Glasgow - things to do

I was pretty enthralled by the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, especially the large collection of taxidermy animals, but also the art. It was fascinating to go through there and see everything. Another very cool place would be the Necropolis, which sounds a little strange, but it's a very interesting cemetery right next to St. Giles Cathedral. There is a lot of interesting statuary and fascinating gravestones.

I would also suggest a day trip to Stirling Castle, and the town of Stirling. Stirling is well worth a visit and I love the castle. There is a lot of history there, and the town of Stirling itself is wonderful to visit, as they have a number of sites (Holy Rude Church, etc.). It's an easy train ride from Glasgow, and it takes about 30 minutes, or a bit less, to get there.

Kelvingrove was a great museum. If you haven’t had enough whisky yet, the Pot Still does an amazing, customized tasting based on what you already like (or don’t) and what you want to spend. If you already know what you like, it’s a fun place to get a drink. There are sites to see Charles Macintosh architecture or reproductions, if you’re into that. Even the Hoho bus tour in Glasgow was pretty great. I needed up on it twice, once to actually do the stops and once to do something on a quiet day. It stops at plenty of useful places and is a nice ride even if you don’t get off.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery, like others have mentioned, is a fabulous museum. another place I really enjoyed was the transportation museum at the riverfront (fantastic find), The MacKintosh house visit-was wonderful, I took a street art/mural guided tour, and the HOHO bus in Glasgow was convenient for major sites, I used it for Kelvingrove, UofGlasgow, MacKintosh House, Hunterian Museum, and Transportation Museum on waterfront

We also loved the Kelvingrove. If you are interested in more time outdoors, we took the bus for about a half day to the Pollock Country Park. It was a lovely outing. We saw the Highland cattle fold, which was our mai reason for going, but were really taken by the beauty of the park and its offerings

https://burrellcollection.com/visit/pollok-country-park-glasgows-largest-green-space/

Also, try to go the Mackintosh at the Willow tea house. It is such a wonderful place! We didn’t do the tour because of time, but there were people there waiting for it. We opted to go for breakfast rather than at tea time (mardee suggested this and it was a brilliant idea) and because of this had the place virtually to ourselves. Absolutely delicious food and tea. I got some wonderful pictures inside, too.

One last suggestion, for live music we went to Kitty O’Shea’s. Great vibe in there and the Celtic live music was outstanding. It started at 7, too, which was nice because we had to get up early the next morning to fly home. We really liked Glasgow. Not as cultured as Edinburgh, but is a real working person’s kind of town, with extremely friendly people. Enjoy your trip!

Thank you so much for your replies! Happy Travels!

Agree with the Kelvingrove. The park beside the Kelvingrove is very nice and you can walk up to the University and stroll through the cloisters.

There are a few good restaurants just across the street/ very near the Kelvingrove - good but huge burgers at Brew Dog- lots of beer choices and Mother India if you like Indian food.

The cathedral was interesting. I didn't get to the Necropolis which is just behind the catherdral.

I agree with HoHo bus. I also suggest the compact subway system.

All the above suggestions - The Riverside (Transport) Museum, Kelvingrove, The Burrell.

Maybe have a look to see what is on at one of the theatres, the Kings, Theatre Royal and so on. They get a lot of towing

We just got back from Glasgow. My husband was attending a conference there and I tagged along. We were quite busy with the conference, but we did manage to go out and about some. If you like Mackintosh, I recommend the (1) Kelvingrove, (2) Hunterian art gallery & the Mackintosh house, and (3) The Mackintosh tearooms (newly renamed; used to be Mackintosh @ the Willow), in that order. There are many other Mackintosh sites in Glasgow, but I did not get to visit those. Definitely do the tour of the Mackintosh tearooms because otherwise you will not get to see the salon & the ballroom.

The Kelvingrove is lovely and has a wonderful collection, even if you are not particularly interested in Mackintosh. They have an organ recital at 1pm most days, which is fabulous in that space.

Enjoyed the afternoon out to the Pollock country park & the Burrell Collection, and also Stirling Castle. Both very easy to get to (we took the train).

I highly recommend the Scottish Design Exchange in the Buchanan Galleries (soon to move to Sauchiehall St, I believe) for souvenirs/gifts.

Food: Highly recommend the university cafe - loved everything we ate there and could have gone there everyday if it had been closer to the conference venue. I was not impressed with Mother India, but liked India Quay better (I am from India and have opinions :-) Enjoyed lunch at the Mackintosh tearooms.

Have a lovely time. Cannot wait to get back to Scotland!!

Hi, tandems2,

If you want to see the real Glasgow, and you're there on a weekend, check out The Barras. It's been cleaned up a bit over the years, but it's a great place to hear Glasgow patter, and to check out all the things for sale. Another Glasgow favorite is the University Cafe, over on Byres Road. It is a Glasgow institution, and received a great review from Anthony Bourdain.

If there is a concert at the Barrowland, go! It's one of the best concert venues in Scotland.

An additional vote from me for Glasgow Cathedral, the Necropolis, and the Burrell Collection.

Safe travels!

Mike (Auchterless)

We enjoyed an evening of Irish music at Kitty O'shea's a few years ago, but it was more like Temple Bar in Dublin than a "session" which we prefer. If you want Scottish music, and likely a "session", then try Curler's, Ben Nevis, Park, or Islay Inn, depending on the night of the week. There are no doubt others. Facebook can help sort it.

jjgurley is our resident trad music expert but just to clarify what they're referring to for the purposes of finding them.

"Park" is The Park Bar.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/jvdsN5GmZ68D9zGh9

"Ben Nevis" would be The Ben Nevis. Putting "the" in front makes it obvious you're talking about the pub, rather than the mountain.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/AujJc9nSUe7MgG8V7

"Islay Inn" would be The Islay Inn, or just "The Islay".
https://maps.app.goo.gl/3USxqBihrGxcGGd17

Curlers is fine. Its name is "The Curler's Rest", but the possessive makes it easier to determine it's a pub.
https://maps.app.goo.gl/BojCS4j9aJ2uV6RS7

Mike (Auchterless), your recommendation of the University Cafe was spot on!! Thank you! Unfortunately we could not visit the Barras, but hopefully next time.

You can't go wrong with Mike's food recommendations! He's the reason I finally got to taste the wonderful Cullen Skink soup at Lily's in Cullen.