Why is Tourist Traffic So Homogenous in a Racially Diverse Malta?

My wife made a great observation in our day walking around Malta's historical sites: while the country is a hotspot of globalization, with worker residents coming from around the world, the same level of globalization is not reflected in the country's international tourist traffic. Whereas the country's buses, shops, and indeed, the workforce of tourist hotspots like hotels and restaurants, are filled with people of different colors, the crowds of tourists that come from outside the Maltese islands are overwhelmingly white, sprinkled with some Asians.

The heritage sites that Malta is so proud of confirm the lack of diversity among the visitors. Flipping through their visitor books, the country of origin of the commentators is overwhelmingly from other European countries. Some Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, Singaporeans, and Malaysians make up a minority of those visiting. There are barely any Filipinos, Indians, and Africans in these books even though there are plenty of them roaming the Maltese streets, both in and outside major tourist areas. Some nationalities live here but clearly do not travel here.

On the surface, this reality is almost a matter of fact. Malta is geographically situated in Europe, with cheap onward connection to European countries via frequent flights by low-cost airlines. It is simply cheaper and more convenient for Europeans to visit Malta than non-Europeans. And given that Europeans, on average, have a higher disposable income than, say, Asians and Africans, it is no surprise that Europeans would have the money to travel to Malta (even if the cost of getting to Malta is the same for all) and then spend on entry tickets, restaurants, and hotel stays.

But digging a bit deeper and the situation makes a bit less sense. One of the greatest things about living in Malta is that public transport is entirely free for those who have personalized bus cards. So the country's diverse workers, nearly all of whom would have these bus cards, would be able to get to the country's major tourist sites, many, like the capital city of Valletta, are served by buses and ferries from across the country, entirely without any expenses. On a day off from work, a migrant worker in Malta can sightsee almost without any transport expense.

And the low cost of tourism in Malta is not limited to public transport. Some of the country's best spots for sightseeing, including sculptured parks, historical churches, warm seaside views, and architecturally well-preserved streets, are completely free of charge to visit. For the really stingy, seeing the best of Malta really does not have to cost a single cent. This is perhaps the biggest draw of traveling in Malta. Museums and forts here are great; but unlike many other places in the world where they are the main attractions, a good trip in Malta can do without them.

Moreover, given how small the country is, tourism in Malta does not take much time. Understandably, many migrant workers are not in Malta to have fun but to make as much money as possible to remit back home to their families. So many would rather work their weekday nights and weekends rather than engage in what they would consider to be the economically unproductive activities of visiting the country's different sights (and God forbid, spend money doing so). As major sights in Malta can be reached in a few hours of bus or ferry ride, even for the time-stingy, Malta is cheap.

So why don't many of the country's non-white residents travel more? Mentality matters. Many migrant workers in Malta are likely living in a foreign country for the first time and find an invisible wall between them and the host society even without a language barrier. The alien culture, architecture, and climate make the idea of acclimating all the more difficult. And with that sense of detachment and distance from Malta, many lose the very motivation of getting to know – and like – this society and its wonders, losing all appeal of travel.

Perhaps more importantly, the idea of traveling is foreign for many of these workers to begin with. Tourism is a set of knowledge that does not simply come out of nowhere. To enjoy traveling as leisure and entertainment, people often have to have done it growing up, with positive memories of being excited by seeing brand-new, exotic places. Devoid of such experiences growing up, traveling would simply not be high on the list of priorities of how one would spend leisure time. Especially with the internet providing so much options to consume content from back home, why bother exposing oneself to something new?