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Scotland's only public art school's main claim to fame used to be the iconic architecture of its main building, designed by architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh; sadly, the building was badly damaged by fires in 2014 and 2018. Glaswegians mourned its destruction, but plans are in place to rebuild it, although officials have admitted that its restoration will be a long and complicated process. Fortunately, there are other wonderful Mackintosh buildings in and around the city. Stephen Holl's newer interpretation of the Reid Building, directly opposite the original, is a spectacular modern homage to it.
167 Renfrew St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G3 6RQ, Scotland
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Fun and engaging, this museum for children has three floors packed with games, experiments, and hands-on machines from pendulums to small-scale whirlpools, soundscapes to optical illusions. Its space-age home on the south side of the Clyde has a whole wall of glass looking out onto the river. The BodyWorks exhibition explores every aspect of our physical selves—you can even try and reconstruct a brain. There are daily events and science shows, a lovely play area for under-sevens, a planetarium, an IMAX theater, and the spectacular Glasgow Tower, 400 feet high, where you can survey the whole city from the river to the surrounding hills. All carry an additional charge. Always inquire whether the tower is open—even moderate winds will close it down. Admission is expensive, but the tower and planetarium cost less if you buy all the tickets at the same time.
50 Pacific Quay, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G51 1EA, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £12.50; Planetarium £3; Glasgow Tower £3.50; Tower only £6.50, Closed Mon. and Tues. in Nov.--Mar.
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West End
Gorgeous grounds and great views of the city are among the many reasons to visit this university. The Gilbert Scott Building, the university's main edifice, is a lovely example of the Gothic Revival style. Glasgow University Visitor Centre, near the main gate on University Avenue, has exhibits on the university and a small coffee bar; one-hour guided walking tours of the campus (Thursday–Sunday at 2) start here. A self-guided tour starts at the visitor center and takes in the east and west quadrangles, the cloisters, Professor's Square, Pearce Lodge, and the not-to-be-missed University Chapel. The university's Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery are also well worth a visit.
University Ave., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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Gorgeous grounds and great views of the city are among the many reasons to visit this university. The Gilbert Scott Building, the university's main edifice, is a lovely example of the Gothic Revival style. Glasgow University Visitor Centre, near the main gate on University Avenue, has exhibits on the university and a small coffee bar; one-hour guided walking tours of the campus (Thursday–Sunday at 2) start here. A self-guided tour starts at the visitor center and takes in the east and west quadrangles, the cloisters, Professor's Square, Pearce Lodge, and the not-to-be-missed University Chapel. The university's Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery are also well worth a visit.
University Ave., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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A mecca for soccer enthusiasts who come from far and near to tread the famous turf, the home field for the country's national team was the largest stadium in the world when it was built in 1903. There are stadium tours on non-match days at 11, 12:30, 2, and 3. You can then visit the Scottish Football Museum, which traces the history of the game; the museum may close on game days.
Letherby Dr., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G42 9BA, Scotland
0141-616--6139-tours and museum
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Museum and stadium tour £13 (or £8 each)
View Tours and Activities
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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Within Bellahouston Park is a "new" Mackintosh house, based on a competition entry Charles Rennie Mackintosh submitted to a German magazine in 1901. The house was never built in his lifetime, but took shape between 1989 and 1996. It is home to Glasgow School of Art's postgraduate study center, and displays show designs for the various rooms and decorative pieces by Mackintosh and his wife, Margaret. The main lounge is spectacular. There's also a café and shop filled with art. Buses 9, 53, and 54 from Union Street will get you here. Call ahead, as opening times can vary.
10 Dumbreck Rd., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G41 5BW, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £7
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Set within Glasgow University, this museum, dating from 1807, showcases part of the collections of William Hunter, an 18th-century Glasgow doctor who assembled a staggering quantity of valuable material. Check out Hunter's hoards of coins, manuscripts, scientific instruments, and archaeological artifacts in this striking Gothic building. A permanent exhibit chronicles the building of the Antonine Wall, the Romans' northernmost defense.
University Ave., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8QQ, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Mon.
