Glasgow：A City of Marvelous Architecture, Gorgeous Palaces and Museums

Located on the banks of River Clyde, Glasgow is a gorgeous city on the Scottish lowlands. It is known for its marvelous architecture and Victorian styled buildings. It is a haven for the cultural lovers with plethora of museums, art galleries, and beautiful architecture and not to forget, the musical capital of Scotland. Here are the top 10 tourist spots worth paying a visit when in Glasgow.

1. Glasgow Cathedral

It is a significant architecture from 12th Century and stands strong attracting millions of tourists with its intricate ornamentation and design. The crypt that houses the tomb is the biggest room in the cathedral. The Glasgow Cathedral is one of the best places for sight–seeing and is dedicated to St. Mungo. It was consecrated in 11th century but saw its completion after 300 years. The architecture of the cathedral including the nave, crypt and chapel continues to fascinate millions of travelers. The Sunday mornings are dedicated for service.

2. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

How about shopping at one of the largest galleries in the city? Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is around 1.5 miles long with large range of shops. The art gallery opened in the year 1901 that houses some of the finest British paintings. It has many paintings even by Van Gogh, Salvador Dali etc. A series of paintings is also featured by Glasgow School of Arts done by Charles Rennie Mackintosh. The gallery also houses Scottish artifacts, tools from Bronze Age, finest Glasgow made jewelry, silverware, potteries and many other exquisite collections.

3. Burrell Collection

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The Burrell Collection museum is a beautiful collection of artworks and objects inside glass walls. The fine woodlands surrounding the place and the looming serenity make the museum a much coveted sight-seeing destination. The collection is donated by Sir William Burrell with huge collection of Chinese ceramics and Rodin sculptures. The museum is housed in Pollok Country Park. The museum houses total of 9000 objects that starts from medieval tapestries to some exotic Degas and Cezanne work. It has symbolic pieces that represent culture of many places around the world.

4. Necropolis

Right adjacent the baroque Glasgow cathedral is the Gothic Victorian styled garden Necropolis which is spread across 37 acres. The walk through the Necropolis garden brings you close to culture and heritage with many memorial stone, sculptures and buildings that were designed by Charles Rennie Macintosh. It is a largest well designed cemetery with hundreds of tomb monuments. Across the garden, you will find many Celtic crosses and figures of weeping angles. The walk around the garden is beautiful with the Cathedral close by.

5. Pollok House and Pollok Country Park

The Pollok House and Pollok Country Park is spread across a sprawling campus of 355 acres and is located four miles away from city center of Glasgow. The Edwardian Mansion was home of Maxwell Family and was built in 1752 by William Adam. The building is now open for visitors where one can see the entrance till the servant’s quarter. It is like a museum with huge collection of Spanish paintings by El Greco, Velazquez and many other painters. The Pollok Garden is a well maintained garden with some gorgeous trails.

6. National Piping Centre and Bagpipe Museum

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Glasgow is the music capital and the place where Scottish Orchestra originated. It will be not fair if you do not visit the Museum during your trip. The National Piping Centre is a great place for aspiring musicians providing great resource for bagpiping and drumming. There are intensive bagpiping lessons also available. The Institute also houses the Museum of Piping that houses the oldest bagpipe relic Dall MacKay Chanter and Robbie Burns owned Memorabilia. There is a shop also for mementos, music and purchasing other supplies.

7. Glasgow Green and the People’s Palace

It is one of the oldest parks in Glasgow established in 1662 with the People’s Palace as its main tourist attraction. The museum was built in 1898 with the complete story about Glasgow through the 20th century from 1750. There are lot of things to see with the reproduction of “single end home” from 1930, “steamie” bathhouses and the display similar to Glasgow Barrowlands Ballroom. It is a great sight-seeing place with the Winter Garden located behind the palace which is a large conservatory.

8. Riverside Museum

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The Riverside Museum is one of the prolific tourist places to visit which is a complete transport based museum. The museum now includes many exhibits that were previously displayed in the former Transport Museum. The museum includes vehicles and locomotives. It has trams, vintage cars and horse drawn carriages for display. There is also the sinking of Lusitania included in the museum. The tall ship along the museum is another attraction which is a three-masted barque and is restored and maintained by Clyde Maritime Trust.

9. George Square and Merchant District

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The place is located in the heart of the Glasgow city and is timeless architectural piece designed in famous Victorian style. The flower surrounded George Square is famous for 12 statues are associated with the Glasgow city out of which some are Queen Victoria, Robbie Burns and Walter Scott. The Town Hall is located on the eastern end of the city which is a 239 feet tall tower. The headquarters of the place is the Merchant’s House and is also the older chamber of Commerce in Glasgow.

10. Kibble Palace and Botanical Garden

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The place was built in 1873 and is the largest glasshouse settings with a large collection of number of rare orchids. The botanical garden has plant collection from across the world from America, Africa, New Zealand, etc. making it the largest Botanical Gardens in Britain. The Kibble Palace is built beautiful with Victorian style architecture and incredible sculptures. It is located very close to Bellahouston Park which is known for its beautiful and colorful flowerbeds.

◎ Closing

The gorgeous and historically rich city of Glasgow brings to us some finest architecture. A city full of palaces and museums introduces us to its rich culture. These are some of the best sightseeing places to visit and expand more understanding about the city.

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