Tel: 0141 287 2999
Email: history_and_glasgow@ gcl.glasgow.gov.uk

Admission: Free

Opening hours: Monday-Thursday 9am-8pm; Friday & Saturday 9am-5pm; closed on Sunday.

Europe’s largest reference library takes its name from the tobacco tycoon, Stephen Mitchell.

The Mitchell library was founded in 1874 and has been open to the public since 1911, it now houses over 1 million books and documents.

Wander around the spacious rooms and admire the beauty of this magnificent building.  The hallmark of the Mitchell Library is its majestic dome, which features the visage of Minerva, goddess of wisdom.

There is a huge selection of aerial photography covering most of Glasgow and it’s an excellent place to visit if you are interested in Glasgow’s history.

To make the resources of the Mitchell Library more accessible, a selection of photographs and other images of the city have been digitised.  The digitised material is of local and historical interest, featuring Glasgow’s buildings and streets as well as showing Glasgow’s people going about their daily lives.  Although the selection is a very small portion of the collection held within the library, this online collection is a great place to start browsing.

Admission:  Free.

Opening hours:  All day, every day.  But be sensible about the times you visit the park.

Originally created at the West End Park in 1852, Kelvingrove Park is a classic example of a Victorian Park.

Glasgow’s first area of ‘common land’, used for clothes drying, sheep grazing, concerts, sports and political meetings through the centuries was Glasgow Green, in the heart of the City next to the River Clyde.  However, in the 1800′s, the foresighted Town Council of the time noticed the rapid expansion of the city, and purchased large areas of land which until then represented the Kelvingrove and Woodlands estates to be made into public parks.  The sum paid for the land was £99,569, the current equivalent of around £8 million.

The first park created was Kelvingrove, and was the first purpose designed and constructed park in Scotland.  As one of many Victorian parks created in response to the appalling conditions created by rapid urban growth, resulting from the industrial revolution, it rapidly became a considerable attraction.

Kelvingrove Park was designed by Sir Joseph Paxton, the leading landscape designer of the time and head gardener at Chatsworth House, whose other works include The Crystal Palace in London.  He also designed the Crystal Palace in London.  Its design and setting on the banks of the River Kelvin enhance and compliment the magnificent buildings which surround it, such as those of Glasgow University, the Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery, and Park Circus.

Features

The Kelvingrove Park Heritage Trail comprises 35 points of interest within the park, including many of the features listed below.  It will take you approximately 1 hour 30 minutes to follow the Heritage Trail from Kelvingrove Museum to The Kelvinway Bridge.  Download the Kelvingrove Park Heritage Trail Map, and for more information about each feature of the trail you can also download the Heritage Trail Leaflet.

• The granite staircase near Park Gardens, 1854
• The Stewart Memorial Fountain, 1872:  built to commemorate Lord Provost Robert Stewart (1851-1854) and his achievement of providing the city with fresh water from Loch Katrine.
• The River Kelvin walkway: a peaceful natural haven within a densely populated area of the city, home to a diverse range of wildlife.  Some animals to look out for include the Grey Squirrel, Magpie, the Grey Heron, the Cormorant, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Chaffinch, Blackbird, Redwing, Carrion Crow, Kingfisher, Mallard (Wild Duck), Goosander, Red Fox and Brown Rat.  The river also contains Brown Trout, Salmon and Sea Trout, and there have been sightings of otters in the past.
• Sunlight Cottages, 1901
• Statues of physicist Lord Kelvin, writer Thomas Carlyle, Field Marshall Lord Roberts and chemist Joseph Lister
• Bandstand and Amphitheatre, 1924
• Memorials to local regiments the Cameronians and the Highland Light Infantry
• The Honeyman Garden, 1972

Facilities

• Play areas for children
• Skateboard park
• Tennis Courts
• Croquet Green
• Bowling greens
• Park Ranger Information Centre:  located off  Kelvin Way, close to the tennis courts and bowling greens.
• Toilets
• Beautiful riverside walks
• Orienteering course
• Herbaceous borders
• Azalea and Rhododendron borders

How to get to Kelvingrove Park

• Underground:  Kelvinbridge Underground Station is a 5 minute walk.
• Train:  Charing Cross Rail Station is a 10 minute walk from the Park and Glasgow Central Station is approximately a 20 minute walk.
• Bus:  Various routes operate from the city centre to Sauchiehall Street.
• Car:  The Park can be accessed from the Clydeside Expressway following the signs for the Kelvin Hall, Museum and Art Gallery.  Parking is available at the Transport Museum and Art Galleries off Sauchiehall Street.
• Walking/Cycling:  Kelvingrove Park is a twenty-minute walk from the City Centre.  It also forms part of the Kelvin Walkway, which links with the Glasgow Loch Lomond Cycleway and the West Highland Way.