View Tours and Activities
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Both a peaceful retreat and a well-used playground, the park was purchased by the city in 1852. The River Kelvin flows through its green spaces. The park's numerous statues of prominent Glaswegians include one of Lord Kelvin (1824–1907), the Scottish mathematician and physicist remembered for his pioneering work in electricity. The shady park has a massive fountain commemorating a lord provost of Glasgow from the 1870s, a duck pond, two children's playgrounds, and a skateboard park. The An Clachan café beside the children's play area is an excellent daytime eatery and a boon to parents looking for a refuge. Public bowling and croquet greens are free, as are the tennis courts. The Bandstand, a 2,300-seat open-air theater, hosts major concerts in summer.
Bounded by Sauchiehall St., Woodlands Rd., and Kelvin Way, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G12 8NR, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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One of Charles Rennie Mackintosh's most admired commissions was the tearooms he designed in 1903 for Miss Cranston, whose tearooms across the city were a magnet for Glasgow's middle class. She commissioned the young Mackintosh for several projects; the Willow Tea Rooms were among the best known. The tearooms have now been restored to their 1903 state, with furniture to match Makintosh's design. You'll find other beautiful examples of his work in the building, too, including the Billiard Room, the Board Room, and the aptly named Salon de Luxe. An interactive exhibition focuses on the great artist in his time and place, together with his contemporaries, including the Glasgow Girls.
215-217 Sauchiehall St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G2 3EX, Scotland
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West End
The largest public reference library in Europe houses more than a million items, including what is claimed to be the world's largest collection about Robert Burns. The Mitchell also houses the remarkable private collection of outstanding puppeteer John Blundell. Minerva, goddess of wisdom, looks down from the library's dome, encouraging the library's users and frowning at the drivers thundering along the nearby motorway. This is a genuinely public library with open access to all its materials, nearly 100 computers for public use, and a comfortable on-site café. A bust in the entrance hall commemorates the library's founder, Stephen Mitchell, who died in 1874. The Aye Write Literature Festival takes place here every March, as do many other events celebrating Glasgow's history.
North St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G3 7DN, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Sun.
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Bute's biggest draw is spectacular Mount Stuart, ancestral home of the marquesses of Bute. The massive Victorian Gothic palace, built in red sandstone, has ornate interiors, including the eccentric Horoscope Room and the Marble Hall, with stained glass, arcaded galleries, and magnificent tapestries woven in Edinburgh in the early 20th century. The paintings and furniture throughout the house are equally interesting. You can also appreciate the lovely gardens and grounds.
Off A844, Rothesay, Argyll and Bute, PA20 9LR, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £13, Closed Nov.--Mar.
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Paisley's 12th-century abbey dominates the town center. Founded as a Cluniac monastery and almost completely destroyed by the English in 1307, the abbey was not totally restored until the early 20th century. It's associated with Walter Fitzallan, the high steward of Scotland, who gave his name to the Stewart monarchs of Scotland (Stewart is a corruption of "steward"). Outstanding features include the vaulted stone roof and stained glass of the choir.
13 High St., Paisley, Renfrewshire, PA1 1JG, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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The excited conversations among local visitors are the evidence that this museum tells the story of everyday lives in Glasgow. There is always something that sparks a memory: a photo, an object, a sound. Inside you'll find the writing desk of John McLean (1879–1923), the famous "Red Clydeside" political activist, and the banana boots worn onstage by Glasgow-born comedian Billy Connolly. On the top floor a sequence of fine murals by Glasgow artist Ken Currie tells the story of the city's working-class citizens. In contrast, the Doulton Fountain opposite the entrance celebrates the British empire. The museum is housed in a Victorian red-sandstone building at the heart of Glasgow Green, and behind it are the restored Winter Gardens (a Victorian conservatory) and a popular café. To get here from the St. Enoch subway station, walk along Argyle Street past Glasgow Cross.
