Exploring Glasgow, Scotland
The University of Glasgow along the River Clyde
Time needed in this city: 2 nights
The history of Glasgow is fascinating. It was founded around 550 A.D. with the arrival of St. Kentigern (Mungo), who established a religious community there. In the 12th century, a Cathedral was erected on the site of his chapel, around the same time William I designated Glasgow a burgh of barony. Nearly two centuries later in 1350, the first stone bridge over the River Clyde was built and 100 years after that, Glasgow was created a royal burgh. The university was founded a year later in 1451, and for about 150 years, the city saw great economic growth due to it being central to Lowland and Highland Scotland, as well as its access to major waterways. It wasn’t until the early 1600s when the country merged with the crown that it flourished providing another 200 years of prosperity, especially when shipbuilding became a lucrative industry during the Industrial Revolution. When WWI began, Glasgow saw a massive economic decline that left the city in a state of disrepair. It wasn’t until the late 20th century that the revitalization efforts began that have turned the city into a vibrant place to live and work.
The below information is a complete guide of the best places to stay, the top rated places to dine and drink, and all there is to see and do. We’ve also included a summary of the history of this very historic city!
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Where to Stay
Glasgow is a large city with many neighborhoods, though the population of University students occupies many of them. However, every hotel is just a few blocks from the main street, making it easily walkable. Below are my recommendations of where to stay:
Where to Dine & Drink
Brel
Belgian bar and restaurant on Ashton Lane
Cail Bruich
A Michelin-star restaurant serving fresh British produce in a unique and relaxed dining experience in Glasgow's West End.
Cottiers
Cottiers is not only a theatre, but also a bar and restaurant. It occupies the former 19th-century Dowanhill Parish Church.
Cup Tea Lounge
A great place for afternoon tea - they cater extremely well to those with Celiac!
Eighty Eight
Homemade Italian fare
Five March
Globally inspired small plates with avant-garde drinks
Hanoi Bike Shop
Dine on Vietnamese street food under the bicycles hanging from the ceiling
Mother India
A highly popular, award-winning Indian restaurant
Number 16
A Michelin-rated restaurant with Scottish fare, in Glasgow’s West End.
Oran Mor
Formerly the Kelvinside Parish Church, Òran Mór, Gaelic for ‘great melody of life’ or ‘big song’, is a thriving arts & entertainment venue in the heart of Glasgow’s West End. They offer a Victorian Bar, a Whisky Bar, a John Muir Room Restaurant, a Brasserie restaurant, a private dining room, a live music venue, a night club, and an auditorium with a mural ceiling by Alasdair Gray.
Outlier
It took years for this coffee shop and bakery to be transformed from a betting shop into an award-winning place complete with high-end finishes.
Pizza Punks
Great for gluten-free pizza!
Stack & Still
Great for breakfast, including their gluten-free pancakes.
The Red Onion
Popular modern Scottish fare
Ting Thai Caravan
Inexpensive yet AMAZING Thai food with very generous portions!
Ubiquitous Chip
Opened in 1971, the restaurant is a few floors decorated as though you’re in a rainforest - complete with a lake and humongous plants. Visitors can cross the wooden bridge upstairs and take a seat overlooking the jungle below.
UNALOME
A Michelin-star restaurant serving Scottish fare with French flair.
Wildflours Bakery
100% dedicated gluten-free bakery
Things to See & Do
The old shipyard now has a footbridge over the River Clyde.
This was a very short stay for us, as Blackbeard wanted to show me where he spent much of his childhood, However, I’d recommend a couple of days to really see/explore this amazing city.
Ashton Lane
If you’re looking for a fun evening crowd or simply to have dinner at a more upscale establishment, then Ashton Lane is the place to be (hint: Ubiquitous Chip is down this lane). Most of the restaurants, pubs, and cafes also serve lunch.
Buchanan Castle
Commissioned by the 4th Duke of Montrose and built in 1852–1858 as a home for the Montrose family, serving as such until 1925, the castle was built as a replacement for Buchanan Auld House, which is located 0.5 miles to the northwest, but was destroyed in a fire in 1852. The old house and surrounding lands had been the property of the Clan Buchanan but passed to the Clan Graham in the late 17th century. The roof of the building was removed in 1954 and the condition of the house has since deteriorated, but it remains the seat of the Clan Graham.
Glasgow Botanic Gardens
It was in 1817 that Thomas Hopkirk, a distinguished Glasgow botanist, founded the Botanic Gardens with the support of a number of local dignitaries and the University of Glasgow. The Gardens were originally laid out on an 8 acre site at Sandyford at the western end of Sauchiehall Street (at that time, on the edge of the city). The Royal Botanical Institution of Glasgow owned and ran the Gardens and agreed to provide the University of Glasgow with teaching aids, including a supply of plants for medical and botanical classes.
Glasgow Cathedral and Necropolis
First dedicated in 1136 by David I, The Glasgow Cathedral is a tribute to St. Mungo (who founded Glasgow as a place for his religious community), whose tomb lies at the centre of the building's Lower Church. Nearby is the Necropolis - a final resting place for over 50,000 people, starting in 1832.
Glasgow Film Theatre
In 1939, the very first film cinema opened and is still in operation.
Hairy Paws
Stroll down the cobblestones of Cresswell Lane, just off Byres Road, and discover a super cute pet boutique with a lot of unique finds!
Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum
Opened in 1901, The Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum is 22 galleries of incredible art and artefacts from all over the world. It’s definitely a must-do!
Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre
Hundreds of tiny carved figures and pieces of old scrap perform an incredible Heath-Robinson-meets-Hieronymous-Bosch choreography to haunting music and synchronised lighting, telling the funny and tragic stories of the human spirit struggling against the relentless circles of life and death.
Take a walk along River Clyde
Known for its shipbuilding during the Industrial Revolution, you can still see a tribute to those days, via the Finnieston Crane they left standing, as well as a turret on either side of the river that were entry/exit points for an underground tunnel (well before the bridges were built). Stroll along the entire walking path to take in all views of the river, the concert hall, arena, the BBC building, and the bridges.
The Clydeside Distillery
Hidden inside the old Pump House building that once controlled entry to the famous Queen’s Dock, Clydeside became one of the first new distilleries in generations to operate in Glasgow when it started running its huge copper stills in 2017. Note: Take the chocolate and whisky tour.
The Hidden Lane
Hidden right off of Argyle Street, Hidden Lane boasts colorful artist studios and an award-winning tea room.
The Riverside Museum (Formerly the Transport Museum)
Housed on Porthouse Quay, the Zaha Hadid-designed building houses centuries of transport and technology collections, reflecting the important part Glasgow has played in the world through its contributions to heavy industries like shipbuilding, train manufacturing and engineering. It won the 2013 “Best Museum in Europe” award.
University of Glasgow
Founded by a papal charter (via Pope Nicholas II) in 1451, it is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. It is absolutely stunning inside and out and definitely requires a visit to its grounds, as well as the museums inside.
Driving from Edinburgh? Stop to see the Kelpies!
The Kelpies are a pair of monumental steel horse-heads between the Scottish towns of Falkirk and Grangemouth. They stand next to the M9 motorway and form the eastern gateway of the Forth and Clyde Canal, which meets the River Carron here. Each head is 98 ft. high.
The sculptures, which represent kelpies, were designed by sculptor Andy Scott and were completed in October 2013. An unveiling ceremony took place in April 2014.
TIP: This is a great place to stop to use the restroom, get a bite to eat, shop, and/or grab a coffee!
A History Summary
550 AD - Glasgow was founded with the arrival of St. Kentigern (Mungo), who established a religious community there.
12th century - A Cathedral was erected on the site of his chapel, around the same time William I designated Glasgow a burgh of barony.
1190 - Glasgow Fair began.
1285 - The first bridge over the river Clyde was built.
1350 - The first stone bridge over the River Clyde was built
15th century - Early trade was in agriculture, brewing and fishing, with cured salmon and herring being exported to Europe and the Mediterranean.
1451 - The university was founded.
Early 1600s - The country merged with the crown, providing another 200 years of prosperity to the city.
1605 - 14 incorporated trade crafts federated as the Trades House to match the power and influence in the town council of the earlier Merchants' Guilds who established their Merchants House in the same year.
1611 - Glasgow was raised to the status of Royal Burgh.
1668 - The city's Tobacco Lords created a deep water port at Port Glasgow (about 20 mi down the River Clyde), as the river from the city, to that point, was then too shallow for seagoing merchant ships.
1707 - Glasgow became prominent as a hub of international trade to and from the Americas, especially in sugar, tobacco, cotton, and manufactured goods.
1717 - 1766 - Scottish slave ships operating out of Glasgow transported approximately 3,000 enslaved Africans to the Americas (out of a total number of 5,000 slaves carried by ships from Scotland). The majority of these slaving voyages left from Glasgow's satellite ports, Greenock and Port Glasgow.
Late 18th century - More than half of the British tobacco trade was concentrated on the River Clyde, with over 21,000 tons of tobacco being imported each year at its peak.
1795 - After extensive river engineering projects to dredge and deepen the River Clyde as far as Glasgow, shipbuilding became a major industry on the upper stretches of the river.
1800 - The City of Glasgow Police in 1800 became one of the first municipal police forces in the world.
1855 - 1900 - Milngavie water treatment works, Glasgow Subway, Glasgow Corporation Tramways, City Chambers, Mitchell Library and Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum were all built during this time.
1878 - the City of Glasgow Bank collapsed.
End of 19th century - Glasgow was one of the cities known as the "Second City of the Empire" and was producing more than half Britain's tonnage of shipping and a quarter of all locomotives in the world. In addition, it developed as a major center in textiles, garment-making, carpet manufacturing, leather processing, furniture-making, pottery, food, drink and cigarette-making; printing and publishing. Shipping, banking, insurance and professional services expanded at the same time.
Post-WWI - The city suffered from the impact of the Post–World War I recession and from the later Great Depression, this also led to a rise of radical socialism and the "Red Clydeside" movement.
WWII - The city saw aerial bombardment by the Luftwaffe, during the Clydebank Blitz.
1950s - 1960s - Glasgow entered a lengthy period of relative economic decline and rapid de-industrialization, leading to high unemployment, urban decay, population decline, welfare dependency and poor health for the city's inhabitants.
1980s - There had been a significant resurgence in Glasgow's economic fortunes.
1985 - Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre was built and facilitated Glasgow's new role as a European center for business services and finance, and promoted an increase in tourism and inward investment.
2006 - 47% of Glasgow's population lived in the most deprived 15% of areas in Scotland, while the Centre for Social Justice reported 29.4% of the city's working-age residents to be "economically inactive".
2008 - The city was listed by Lonely Planet as one of the world's top 10 tourist cities.