H&N Magazine’s Rachel McAlley and her family enjoyed a mini-break in the city of Glasgow recently.
Packed with visitor attractions, museums, theatre shows, many shops, and restaurants, Glasgow definitely has plenty to offer.
voco Grand Central Hotel
Our train pulled into Glasgow Central Station, Scotland’s busiest train station that is located bang in the city centre. Luckily for us, we were checking into voco Grand Central Hotel, which is part of the station building itself, therefore only taking moments until we were at the check-in desk.
We were staying for 2-nights at voco Grand Central, in a premium deluxe double-double room. The bedroom was extremely spacious, with 2 double beds, large wardrobe, sofa, coffee table, and dresser, along with large bathroom. The Family Getaway Package includes the room, breakfast for 2 adults and up to 2 children, and complimentary WiFi. Prices vary seasonally, but our room rate was in the region of £280 per night.
The reception team give all guests complimentary homemade shortbread biscuits upon arrival, which is a lovely gesture. We took the lift to our floor and walked down a very long corridor to our room, unpacked, and went to explore the city’s shops.
Breakfast at voco Grand Central
Breakfast was served in the breakfast room, which offered everything you could possibly want. Guests enjoyed a buffet-style Scottish cooked breakfast. It included black pudding, haggis, potato cakes, and Lorne sausage plus eggs, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, and bacon. There’s also continental breakfast of cheeses, cooked meats, smoked fish, fresh fruit, yoghurts, smoothies and more. My daughter loved that the breakfast room also had its own pancake making machine, where guests can make their own pancakes. You can help yourself to toast, cereal, hot drinks and juice. Possibly one of the best buffet breakfasts we have ever seen in a hotel.
Book a room at the luxurious voco Grand Central Glasgow and enjoy a visit steeped in history. The hotel has welcomed some famous faces over the years including John F Kennedy, The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones. It’s also where Scottish inventor John Logie Baird transmitted the world’s first long-distance television pictures in 1927.
City Sightseeing Bus Tour
We steeped aboard the City Sightseeing Bus Tour to visit some of Glasgow’s most popular attractions. We caught the Red Route (off Argyle Street), which took us to the Clyde Arc Bridge, OVO Hydro, SEC Armadillo, and the Clydeside Distillery. It also visited Riverside Museum, Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, University of Glasgow, and Theatre Royal. There were plenty of other stops we could have got off at too.
We did hop off and then hop back on to The Riverside Museum, which I’ll go into more detail about later. The City Sightseeing Bus gave us the full tour of Glasgow. We learned about the renaming of certain streets, the financial district, River Clyde, and both the theatre and shopping districts. The tour from George Square (stop 1) to the Bus Station (stop 21) takes around 90 minutes, and is a great way to see the city. Maps and headphones are offered to every passenger as part of the ticket price.
There is also a Yellow Route around Glasgow, making it easier than ever to visit attractions in the east end and southside neighbourhoods too. The Yellow Route is closed for winter, due to reopen Spring 2025. Family tickets (2 adults and up to 3 children) for both Red and Yellow Routes cost £35 for 1-day or £45 for 2-days.
Riverside Museum
The Riverside Museum houses the city’s transport collection, with through-the-ages displays of bikes, trains, buses and cars. Furthermore, there is a recreated old Glasgow street and subway entrance. Visitors can even adventure on the water by visiting the Clyde-built Tall Ship, berthed beside the Riverside Museum. This museum is free to visit and is open 7-days a week.
We hopped off the City Sightseeing Bus and spent a couple of hours fully engrossed in the history of Glasgow’s transport. Excitedly, we sat inside old trams, subway trains, and even a pub from years gone by. A fully educational trip as we learned about how the river played a role in the transport of goods to and from the city of Glasgow.
A thoroughly enjoyable morning was spent inside the museum, it is a fantastic place to visit as a family. From the Riverside Museum we got back on the bus and went into the city, where we did some shopping at St Enoch Shopping Centre before heading for lunch.
Sloans Glasgow
Sloans is a wee hidden gem in the heart of the city, tucked down Argyll Arcade, just off Argyle Street or Buchanan Street. There are many original features of this Grade A listed building, including the ceramic tiled entrance and grand mahogany staircase. You can sit inside (like we did) or outside in the heated and covered courtyard, complete with twinkly fairy lights.
Famed for its Mac ‘n’ Cheese, live events, and Grand Ballroom, Sloans is definitely the place to hang out. It originally started out as a coffee house back in 1797 before transforming over the years into the bar, restaurant, and venue it is today.
We indulged in some delicious Mac ‘n’ Cheese from the menu, where there were nine options to choose from! Moreover, we even tried a traditional Scottish starter of Cullen Skink (thick soup, with smoked haddock, potatoes and onions). Personally, I think the Cullen Skink was the best I have ever tasted in my life! There was a great atmosphere inside the bar area during lunch time, I can only imagine how fantastic it must be at night. We ventured out into the city to continue our late afternoon shopping spree.
Glasgow Subway
After enquiring at our hotel reception how to get to Ashton Lane outside the city, we were told to use the Subway from Buchanan Street.
Glasgow’s Subway is run by Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, and is possibly the easiest subway system to use in the world. It first opened in 1896, and is the third oldest underground rail system in the world after London and Budapest.
There are only two lines, the Inner Circle (anti-clockwise) and Outer Circle (clockwise). We caught the Inner Circle from Buchanan Street, and it cost just over £8 in total for 2 adults and 1 child for our return tickets.
