So you’re spending 48 hours in Glasgow on a quick weekend trip.
Scotland’s most populous city is famous for its subtle charm and industrial culture. Glasgow was reputedly founded by the historic St. Mungo, who built a church on the Molendinar Burn, tapping its waters to brew beer for his congregation. That small outpost grew into the urban center we know today — but don’t expect the same towering medieval castles and ubiquitous historical architecture of nearby Edinburgh.
Make no mistake, Glaswegians are immensely proud of their city (and in the case of one bus driver we met, quick to talk trash about the commercial glitz of Edinburgh). Locals love Glasgow, and for good reason — the city resonates with a down-to-earth feel. People know the importance of working and living; of a cold pint and a wee dram.
We only had 48 hours in Glasgow, as we were also packing Edinburgh, Rotterdam, and several Greek Islands into our trip. Nonetheless, we managed to hit the ground running, and left town feeling that we’d done those two days right.
That’s why I’m writing this guide. If you’re planning a quick trip to Glasgow, here are some hand-picked things to do, to ensure that your visit is as rewarding as ours was.
Things to Do with 48 Hours in Glasgow:
- Kelvingrove Park
- Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery
- Tennent’s Brewery Tour
- Clydeside Distillery Whiskey Tour
- Loch Lomond
- Glencoe
- Find the Loch Ness Monster
- Necropolis
- The Scotia Bar
1. Explore Kelvingrove Park
We chose to start our trip in Kelvingrove Park, which turned out to be the perfect choice.
In addition to getting the blood flowing at the start of the day, Glasgow’s biggest park offers a microcosm of the Scottish countryside. Unique flowers and plant life cover the sprawling area, and the changing elevation brings a tiny taste of the highlands to the city, as well as a scenic view.
Locals come here to enjoy some fresh air, and when we visited in mid-April, the weather was beautiful. It’s also right next to…
2. Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery
The Kelvingrove Museum and Art Gallery was our next stop. It’s a convenient stroll from the park, and totally free to enter.
This museum was really solid. You can learn about the Glasgow Boys, a movement of painters from Glasgow who, for a brief period during the 1880s and 1890s, were celebrated as some of the most exciting new artists in Europe. This resonated with us, as we too were now starting to feel like a couple of Glasgow boys.
There’s another serious, must-see work here that we really enjoyed, the eerie, controversial Christ of Saint John of the Cross by Salvador Dali.
In his later career the iconic surrealist became fascinated with religion and by new revelations in atomic theory, which he considered proof of God’s existence. Dali gained an audience with the Pope, who realized the power of the artist’s influence, and granted the church’s blessing for his religious works.
Dali wanted to paint a modern crucifixion, and after much consideration, landed on the concept we know today. In it, Jesus hangs high above the world with an impossible sense of perspective. He’s totally unharmed, no bloody nails or crown of thorns, and below him is a Spanish boatman representative of Dali’s hometown.
When it came out, a lot of people wanted it burned. We loved it, and if you go to the museum, it’s a must-see. There are even regular organ performances in the beautiful arching foyer, and with the museum’s only cost being an optional donation, it’s worth at least a quick peek.
3. Tennent’s Brewery Tour
Descend from the lofty heights of critical contemplation into the world of corporeal conviviality, with a hands-on tour of the brewery that birthed Glasgow.
That’s actually not much of an exaggeration. In the 6th century, the Christian missionary St. Mungo decided that the Molendinar Burn would make the perfect site for a new community, and its waters the perfect source for the brewery that would sustain it.
Fast-forward a few centuries, and the brewery is now Tennent’s, a world famous Scottish beer brand. For £12.50, you can tour the facilities, and see up close how the beer is brewed, processed, and packaged. At the end, enjoy an ice cold glass of Tennent’s yourself (it was delicious), and an optional tasting of some unique variations that you can’t get anywhere else.
We were impressed by our tour guide, a young fella who seemed, like many Glaswegians, to admire his city’s product on a daily basis. Another older man told us that he had grown up down the street, and would smell the powerful scent of hops and barley each day on his way home from school. It really is an institution around here.