George Square

George Square
Glasgow
G1

Admission:  Free.

Opening hours:  All day, every day.

See what’s on in George Square

Named after King George III, George Square is Glasgow’s biggest and most famous central square.  Most celebrations including Christmas, New Year and St Andrews day will be celebrated in George Square in true Glasgow style.

George Square was laid out in 1781, part of James and Robert Adam’s emerging innovative Georgian central grid plan that initially spanned from Stockwell Street east to Buchanan Street.  For the first few years it was quite simply a muddy hollow, filled with dirty water and used for slaughtering horses.  But between 1787 and the 1820s, the square was gradually encased and lined with Georgian townhouses at its east and west ends, as well as hotels, and the square was a private garden for the surrounding townhouses.  By 1850 the surrounding area had become a centre for mercantile activity, with the Merchants House moving to the square in 1877, and after frequent disturbances and pulling down of railings by an angry and discontented mob the square became an established public space.

The square was named after George III, a statue of whom was originally intended to occupy the centre of the square.  But the chaos and concern caused to the city’s Tobacco Lords by the American War of Independence in 1776 and eventual British defeat in 1782, coupled with the King’s recurrent fits of madness had created mixed feelings toward him.  So the centre of George Square was instead used to commemorate Sir Walter Scott, the Scottish historical novelist and poet.  Notably, this was the first memorial to be dedicated to Sir Walter Scott.

Historically, the square has often been the scene of public meetings, political gatherings, riots, protests, celebrations, ceremonies, parades and concerts.  Perhaps the most famous was the Black Friday 1919 rally, when campaigners for improved working conditions (particularly protesting a 56 hour working week in many of the city’s factories) held an enormous rally, with at least 90,000 protesters filling the square and the surrounding streets.  But more recently, George Square has also been home to various protests and meetings, including protests against the Poll Tax and Iraq War, and it is also home to the annual Remembrance Day parades.

The square has also become the venue for Glasgow’s massive Christmas and Hogmanay celebrations (see photos below), and is the meeting point for many other events including the annual “Santa Dash”, 10k and half marathon runs.

Christmas lights at George Square	Glasgow’s Hogmanay at George Square

Sights within George Square

George Square is centred around a 24 metre high column features the statue of author Sir Walter Scott, erected in 1837.  The eastern side of the square is the site of the city’s Cenotaph, designed by JJ Burnet and originally built to commemorate Glaswegians killed in the First World War when it was erected in 1922 by the Earl Haig Fund.  Many of Glasgow’s public statues are situated around the square and include memorials to poets Robert Burns and Thomas Campbell, inventor James Watt, chemist Thomas Graham, generals Sir John Moore, Lord Clyde and politicians William Gladstone and Robert Peel, plus the only known equestrian statues of a young Queen Victoria and her consort Prince Albert.

Sights bordering George Square

You will find Glasgow’s main Tourist Information Centre on the south side of the square, adjacent to the former General Post Office (1878).  The east side of the square is dominated by the beautiful and ornamental Glasgow City Chambers building (1888), headquarters of Glasgow City Council.  To the North side of George Square you will find Queen Street Station, the Millenium Hotel (formerly the North British Railway Hotel), both of which date from the1840s, and the offices of Ernst & Young, which date from the 1970s.  Queen Street borders the square’s West side, and features Glasgow’s Chambers of Commerce building (1874), which was designed by John Burnet.  In 1907 two storeys were added by JJ Burnet, and these are topped by a domed tower on which is perched a ship on a globe; a reminder of the significance and importance of sea trade to Glasgow’s prosperity.

Tel: 0141 616 6139
Email: info@scottishfootballmuseum.org.uk

Admission: Different for stadium tour and museum entry.  Listed below.

Opening hours: (Subject to events; please check before making your way to stadium).  Stadium tours take place daily at 11am, 12.30pm & 2pm November-March.  There is alo an extra tour at 3.30pm April-October.  Museum opening hours are as follows:
Mon-Sat: 10am – 5pm
Sun: 11am – 5pm

The city of Glasgow very proudly contains a football stadium with 7 tiered levels and 52,000 seats. This stadium is Hampden. Primarily used as the home ground of Queens Park FC, the stadium is probably better known as the home of the Scottish national football team.

