not make every afternoon cold. If your stay sits near one of those dates, the hourly sequence is the useful reference. The month name alone is much too broad a weather instrument.

2025 dipped in the middle and recovered afterwards

The first ten days of October 2025 averaged about 21.5°C at Mosta, the middle ten 20.8°C and the final eleven 21.8°C. This was not a simple month-long cooling line. Its closing section had a slightly higher mean than its opening section.

That pattern helps explain why October 26 could host the year’s warmest hourly value for the month. The daily chart contains a mid-month lower stretch followed by a warmer finish, rather than a steady march away from summer. October was making revisions to the schedule.

In the available 2024 dates, the first ten averaged 23.7°C and the available final part was cooler. Keep the shorter 2024 window in view, but notice the broader difference between years: the route through the month changed as well as the mean temperature. An early-October experience in one year need not describe a late-October visit in another.

October 18 and 19 put rain and wind in focus

October 18, 2025 supplied the largest fully covered daily rain amount, 20.7 mm. In 2024, October 19 supplied both the largest covered daily rain amount, 11.9 mm, and the highest hourly wind speed, 14.1 m/s. Those are useful dates to inspect alongside the temperature-only story.

October 26, 2025 adds the contrasting warm example, at 26.2°C. The month therefore contains reasons to plan an indoor interval and reasons to enjoy a warmer outdoor afternoon, sometimes within a relatively short space of time. A monthly average cannot tell you which one sits on your particular date.

Use the archive links as entry points, then move through nearby hours and dates. A daily rain amount belongs to a full day, while the archive’s selected hour is a closer view of conditions at that time. Reading both scales is what turns these figures into a useful account of how October changed.

A more active rain pattern in the covered 2025 dates

The dates with complete rain coverage added up to 18.8 mm across 29 days in October 2024 and 48.4 mm across 31 days in October 2025. Three of the covered 2024 dates reached at least 1 mm, compared with nine in 2025.

The coverage counts matter: the 2024 figure is a subtotal for its available dates, while 2025 has a complete monthly forecast total. Even with that context, the available 2025 series shows more qualifying wet dates and more rain. October 18’s 20.7 mm was a particularly large part of its covered-days total.

For a future October itinerary, think about the timing of rain spells and allow activities to swap places. A wet interval need not define the whole month, but it can define a badly timed long walk. The rainfall bars make the intermittent character of the archive easier to see. Warmth and rain are not taking turns to be “the real October”; both are part of it.

2025 had the stronger background wind profile

Average hourly wind speed at Mosta rose from 5.6 m/s in the available 2024 dates to 6.3 m/s in 2025. The count of dates reaching at least Beaufort force 6 rose from three to nine, despite the different temperature-coverage windows.

The largest hourly wind value was actually higher in 2024: 14.1 m/s, or force 7, against 13.0 m/s, or force 6, in 2025. This is another example of a higher average and a higher individual maximum belonging to different years.

For the coast, this distinction is practical. A month with more frequent stronger spells can feel different from a month with one sharper peak. Check the hourly wind direction and the conditions for the specific route, particularly where there is little shelter. Sea plans need the current wave forecast too. An afternoon temperature in the twenties does not come with a complimentary calm crossing.

A clear step down from September’s warmth

The complete 2025 Mosta mean fell from 25.4°C in September to 21.4°C in October, a reduction of about 3.9°C. Average daily highs fell from 27.9°C to 23.5°C, and average daily lows from 23.1°C to 19.6°C. The seasonal change appears across the daily range.

November then brought the mean down further, to 18.3°C. October sits between the two in this sequence, retaining warmer spells while showing a lower general temperature level and a more active wind picture than September 2025.

The island table also needs a little context. The 2025 means were about 21.4°C at Sliema, 21.7°C at Marsaxlokk, 22.3°C at Victoria and 22.2°C at Comino. Those are forecast points with their own daily patterns, not a guarantee that one location will always feel warmer than another. The actual wind direction can be more useful for choosing a sheltered stop.

Make the most exposed plan the most flexible one

October is a good month for arranging the day in an order that can change. Keep the more sheltered or indoor stop ready for a wetter or windier interval, and use the better outdoor window for the longer open route. That gives the hourly forecast a useful role without letting it run the entire holiday.

Check both ends of the day if you are travelling early or returning late. The temperature peak is one part of the experience; the cooler hours, wind and rain timing complete it. For a boat outing, examine the return forecast and the operator’s advice as carefully as the departure conditions.

The archive’s main October message is variety within a lower temperature level. The 2025 series was cooler on average than the available 2024 period, but it still produced a warm late-month peak. Rain and wind added their own patterns. The useful response is an adaptable itinerary, a layer that can come with you and a healthy suspicion of any forecast summary that insists October has only one personality.

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