On Sunday May 19 we will be driving from Carlisle to Inverness and are thinking of stopping in Glasgow for a few hours, most likely doing a hop on hop off. Is it worth it? If so, suggestions on where to park and how to best get into the City. I've already read not to try driving into and parking in the city.
If not worth the hassle of parking, other suggestions on how to spend the afternoon?
Thanks.
A direct driving route from Carlisle to Inverness will avoid the centre of Glasgow. Personally I would not make the diversion into the centre of Glasgow. I'd continue on the M73, M80, M9 and A9 and make my stop elsewhere. You could pause at Stirling and maybe see the (excellent) castle and/or Wallace monument. Or you could continue northwards on the A9 stopping in Pitlochry or Dunkeld, both pleasant small towns. Any of these would be on your route north and would provide easier navigation and parking than Glasgow.
Jacqui (Skyegirl) has said exactly what I would have said and Stirling is rather closer to the half way mark as well.
I might add in considering Perth, Dunblane, and Doune as well as possibilities to stop. But agree with the others on places to visit. Carlisle to Inverness is a fair slog of a drive. It is motorway up to Stirling, dual carriage way Stirling to Perth but the A9 north of Perth is single carriage way and has a lot of road works on it as it is being rebuilt. Glasgow would require the best part of an hour from the M73 to get in and out before you see anything.
If golf is your thing the A9 passes Gleneagles, but you might not see much of it on an afternoon trip.
If you did decide to stop to see Glasgow, there's parking in the city centre at Cambridge Street and St Enoch Centre. To me, it wouldn't be that much hassle, especially on a Sunday. I'm very familiar with driving in Glasgow though.
Cambridge Street - https://maps.app.goo.gl/jYktW58euGyd99pP7
St Enoch Centre - https://maps.app.goo.gl/Xpa2ZvgHNiqWiYPh9
Thanks for the great suggestions.
Parking suggestion is most appreciated. We expect to visit Glasgow from our base in Edinburgh (we'll stay there 10 days), so need to park our car for the Glasgow duration.
Cambridge Street is probably the cheapest place to park in the city centre if you're there all day. I've also used King Street and Waterloo Street. Buchanan Galleries is another, though like St Enoch it serves a shopping mall so may be more expensive and isn't 24hr.
King Street - https://maps.app.goo.gl/a5DiQQU9uc3h8Ppk8
Waterloo Street - https://maps.app.goo.gl/zF4cu8tGsFwTmmnN7
Buchanan Galleries - https://maps.app.goo.gl/jbjCqDrjZ4ie46QM6
From Edinburgh the best place is Buchanan Galleries, though you may consider the train to Queen Street easier. It depends where you are going in Glasgow.
A hire car is almost guaranteed to qualify for the LEZ, but it is worth checking before you go into Glasgow City Centre.