Stadium tour

Price: £9 adults, £4.50 children.  (Includes access to the Scottish Football Museum)

Visitors to the stadium are welcome.  You can get a fully guided stadium tour of the stadium, seeing the stadium as players do match day.  The tour includes the changing rooms, warm-up area, the underground roadway, and as you walk down the tunnel towards the pitch, hear the famous Hampden roar!  The tour also allows you to climb the stairs to the Cup Presentation Area.

The Scottish Football Museum

Price: £6 adults, £3 children.  (Museum access only).

The Scottish Football Museum contains more than 2,500 exhibits in 14 galleries, and is home to the worlds most impressive collection of football memorabilia.  These galleries guide you through the history of football in Scotland (one of the oldest footballing nations in the world), and will show you the sights, sounds and stories of the worlds most popular game.  Some exhibits change throughout the year.  A current exhibit, and one which is particularly good is ‘The Auld Enemy’, which charts the history of the oldest rivalry in football: Scotland versus England.  There is also a ‘Matchday’ exhibition which aimed to capture the unique atmosphere of football teams in the Scottish Premier and Football Leagues.  I haven’t yet visited this one though, so I can’t comment on it.

If you are fortunate enough to be in Glasgow when there is a Scotland match on, I would recommend trying to get a ticket to see it.  Myself and a group of friends go every home game that the Scotland national team play, and the atmosphere in that stadium is just phenomenal (if you’re supporting Scotland that is).  I get shivers just thinking about it.  However if you can’t get a ticket to see a match don’t worry.  Just go for a walk around the city and you’ll see Scotland flags galore, kilts and tartan skirts everywhere, and probably a bunch of ‘See You Jimmy’ hats all over the place.  You could also get a ticket to see Queens Park play – tickets are only about £7 for those matches.

For any football lover, Hampden is a great day out.

P.S.  Come on Scotland!!!

Location

The stadium is located approximately 4km South of the city centre. Directions are listed below.

Car:
Exit the M8 at Junction 15 and passing Infirmary on left proceed into High Street and cross the Albert Bridge into Crown Street. Join Cathcart Road and proceed south until it becomes Carmunnock Road. Turn left into Mount Annan Drive and left again into Kinghorn Drive for the Stadium.

Bus:
Line 31 (from the St Enoch Centre to Letherby Drive/Cathcart Road), line 37 (from Glasgow Cross to Letherby Drive/Cathcart Road) & line 75 (from Argyle Street to Aikenhead Road).

Train:
The stations Mount Florida or Kings Park are served by trains from Glasgow Central (5-10 minutes walk to the stadium).

The Glasgow sightseeing tour also stops at Hampden.

For more information, click here to see the official Hampden Park website.  For more information on the Scottish Football Museum, click here.

Admission: Rates shown below

Taking a sightseeing bus tour of Glasgow is absolutely the best, and probably the most fun way to see the city.

The tours have 21 stops around Glasgow, and stop at all the major tourist attractions within the city centre, the West End and a number of other areas (see a list of stops and what you can see and do at each of them below).  There is guide on board each bus, and they also have a multilingual commentary system which will not only keep you entertained, but also well informed about the city.

The tours are not just aimed at tourists though.  I took a tour last summer, and after living in Glasgow for 27 years still learned a few things about my beloved hometown.  So no matter whether you’re looking for some history, brilliant shopping, or you’re just out to see what’s what in Glasgow, the Sightseeing Tours are definitely the best way.

One thing I would advise is to take clothing for every possible weather scenario.  In Glasgow, as any Glaswegian will tell you, rain can appear at any minute.  So if you’re on the top of the open top bus, you will get wet!

Buses leave every 15 minutes from George Square between the hours of 9.30 am and 4.30 pm (5.30 pm in summer).  The buses all follow the same route, and get to each stop regularly.  See the website for a full timetable, and you can click here to see a downloadable map which shows the bus route and all the stops in the city.  And you won’t miss these buses – there certainly aren’t any others that look like them in the city!

Ticket prices are shown below.  Each ticket is valid for 2 days, and you can hop on and hop off as many times as you like on each of those days.

Book online at the official website.

Tel: 0871 540 1000

Admission: Prices listed below

Opening hours: Daily 10am – 5pm

The Glasgow Science Centre is a brilliant day out for the whole family.