Monteith Row, Glasgow, Glasgow City, G40 1AT, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free
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This classic Georgian house, dating from the mid-1700s, sits amid landscaped gardens and avenues of trees that are now part of Pollok Country Park. It still has the tranquil air of a wealthy but unpretentious country house. The Stirling Maxwell Collection includes paintings by Blake and a strong grouping of Spanish works by El Greco, Murillo, and Goya. Lovely examples of 18th- and early-19th-century furniture, silver, glass, and porcelain are also on display. The house has beautiful gardens that overlook the White Cart River. The downstairs servants' quarters include the kitchen, which is now a café-restaurant. The closest train station is Pollokshaws West, from Glasgow Central station; or you can take Bus 45, 47, or 57 to the gate of Pollok County Park.
2060 Pollokshaws Rd., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G43 1AT, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £8.50
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Merchant City
Glasgow's oldest house, one of only four medieval buildings surviving in the city, was built in 1471 by Bishop Andrew Muirhead. Before it was rescued by the Glasgow City Council, this building had been a pub, a sweetshop, and a soft drinks factory. It is now a museum that shows the house as it might have looked when it was occupied by officers of the church. The furniture is 17th century, and the top floor is a gallery with prints and paintings depicting the characters who might have lived in the surrounding streets. Behind the house is a medicinal herb garden, and the cloisters house and its rather disturbing carved stone heads.
3 Castle St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G4 0RB, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Mon.
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West End
The only church Mackintosh designed houses the Charles Rennie Mackintosh (CRM) Society Headquarters and is the ideal place to learn more about the famous Glasgow-born architect and designer. The church has beautiful stained-glass windows and a light-enhancing, carved-wood interior. The center's library and shop provide further insight into Glasgow's other Mackintosh-designed buildings. A taxi is probably the best way to get here, but you can also take a bus toward Queen's Cross from stops along Hope Street or walk up Maryhill Road from the St. George's Cross subway station.
870 Garscube Rd., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G20 7EL, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £10, includes coffee or tea, Closed weekends year-round and Tues. and Thurs. Nov.--Mar.
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City Centre
Exhibits of medals, badges, and uniforms relate the history of a famous, much-honored regiment and the men who served in it.
518 Sauchiehall St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G2 3LW, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed weekends
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Visit the humble thatched cottage where Scotland's national poet lived for his first seven years. It has a living room, a kitchen, and a stable, one behind the other. The life and times of Burns, born in 1759, are beautifully and creatively illustrated in the fly-on-the-wall videos of daily life in the 18th century, while the garden is lush with the types of vegetables the poet's father might have grown.
It's just one part of the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum. Besides being a poet of delicacy and depth, Robert Burns was also a rebel, a thinker, a lover, a good companion, and a man of the countryside. The main museum building, a short walk from the cottage along the Poet's Path, explains why the Scots so admire this complex "man o' pairts." The imaginative displays present each of his poems in context, with commentaries sensitively written in a modern version of the Scots language in which he spoke and wrote. Headsets let you hear the poems sung or spoken. The exhibits are vibrant and interactive, with touch screens that allow you to debate his views on politics, love, taxation, revolution, and Scottishness.
In the price of your ticket, you can also visit the spooky churchyard where Tam o' Shanter faced fearsome ghosts, and the neoclassical Burns Monument, built in 1823 and overlooking the Brig o' Doon—take care if climbing to the top.
off Murdoch's La., Glasgow, Glasgow City, KA7 4PQ, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: £11.50
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South Side
A former school designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, this building houses a fascinating museum of education. Classrooms re-create school life in Scotland during Victorian times and World War II, and a cookery room recounts a time when education for Scottish girls consisted of little more than learning how to become a housewife. There's also an exhibition space and a café. The building sits opposite Shields Road subway station.
225 Scotland St., Glasgow, Glasgow City, G5 8QB, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Mon.
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To get an idea of the life led by textile industry workers, visit the Sma' Shot Cottages. These re-creations of mill workers' houses contain displays of linen, lace, and paisley shawls. Two typical cottages, built 150 years apart, are open to visitors.
11–17 George Pl., Paisley, Renfrewshire, PA1 2HZ, Scotland
Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free, Closed Oct.--Mar. and Sun.–Tues. and Thurs. in Apr.–Sept
