Tour of Glasgow

Visiting Glasgow from Ayrshire is easily done by train or bus. Trains run between Ayr and Glasgow Central every 20 minutes. Trains call at Prestwick, Prestwick Airport, Troon and Irvine on the 50 minute journey. Glasgow Central Station is in the centre of the city a short walk from George Square (centre of Glasgow) with Queen Street Train Station overlooking George Square. Glasgow Central Station trains connect mainly to the south of Scotland with Queen Street Station connecting to the north such as Stirling, Edinburgh and Inverness.

Glasgow is the largest City in Scotland best known for its vast shopping centre's and Victorian Buildings. There are hop on hop off busses that run dailly from George Square that visit and give information on Glasgow's main buildings and parks.

Over the past decade Glasgow centre has been transformed by some excellent modern buildings such as the St Enoch shopping centre. This centre, the first of the "mega" shopping malls in the city, is the largest glass-covered enclosed area in Europe. The Science Centre is a tourist attraction with an IMAX large screen cinema, three floors of a Science Centre and a 400 feet high rotating tower. The complex is located at Pacific Quay, beside the river Clyde, on a site which was used for the Glasgow Garden Festival in 1998. The project cost £75 million to build, with much of the funding provided by the Millennium Commission.

Glasgow's Transport Museum is currently located opposite the huge Art Gallery and Museum at Kelvingrove. There are plans to move it to an even larger building on the banks of the river, beside the Clyde Maritime Centre. Like all of Glasgow's museums and galleries, entrance is free. The main exhibition hall houses some of Glasgow's oldest transports from horse-drawn coaches to tram cars and buses. Detailed models of many of the ships built on the Clyde have been collected by the Transport Museum such as the Three Queens (Queen Elizabeth I and II and Queen Mary) warships, sailing ships and Clyde ferries. For information on this and other Glasgow museums, visit the website www.glasgowmuseums.com

The Scottish Maritime Museum is situated in Braehead a few miles west of Glasgow centre on the banks of the Clyde. This museum tells the story of Clyde shipbuilding (that produced some of the finest ships in the world) from the 1700's right up to the 21st century. For more information on the museum and trips down the Clyde to the museum, visit the website www.scottishmaritimemuseum.org

George Square (centre of Glasgow) was laid out in 1781. The City Chambers (seat of local government) and the main Post Office were later built around the edge and Queen Street Train Station built in the north-west corner. There are 11 statues scattered around the square such as Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, Robert Burns, James Watt and the tallest statue in the square Sir Walter Scott. The square is named after King George III of whom there are no statues. It is thought this is because the Glasgow tobacco lords were upset at King George losing their trade with the American colonies. The square used to be covered in grass and trees until recently when the Glasgow City Council decided they could rent out the space for exhibitions and entertainment, this led to the area being covered in red asphalt.

The City Chambers overlooking George Square houses the local government for Glasgow. The chambers were opened by Queen Victoria in 1888 on her second visit to Glasgow. Her previous visit 39 years earlier prompted her to say she disliked the city and would prefer not to return. The main pediment commemorates the Jubilee Year of Queen Victoria, who sits on her throne . There are tours of the building each week day morning and afternoon.

The Gallery of Modern Art is in the centre of Glasgow off George Square. This building was originally built as an elegant grecian-style mansion for an 18th century tobacco merchant who made his fortune in America. It later became the Stirling Library then in the early 1990s became the Gallery of Modern Art.

The People's Palace is Glasgow's social history museum telling the story of the people and city of Glasgow from 1750 to the present. You can see paintings, prints and photographs displayed alongside a wealth of historic artifacts, film and computer interactives. You can also visit the elegant Victorian glasshouse, the Winter Gardens, where you can relax among the tropical plants and enjoy the cafe. A short walk from the heart of the City, the People’s Palace lies within the grounds of historic Glasgow Green.

The University of Glasgow was founded in 1451 by Papal Bull with classes held in the Chapter House of Glasgow Cathedral. By the 17th century the University obtained its own buildings in the High Street then transferred to the present site on Gilmorehill in the West End of the city in 1870. The magnificent main building was designed in the Gothic style by Sir George Gilbert Scott. With its prominent position on the top of a hill looking over the River Kelvin, it is seen from all over the city and beyond its boundaries.

Situated about 1 mile east of George Square, Glasgow Cathedral is thought to have been built on a site beside the Molendinar Burn (now covered over) on which St Mungo built his first church in the 6th century. The tomb of St Mungo is also located within the present building where there are fragments of an old 13th Century shrine to the Saint. The cathedral was consecrated in 1136 in the presence of King David I. With that building being destroyed by fire, work on the present building began in 1197 for Bishop Jocelyn. Although Glasgow Cathedral was completed to its original design by the end of the 13th century, Robert Blackader, the first Bishop of Glasgow, added to it in the 15th century. Glasgow Cathedral was the only cathedral on the Scottish mainland to escape the destruction of the Reformation after craftsmen of the Trades House persuaded the Reformers to spare it. The Archbishop had already fled to France with the cathedral's relics and jewels (where they remain).

Glasgow's St Andrew's Cathedral is located on Clyde Street, overlooking the river and a pedestrian walkway along its banks. The building is the base for the Archbishop of Glasgow, the most senior figure in the Roman Catholic church in Scotland. St Andrew's was built in 1816 - at a cost of £16,000. It was the first major piece of Gothic revivalism in Glasgow. In architectural terms, the cathedral has traceried octagonal towers which flank the large window which overlooks the river. At the apex of the building is a niche containing a statue of St Andrew.

Late Rooms is an excellent website for booking many of the hotels in Glasgow. Simply click on the banner below and view rates for hotels over the next few days. To view dates up to three months in advance, Click on the Hotels Details then use the Search Engine to view the dates you require. Rooms can then be booked using the secure online booking system.