My kids absolutely love it, and I must admit, I enjoy it too!  There are 3 main attractions within the Science Centre, each of which I have written a bit about below.  These are the Science Mall (the interactive museum type bit which is home to the Scottish Power Planetarium), the Tower (sometimes called the Science Tower or the Glasgow Tower), and the IMAX cinema (Scotlands first 3-D cinema).  When you visit the Science Centre you can go to just 1 of these parts, pick 2 to visit, or enjoy all 3.

The Science Mall

This is the biggest part of the Science Centre, which contains 3 floors packed full of interactive exhibits, the Scottish Power Planetarium, Science Show Theatre and Climate Change Theatre.  The exhibits are such good fun for kids – mine just absolutely love playing with everything.  These aim to educate kids in a really interactive and fun way in many different scientific fields, although there does seem to be a bias towards physics and engineering (which as a biologist I definitely noticed).  The staff are really friendly and seem to love playing with the exhibits as much as the kids do.  The staff also run workshops throughout the day which again are really interactive and fun.  I took the kids on Easter weekend and they loved the Egg Drop Challenge workshop.  I think their favourite one is the cockroach workshop though; for some reason they love patting them!

There are shows on throughout the day which again are really good for kids; you could potentially see anything from a body being dissected in a rather gross way (a fake one obviously) or someone setting fire to stuff.  Some of the Science Shows are aimed at older kids though which can be a bit difficult, so make sure you check before you go to one of those.  The climate change shows are a fun movie that you through – they dont have a presenter.  But the kids still enjoyed that one with it’s cute sheep.

The Scottish Power Planetarium is amazing.  A show is well worth the extra £2.  You have to see it to understand what it’s like – it’s like getting taken away into space for half an hour.  For the kids – it’s a great adventure, and for the adults, it’s really relaxing.  The presenters are really nice and will happily answer your questions about their show or about the planetarium.  Again, there are various shows on which are aimed at different age ranges, so check which ones are suitable before you go.

Even if you don’t do anything else, you should definitely do the Science Mall.

Glasgow Tower

I love the Glasgow Tower.  It boasts being the tallest freestanding structure in the UK at more than 100m, and the only structure in the world (apart from windmills) that can fully rotate 360 degrees – by that I mean that entire structure can turn – the whole Tower.  The ride up in the lift is great fun – there are large windows so you can see out the whole way up which the kids seem to love.  As the icing on the cake, the staff in the Tower are so knowledgeable about the history and geography of Glasgow.  It really is a must for any tourist or interested resident.

It gets a bad name for not working and being closed all the time, but I think that’s a bit unfair.  The reason it’s often closed is partly because of the weather; we all know that the weather in Glasgow is quite unpredictable, and if wind speeds get above 20mph then people can’t go up the Tower anymore.  I think that is quite reasonable because the lifts are on the outside of the structure, and going up those for 2 and a half minutes in high winds would probably cause anyone to get pretty scared.

IMAX cinema

The IMAX is a 3-D cinema which also shows feature films like Transformers and Harry Potter.  The screen is massive – something like the length of 3 buses and the picture and sound is an amazing experience.  The 3-D movies are really good.  If you haven’t seen one before then it is well worth it (as long as you pick a good one).  And it’s great seeing the kids trying to catch stuff as it ‘comes out of the screen’.  Just brilliant – there isn’t much more I can say about a cinema!

The ticket prices are a bit complicated (they seem to have made it even more complicated with their new ticket pricing), and they are impossible to find on their website, so I have tried to simplify it as much as possible below.

* All of these ticket prices include an approximate £1 gift aid donation.  Gift aid allows tax relief on money donated to charities.  So any amount donated will be treated as if it has had basic tax deducted already.  Basically, charities like it and try to encourage you to gift aid.  The last time I was there you got a voucher to spend within the Science Centre which I think was slightly more than the amount donated.  Obviously you do have a choice, and if you don’t pay tax yourself then you cant gift aid.

** The season ticket prices are actually really good value.  The season ticket gets you into the science mall and planetarium as many times as you like in a year.  If you go 3/4 times in a year, you’ve pretty much made your money back.

Unfortunately they don’t have a deal for all 3 attractions.  They say it’s because they don’t advise you doing all 3 attractions in a day as there is just too much to do.  Although there is a lot to fit in, it is most definitely possible to do everything.  I think it’s a shame that if you’re a visitor in Glasgow and can only spend one day in the Science Centre, it can be extremely expensive to do all 3 attractions with the present ticket rates/packages.