According to ABBREVIATIONFINDER, Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland. In the past, until the last few decades, Glasgow was more of a dirty industrial city. But that changed. There is now an interesting live arts scene in Glasgow, as well as performing and visual arts. In 1990 Glasgow was European Capital of Culture. Avacation Glasgow is definitely worth it, as the city has a wide range of attractions to offer its visitors.
One of the sights of Glasgow is George Square. It is the central square in front of the city hall. Visitors to Glasgow pass by here automatically as Queen Street Station is also located here. Here in George Square is usually the starting point of various sightseeing buses.
Another impressive place is the Royal Exchange Place. It’s just two hundred yards from George Square. For architecture lovers, the Royal Exchance Place is an absolute must, as the Gallery of Modern Art is located here. The building by architect David Hamilton was completed in 1829. The Gallery of Modern Art is considered the architect’s masterpiece. There are many pubs, clubs and cafes in the vicinity of the building, which are great places to relax.
There are plenty of special buildings in Glasgow. City Chambers is an absolute must. The Victorian Administration Palace stands directly on Queen Street in George Square. The palace was built in 1888. This building was designed by the architect William Young, who won an architecture award with the design. The baroque design of the building is really impressive. The inside of the building is also interesting. The banquet hall on the second floor should be seen in particular. It contains a large number of works of art and stained glass windows.
The Mitchell Library is well worth a visit. It stands near the Kingston Bridge. The library is one of the largest city libraries in all of Western Europe. The library’s decorative reading room is furnished with antique wooden desks. Extensive expansions and renovations took place at the library. Since then, the library has housed more than four million books.
The Piping Center is also worth a detour. This is a museum, but also a school, shop and performance venue. The Piping Center is all about the bagpipes.
The oldest house in Glasgow is the Provands Lordship. The interior is from the Middle Ages and is still in excellent condition. Provands Lordship was built in the Middle Ages.
The Kingston Bridge is impressive. It spans the Glyde and is one of the busiest bridges in Europe. The bridge was opened to the public for the first time in 1969. At that time the bridge was built for a daily traffic load of twenty thousand vehicles. However, since the volume has grown rapidly, the bridge had to be closed for a period of ten years since 1990. During this time, the bridge was extensively repaired and expanded.
The Glasgow Tower is an absolute must. This is a tower that is the tallest freely rotating building on earth. The tower is on the River Clyde, which created a problem. Since the subsoil is very sandy here, the building threatens to slowly but surely sink over time.
Tourists interested in old religious buildings are in the right place in Glasgow, as there are some impressive historic churches to see here. Among these is the St. Mungo’s Chatedral worth seeing. It is still in the old core of Glasgow, right on Castle Street. The previous cathedral dates from the sixth century and is said to have been built by St. Mungo. The city’s founder and church builder is said to be buried in the impressive crypt, which lies under the choir. The building that can be seen today, blackened by smog, was built between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries. In the vicinity of the church there are other impressive attractions such as the necropolis, a Victorian tomb city and obelisks.
Best travel time for Scotland
The high season in Scotland is between April and September, especially during the School holidays in July and August. During these two months, accommodations (including campsites) are often fully booked. Edinburgh is particularly crowded during the festivals in August.
In winter, public transport is less frequent and strong winds can mess up the timetable for the island ferries. Outside the big cities, some attractions are closed from November to March.
The best chances of good weather are in May, June and September. July and August are usually warm but can also be humid. In summer the days are long, the sun does not set on the Shetland Islands until around 11 p.m. in midsummer. On the other hand, there is hardly bright in Scotland in December.
In April and May in northern Scotland’s magnificent landscape is partly covered by the last snow, in southern Scotland and the Hebrides the wildflowers are already in bloom. In June the rhododendrons bloom in the Glens, in August the heather blooms.
In October, the forests of Perthshire and Trossachs turn spectacular colors. Winter in Scotland is rather gray and dark, but when the sun is shining the wintry scenery is often terrific.
The numerous seabird colonies on the Scottish coast are during the breeding season (April – July) most spectacular. In spring and autumn, huge flocks of ducks, geese and waders rest on the coast. Seals, dolphins and bottlenose dolphins can be seen most of the year, with the whale watching season peaking in July and August. Midges can be a problem when traveling in Scotland. They usually appear from June to September, most commonly in July and August.