What to See in Glasgow

Our Guide to What to See in Glasgow

This is our guide to What to See in Glasgow. Read on to find out what to see and where to go in the city of Glasgow.

Voted best UK city break in 2021 by Conde Nast Traveller, Glasgow has so many amazing attractions and places to explore.

Situated along the River Clyde, it’s the largest city in Scotland, and you can expect a warm welcome from Glaswegian residents who are just about the friendliest people you’ll ever meet!

Glasgow’s city centre is small and easily walkable with excellent public transport services, which makes hiring a car a non-essential expense during your stay.

At the heart of Glasgow, City Centre is George Square, a hubbub of activity and the best place to start your tour.

The city is a fusion of modern and bygone architecture, particularly noted for its 19-century Victorian buildings and, of course, for the early 20th century architecture of Glasgow’s most renowned architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh.

Whatever you love to do during a city break, you’ll find it in Glasgow. It’s a fun city to explore with boundless things to see and do, amazing places to visit, excellent shopping, nightlife, and eateries.

We hope you enjoy our What to See in Glasgow Guide. We’ve added heaps of inspiration to help you plan your trip to the city.

The guide is broken down into sections covering: Shopping, Food & Drink, Nightlife, Outdoors, Art & Culture, and Places so that you scan through and plan your itinerary.

Shopping in Glasgow

We love shopping. And we love shopping in Glasgow. Seriously, the city has a fantastic selection of independent boutiques, markets, and shopping centres. You’ll be spoilt for choice!

If you want to explore the city’s collection of independent stores, cutting edge creators and artists, you should visit a few places.

The stylish quarter of Merchant City is a great place to start. Steeped in history, it’s home to some seriously cool boutiques, art galleries and eateries.

Hidden Lane is also a great place to visit, where you’ll find an eclectic mix of art, fashion, homeware and gifts from the city’s designers and craftsmen. And check out De Courcy’s Arcade on Cresswell Lane, an independent shopping institution in the heart of Glasgow’s West End.

For High Street Shopping, head to Buchanan Street. Glasgow’s main shopping hub is pedestrianised, and you’ll find all your high street favourites all on one street. At the top end of the street is Buchanan Galleries, and at the bottom end, you’ll find St Enoch Centre.

For more boutique and designer shopping, visit Royal Exchange Square, Princes Square and Ingram Street.

Beautiful Argyll Arcade is the place to head for jewellery, sparkling gems and watch shopping. It’s one of Europe’s oldest covered shopping arcades and a brilliant place to visit on a rainy day.

Come the weekend, Glasgow’s markets set up their stalls and open them to the public. There are dozens to choose from, but for a start, you have the world-famous Barras Market in the east end, where you’ll find everything from fashion to furniture and for every taste and budget.

What to do in Glasgow: Food & Drink

what to do in glasgow

Glasgow is a world-class destination for foodies. The food scene in Glasgow is phenomenal; creative, adventurous and yet, incredibly down-to-earth.

Choose from street food to fine dining, award winning pizza, to the birthplace of Chicken Tikka Masala, the list of Glasgow eateries is endless. You could eat out every day for a year in Glasgow and still find more places to indulge your foodie passion.

Fact: Glasgow is the curry capital of the UK. For all of you curry addicts, you’ll find an incredible choice of curry establishments, including Shish Mahal, the birthplace of Chicken Tikka Masala and our favourite, Mother India’s Cafe: whose delicious play on tapas, Indian style has diners queuing out the door to eat there.

Glasgow is immensely proud of its local produce, and visitors to the city will find a great selection of restaurants serving Scottish dishes created using locally sourced produce.

Our favourite seafood restaurant is Crabshakk which serves the absolute finest Scottish fish and seafood, from oysters on ice to a traditional Glasgow fish supper.

Two Fat Ladies at the Buttery is another fab place to enjoy seafood. Try the seasonal menu at The Gannett, and the iconic Ubiquitous Chip is one of Glasgow’s most famous restaurants.

If fine dining is your scene, Glasgow won’t disappoint. We have our fair share of Michelin-star dining establishments, including seafood restaurant Gamba; Cail Bruich brings seasonal dishes to the table and Ox Finch for a contemporary sharing experience.

What to see in Glasgow: places to visit

Glasgow Science Centre is an impressive way to kick off your Glasgow experience and a great place to take kids! The futuristic building is home to hundreds of interactive exhibits. It’s a great day out with little scientists who can explore the different zones, such as Bodyworks, Outer Space and the Planetarium, with 9000 stars twinkling above you.

One for the adults and whiskey connoisseurs is The Clydeside Distillery, where you can learn about Glasgow’s history of whisky, take a tour and watch the craftsmen at work in the distillery. And of course, it would be rude not to sample a dram or two in the Tasting Room.

We wouldn’t normally define a necropolis as an Instagrammable spot, but the Glasgow Cathedral & Necropolis is exactly that. The Gothic cathedral is a haunting sight, and you may recognise it from the hit TV series, Outlander. Head to the top of the Necropolis for spectacular views across the city.

A great way to discover Glasgow’s streets and buildings is to take the City Centre Mural Trail. Around the city centre, you’ll find artworks adorning the city’s walls created by local and international street artists. The mural trail lends a wonderful splash of colour and quirkiness to Glasgow’s city centre.

