Glasgow is a cultured, vibrant and irrepressibly sociable city that’s a pleasure to get to know. Boasting some of the most imaginative museums and galleries in Britain, as well as impressive shopping and a mouth-watering culinary scene, Glasgow is as thriving as any UK city outside of London. Add to this mix the city’s people, famed for their warmth and humour, and it’s easy to see why Glasgow is one of the most desirable tourist destinations in the UK.
Mackintosh’s muse
With a large number of captivating Victorian buildings, Glasgow’s architecture is a must-see. The Merchant City Palladian mansions and neoclassical warehouses have been transformed into creative businesses and apartments, stylish shops, restaurants and bars.
The River Clyde, once lined with rusting shipyards, is now home to the striking futuristic architecture of award-winning museums and performance venues. Most notable is Zaha Hadid’s acclaimed Riverside Museum of Transport, dubbed ‘Glasgow’s Guggenheim’. Climb aboard old-fashioned trains, trams and buses to get a feel for the times gone by or use the interactive fire engine to help put out fires.
The jewel in the city’s architectural crown is the School of Art, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh – one of the city’s most famous sons and a celebrated architect, designer and artist. The building is undergoing restoration following a fire in 2014, but you can enjoy a 45-minute guided tour of the exterior and a Mackintosh furniture gallery.
In nearby Sauchiehall Street, the Willow Tea Rooms, inspired by a Mackintosh design from the 1900s, provide a suitably stylish setting for a beverage break. Another Mackintosh masterpiece, House for an Art Lover, is an elegant country retreat in Bellahouston Park, a short drive south of the river.
Spain comes to Scotland
Glasgow boasts some world-class museums and galleries, many of which are free. By the river, in Pollock Country Park, is the 18th-century Pollock House, which contains a fine collection of Spanish art for you to peruse, including an El Greco. Navigate the upper floors to see how the upper-class lived during Edwardian times, as well as the labyrinth of tiled passageways which display just how much work it took to run this home.
In the city’s west end is where you’ll find the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. This lavish Spanish Renaissance-style building houses important collections of Dutch Old Masters, French Impressionists and Scottish Colourists.
Opposite the Gothic splendour of Glasgow University is the Hunterian Art Gallery with the world’s largest permanent display of paintings by Whistler. See famous paintings by the artist, including 1863’s Battersea Reach from Lindsey Houses, as well as pieces by Rembrandt and Rubens.
Eat, drink and be merry
Glasgow is a cordial city that has always known how to party but its burgeoning culinary reputation is now turning heads. The west end, in particular, is home to Scotland’s most thriving and creative food scene, centred in the streets and alleys around Byres Road.
Gastronomes should also head for the revitalised Finnieston district, on the north bank of the Clyde between the city centre and West End, to sample the city’s new wave of refined cuisine. Rioja offers tapas as authentic as you’ll find outside of Spain, while Fanny Trollope’s Bistro on Argyle Street does a wonderful gin-cured salmon with tonic jelly.
This is just scratching the surface of affable, garrulous Glasgow, and car rental in the city affords you the opportunity to cram in everything you want to see and more.