The Subway takes just 24-minutes to complete each circle, it is a 10-mile circuit of the West End and City Centre, and has fifteen stops. We disembarked at Hillhead close to our restaurant for dinner.
Brel
Once out of the Subway we simply crossed the road, walked down an alley, and at the end of the cobbles of Ashton Lane, we found Brel. A restaurant with character, charm and an array of places to dine. The beer garden is huge and on different levels, with a live music stage, and covered firepits for guests to sit by and enjoy making S’mores.
Inside Brel, we sat facing the garden where the firepits are located. This is another restaurant famous for something a little different, famed for Cheese Fondue. We ordered a Cheese Fondue for two, which was served with new potatoes, cornichons, and soda bread. After much deliberation we also ordered the Veg Board, which included; crudites, mushrooms, olives, tenderstem broccoli, grapes, apple, soda bread and cornichons. My daughter opted for a Chicken Burger and she absolutely devoured it!
Honestly, the fondue could have easily served four people! The cheese was extremely tasty and it matched perfectly with everything we dipped in. We took the opportunity to rest before being taken to our very own firepit, where we made our own S’mores and warmed our hands around the fire.
The cheese fondue was priced at £27, and the addition of the veg board was an extra £12. The Firepits are bookable 7-days a week and start at £22 (2-4 guests) which includes a bottle of Prosecco and S’mores for all.
We ventured back to our hotel after an exhausting, but extremely rewarding and fun filled day in Glasgow.
Glasgow Science Centre
Our final day in the city meant we could visit the renowned Science Centre and Imax Cinema in the morning. This is where my daughter wanted to go more than anywhere else, so we designated a few hours to be hands-on and fully immersed ourselves in science.
Set on the banks of the River Clyde, the Glasgow Science Centre offers amazing displays on life, science and the universe. We could easily have spent the whole day at the centre, which includes a planetarium, Imax cinema, Newton Flight Academy, and a cafe.
After booking our tickets to watch Animal Kingdom at the Imax we explored the centre and took part in around 50 different science activities. We powered the future, went into outer space, visited the space zone, and found out about quantum technologies! It was an absolutely brilliant morning packed with learning new things.
Sitting in our seats in the cinema, we placed the 3D glasses on, and got lost in the world of the animal kingdom. Moreover, this was a spectacular adventure where we met six different animal families including a humble beetle and a magnificent elephant.
A brilliant morning was had by all, we’d have loved to stay longer if time had permitted. Priced at £14.75 per adult, £11.50 per child, and £3.50 per person for the Imax. After a little retail therapy in the Science Centre shop we ordered a taxi to our next destination.
Mackintosh at the Willow
It was time to relax over afternoon tea at Mackintosh at the Willow, where we tucked into a plethora of delicious sandwiches, cakes and scones. Plus, an excellent tea selection, which was something to behold!
Firstly, the afternoon tea included roast beef, smoked salmon, Scottish cheddar, and chipotle chicken sandwiches. Secondly, the 3-tiered afternoon tea stand had plain and fruit scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream. Thirdly, the cakes consisted of pumpkin pie, banoffee entrements, chocolate & orange delice, and a lemon macaron. We could enjoy as much tea as we wanted, so we tried the 1903 blend, breakfast blend, cloud catcher, berry hibiscus, and apple & cinnamon. It was a lovely way to spend the afternoon eating dainty sandwiches and delicious cakes. Afternoon Tea is Priced at £32 per person.
Mackintosh at the Willow is a world-class cultural and heritage attraction. The beautifully-designed Charles Rennie Mackintosh tea rooms were opened in 1903, they are his last surviving tea rooms in Scotland. Additionally, visitors can also book onto a tour or visit the exhibition, which showcases Glasgow in the late 1890s, and the growth of the tea rooms.
There is a retail store next to the tea rooms, where they stock a selection of gifts by Glasgow and Scottish based designers. Equally, shoppers can order limited edition Charles Rennie Mackintosh chairs, that have been restored by in-house furniture makers. Mackintosh at the Willow is cared for by National Trust For Scotland.
Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre
We walked from the top of the city to the bottom in order to visit the theatre on Trongate. It was a great time to take in the city en route.
The Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre is one of the most unique visitor attractions in Glasgow. Running since 1989 in the city, this popular production is like nothing you have ever seen before.
Sharmanka features an extensive collection of moving sculptures assembled from found objects, beautiful scrap metal, and exquisitely hand-carved wooden characters. Founded by sculptor-mechanic Eduard Bersudsky and theatre director Tatyana Jakovskaya in Russia. The whole production of Sharmanka then moved to Scotland after touring and exhibiting around the world. Eduard’s Kinemats are all kinetic art sculptures made between 1974 and today. Sergey Jakovsky began working with kinematics in Russia at the age of 12, now in his 40s he runs the day-to-day production of the show and helps to make and design new kinetic sculptures.
We don’t want to give too much away about this unusual show, but it will definitely leave you oohing and aahhing. Tickets are priced at £15 per adult, £13 concessions, £9 per child, and carers are free.
H&N Magazine would like to give thanks to the team at Visit Glasgow for organising every element of the trip to Scotland’s biggest city, Glasgow. @visitglasgow_sco
Image credit: All large/main Images supplied by Visit Glasgow (aside from Subway image which credit goes to Pexels). All small images supplied by Rachel McAlley for H&N Magazine.
A Fun and Fabulous Time in Scotland’s Biggest City, Glasgow – Words by Rachel McAlley / @LadyRach