It might seem strange asking you to go and check out a building crane during your stay in Glasgow, but that’s exactly what we are doing when we recommend you stop off to see The Finnieston Crane.

Located on the banks of The Clyde, the Finnieston Crane, also known as the Stobcross Crane, is the largest of the four Cantilever cranes that remain from a bygone era when the shipbuilding industry in Glasgow was one of the most powerful in the world.

The giant structure now sits side by side with some of Glasgow’s modernist buildings and is one of Glasgow’s most popular city attractions.

Get Outdoors in Glasgow

what to do and see in glasgow

Glasgow comes to life when the sun shines, and there are plenty of outdoor spaces to enjoy in and around the city’s limits.

Glasgow Green is the city’s oldest park and home to the world’s largest terracotta fountain, the Doulton Fountain. You can also take a stroll under the McLennan Arch, visit Templeton on the Green, modelled on the Doge’s Palace in Venice, and learn about Glasgow’s social history at the People Palace.

On the banks of the River Kelvin is Kelvingrove Park, home to Glasgow University and Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. The park also has a skate park and hosts music and cultural events throughout the year. Definitely one of the must-see things to visit in our run down of What to See in Glasgow.

If you want to visit a spot in the city where you feel completely out of the city, head to Glasgow’s Botanic Gardens. The gardens exude a sense of calm and tranquillity with woodland walks, a river walk, tree trails and two greenhouses, including the serene Kibble Palace. with its incredible collection of plants from around the world.

To the south of the River Clyde lies Pollok House and Country Park. The grand country manor is set within spectacular grounds with magical woodland trails, gardens, a fairy trail and an impressive fold of Highland Cattle.

There are many more parks and green spaces throughout the city, and if you want to enjoy a special day trip away from Glasgow, spectacular Loch Lomond is just an hour’s drive from the city, where you can charter a yacht and explore this incredible freshwater loch, visit islands, enjoy a whisky tasting or partake in water sports.

What to see in Glasgow: Art & Culture

Glasgow’s art and culture scene are exceptionally good, with museums and art galleries housing some of the finest art collections from around the world and exhibitions of upcoming local artists, creators and designers. That makes them an absolute must for inclusion in our list of What to See in Glasgow.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum was ranked among the Top 500 attractions in the world, with its renowned art collection.

Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art is the place to go to absorb the city’s contemporary art scene and the renowned Burrell Collection, which has re-opened in Pollok Country Park, features an eclectic mix of art and curiosities from around the world.

Located within the University of Glasgow is the Hunterian Art Gallery & Museum. The museum is Scotland’s oldest and houses an incredible collection of curios, including objects from Captain Cook’s Pacific voyage.

Sample Glasgow’s Nightlife

Our list of What to See in Glasgow isn’t just limited to things to see and do in the daytime. Finish your day in Glasgow off by relaxing with friends, family or colleagues in one of the city’s iconic pubs or bars, or soak up the atmosphere in a music venue or club.

Traditional pubs are everywhere, and one not to be missed during your stay is the Ben Nevis pub in the Finnieston district. It is a take on a Highland bothy brought into the 21st century. There are live music sessions during the week and a great atmosphere.

Jinty McGuinty’s in the West End is one of Glasgow’s favourite drinking establishments and has been voted amongst the UK’s top Irish bars. It’s one of the few places you can drink outside in Glasgow, so when the sun shines, it’s over to Jinty’s!

Glasgow is the UK’s first UNESCO city of music, and visitors come from around the world to visit the iconic Barrowlands. This venue first opened in 1934 as a ballroom and, over the decades, has played host to concerts by David Bowie, U2, The Smiths and Franz Ferdinand, to name a few.

Barrowlands might be old, but the Britannia Panopticon Music Hall is even older, with a history dating back to the 1850s. Today the music hall hosts a comedy club, drag night, silent film evenings, variety shows, and old-time music hall shows.

No overview of Glasgow’s music scene would be complete without mentioning the legendary King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut (or just King Tut’s for short). This intimate live music venue and bar on St. Vincent Street is where Oasis were spotted and signed by Alan McGee of Creation Records. Other notable acts and bands to play there include Amy Macdonald, Rage Against the Machine, Biffy Clyro, Radiohead, Blur, Redd Kross, Travis, Pulp, The Verve, Crowded House, Wheatus, Average White Band, Goldfinger, Chuck Prophet, and Beck.

If you want to go out during your trip to Glasgow, you’ll find a selection of late-night clubs and bars to choose from, including the Sub Club, The Berkeley Suite, SWG3 and The Garage Scotland’s largest nightclub.

Public Transport in Glasgow

If you want to visit the places and venues in our guide to What to See in Glasgow, you’ll need to be able to get around. Luckily, Glasgow public transport is a joy to use. There is a simple subway system (one line that goes around in a circle), at peak times, it runs every 4 minutes, and it only takes 15 minutes to do the whole circuit!

Trains run from Glasgow Central Station to the south and from Glasgow Queen Street Station to Edinburgh. Grab a Roundabout ticket for unlimited one day travel.

There are over 80 bus routes around the city and an express service between the city centre and Glasgow airport (15 minutes).

Have a friendly chat with a Glaswegian taxi driver or do the tourist thing and jump on the Glasgow City Sightseeing Tour Bus to take in some of the sites on our What to See in Glasgow guide.

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