Murder on the Orient Express
Old Customs House
In Maltese: Id-Dwana l-Qadima
The old Customs House on Valletta's Lascaris waterfront, below Lascaris Bastion, is where Poirot boards the boat leaving 'Jerusalem' at the start of Kenneth Branagh's Murder on the Orient Express (2017).
What was filmed at Old Customs House?
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Poirot leaves 'Jerusalem' by boat from the quay in front of the Customs House; Mary Debenham recognises him while they wait on the dock. The Barrakka Lift was digitally removed. It played Jerusalem harbour departure.
Reported by guides; not yet confirmed on set records.
About Old Customs House
The old Customs House is an 18th-century building on Valletta's Grand Harbour waterfront, directly below Lascaris Bastion and next to the landing for the ferry across to the Three Cities. For decades it controlled goods coming into Malta's main port. At the start of Murder on the Orient Express, after solving a theft at the Wailing Wall (filmed at Fort St Elmo), Hercule Poirot leaves 'Jerusalem' by boat from this quay, and Mary Debenham recognises him while they wait at the dock. Filmmakers digitally removed modern additions such as the Upper Barrakka Lift that now rises beside the bastion. Today the quay is still a working landing stage: you can stand where Poirot waited and take the Three Cities ferry yourself, or ride the lift up to the Upper Barrakka Gardens.
Best time to go
Morning, with the sun on the façade, before taking the ferry across to Birgu.
Questions people ask
Where does Poirot catch the boat in Murder on the Orient Express?+
At the old Customs House quay in Valletta, below Lascaris Bastion, with the Barrakka Lift edited out.
Where does the Three Cities ferry leave from in Valletta?+
From the Lascaris waterfront beside the old Customs House, at the foot of the Barrakka Lift.
Sources
- Murder on the Orient Express filming locations — Atlas of Wonders
- Murder on the Orient Express — Sceen-it
Exact spot not yet checked on site — we visit every location before launch.