A small chamber within the Inquisitor’s Palace has been refurbished and is now doubling up as a tourist information office encompassing the Three Cities.

Speaking at a press conference this morning, Tourism Minister Karmenu Vella said that the Vittoriosa tourist information office is the eighth office opened on the islands.

There are plans to open a new office in Sliema, as well as in the Qawra-Buġibba-St Paul’s Bay area, and to build a network between all the offices, as opposed to having them operate as stand-alones.

Mr Vella added that since the tourist information office began to operate two weeks ago, it has attracted around 60 tourists each day, who request information regarding the historical sites and other places of interest to visit within the Cottonera area.

The office was set up through the collaboration of the Tourism Ministry, the Malta Tourism Authority and Heritage Malta. Mr Vella also toured the upper floor of the palace, which was recently re-opened for public viewing after undergoing significant restoration and conservation interventions.

It will eventually be available for the hosting of conferences.The final stages of the restoration works, which were initiated in 2007, will focus on internal courtyard and the back façade.A few remaining interventions on outside elevations are scheduled to be completed by the end of 2015.

The Inquisitor’s Palace welcomes around 40,000 visitors a year.