Glasgow Vacations, Glasgow Vacation Reviews, Tourism Guide

Glasgow Vacation Guide

If you believe the press, Glasgow (or Glasge, to the heavily accented locals), is the leaner side of Scotland, the rough to Edinburgh’s smooth. Best known across the country for ‘the Glasgow Kiss’ (slang for a headbutt) and the vicious, sectarian rivalry between the cities two football clubs - Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers – the city gets poor press. You’ll probably find it’s far from justified.

The outskirts might be edgy and distinctly working class (see the traditional sandstone tenement buildings, which make Glasgow look distinctly early 20th century), but in the centre the city’s a haven of pretty Victorian architecture, home to a bubbling art and music scene and impressively affordable.

Make the most of the traditional Scottish welcome (despite their rep, Glaswegians are undeniably friendly) to sample the astonishing local cuisine, which includes haggis, Scotland’s orange soft drink alternative Irn Bru and a well-publicised fetish for deep-fried confectionary, especially the deep fried mars bar, which can almost be described as a local modern day must try. Highlights of the city include the ornate 13th century cathedral (home to the tomb of the city’s saint, Saint Mungo), and the haunting Necropolis, which stares across the city to the banks of the Clyde River, and houses monuments to many of Glasgow’s more famous dead.

The Gallery of Modern Art is a lavish, columned building often surrounded by delicate ceiling lights, while the city’s lively music scene features the infamous ‘King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut’ venue, a tiny capacity rock club that hosts many big-name acts, and has a reputation that stretches across the UK. King Tut’s even has its own branded beer and vodka.

As well as being a draw in its own right, Glasgow makes for a great gateway, with day trips into the highlands, to the local whisky distilleries and up to lochs like Loch Ness and Loch Lomand easily doable. If you’re not confident of seeing nessy, there are plenty of impressive castles dating back hundreds of years in the surrounding countryside, too. The city’s bad rep, if anything, makes the locals only more eager to please: while Glasgow’s likely to fall well behind Edinburgh on your list of ‘must see’ Scottish destinations, it probably shouldn’t.