A quick train ride from Waverley Station in Edinburgh to Central Station in Glasgow dropped us just a few blocks from our hotel; the Carlton George Hotel. We stayed two nights and for the price…. it was more than impressive. Large clean well designed rooms, rooftop cafe and bar, and central to many of the Glasgow attractions. Glasgow is a very modern metropolitan city with a deep old-world charm and heritage. Unfortunately, we only had one and a half days to explore the city; trust me it can’t be done, but it dose leave us more to do when we return in August 2025 for the Royal Scottish Military Tattoo in Edinburgh.
George Square
Glasgow city center from the Carlton George Hotel rooftop cafe
We were less than a block from George Square, Queens Station, and many eateries such as the Counting House-JD Wetherspoon and Browns Glasgow; both restaurants we had great service, menus, and service, however, Browns was by far a five-star experience while Counting House was best for breakfast and tea time. One thing I noticed of restaurant menus in big tourist cities, is the menus tended to lean towards American tastes; that changed as we worked out into the more rural areas of Scotland such as Callander. Next door to our hotel is Waxy O’Conner’s; the type of pub establishment you might expect to see in Scotland and well worth a visit.
George Square is literally the city’s social meeting place and surrounding cafes set up outside for evening meal and drink service.
During the day, in front of the Glasgow City Chambers, there may be bag pipers and mounted Bobbies.
Waxy O’Conner’s is a wonderfully and uniquely designed pub and has an old-world richness. However, it is the only public establishment the urinal is literally a bucket.
Speaking of old-world interior design, Counting House-JD Wetherspoon has richness of ages past such as that of the Titanic.
Glasgow Cathedral
The crown attraction of Glasgow is the Glasgow Cathedral.
After visiting the Glasgow Cathedral you will want to go a short walk up the hill overlooking the cathedral to the Glasgow Necropolis. Not only is it a walk through the ages, it offers the best view of the cathedral and the city.
For just a day and a half, one cannot see all this grand city has to offer. But before we moved on to Perth and Pitlochry, we did a lot of walking around just to see more of of Glasgow.
More cathedrals and bridges, shops and coffee shoppes, and building sized murals.
Saint Andrew’s Cathedral of Glasgow is located with a view of the River Clyde.
My mom would call us kids, “Hootennannies”. I thought is was a countrified thing; but who would have thought it was a Scottish word!! Hootenanny I suppose she thought it was a word meaning “trouble maker”, but it essentially means “a festive gathering with music”.
The University of Strathclyde is the home of some of those murals.
Well the morning came, one last breakfast at the Counting House-JD Wetherspoon and off to Queens Station to catch a train to Perth; stage three of our Scottish Road-trip.
P.S. lodging in Glasgow is way more affordable than Edinburgh and it is just a quick train ride for a visit.