One poor French lady, bless her heart, confided in me that she couldn’t understand a word our tour guide was saying due to his heavy accent. Her embarrassment was mildly assuaged when I confessed that I was only picking up on three-out-of-five words myself, but it’s something to consider for non-native English speakers.
4. Clydeside Distillery Whiskey Tour
If you fancy something a bit stronger, consider the whiskey tour at the Clydeside Distillery.
Even more than beer, Scotland is known for its whiskey. Clydeside isn’t a cultural institution like the Tennent’s brewery, having sprung up only five years ago. However, it is a great way for whiskey fans to get an intimate look at the distilling process, in the country that does it best.
We didn’t get to visit on our trip, but it could make a great double whammy for some of you inebriates after hitting Tennent’s.
5. Loch Lomond
Hold on. Loch Lomond? That’s not in Glasgow.
Astute reader you are correct. One great thing about Glasgow is its proximity to some incredible natural beauty; these next three items were things we did as one single day trip, leaving on our second morning and returning to the city at night.
We took the pressure off by booking a tour that included Loch Lomond, Glencoe, and Loch Ness. They were some of the most memorable moments of our time in Scotland, and we’d recommend you do the same if you have just 48 hours in Glasgow!
Loch Lomond is just an hour’s drive from Glasgow, and those of you who perked up at item #4 on this list will recognize the name from the world famous Loch Lomond Whiskey (we actually did get to see the distillery, which is nestled amongst clear streams and mountainous countryside like some kind of idyllic whiskey advertisement postcard).
The Loch itself is also famous, thanks in no small part to the catchy tune “Loch Lomond” with its memorable refrain You’ll take the high road and I’ll take the low road / And I’ll be in Scotland afore you / Where me and my true love will never meet again / On the bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond.
The song will get stuck in your head, and so will the views of this huge, picturesque body of water.
6. Experience the Highlands at Glencoe
Originally, we had only planned to go to nearby Loch Lomond, but a gentleman at a coffee shop told us that Glencoe was not to be missed. How right he was.
Glencoe is the real-deal highlands experience. Vast, sweeping views of the bright green countryside, and natural formations like the Three Sisters mountains.
Glencoe is about two hours away from Glasgow, so it’s more of a trek than Loch Lomond. But if we had to pick one of the two, we’d recommend Glencoe. It just reeks of Scottish highlands and we loved it.
The author, intrepid explorer of all things unknown, casts a small handheld line into the murky depths of the Loch in search of truth
7. Hunt for the Loch Ness Monster
The way I see it, no trip to Scotland is complete without contributing to the noble and meaningful pursuit of finding the elusive Loch Ness monster.
Nessie, as she’s fondly called by locals, is one of the biggest reasons people come to Scotland. I had expected that, spending just 48 hours in Glasgow, I would have to miss out on this great mystery, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to visit this iconic destination in the end.
It’s got everything. Mysterious loch, the craggily Urquhart Castle, and a chance to see the friendliest liopleurodon-looking thing in the United Kingdom of Great Britain. When I realized we were going on a cruise across the loch, it took everything I had not to dive in there and high-five Nessie myself.
I’m usually an off-the-beaten-path kind of traveler, but do you really want to come home from Scotland and tell your disappointed friends and family that you didn’t even try to find the Loch Ness monster? That’s why I recommend a tour for these last three items. For the reasonable price of $80, we were able to see all three of these beautiful scenic locales in one day, which would have been a bit hectic to do on our own.
We used Timberbush Tours and had a great time. The stops were on the shorter side, but we covered a huge amount of ground across Loch Lomond, Glencoe, and Loch Ness, and the drive itself was a great way to take in the famous views of the Scottish countryside.
8. Necropolis
The Latin fanatics among you will realize that this word means “City of the Dead.”
Why is something called the “City of the Dead” one of Glasgow’s most popular attractions? It sounds like a nightmarish thriller in which Keanu Reeves plays an antihero vampire slayer, cursed with agelessness to wander between the planes for eternity; slaying demons, holding onto his last bastion of humanity, and searching for a way to taste the sweet release of the afterlife.
Actually, it’s a big hill that’s also a cemetery. It’s really beautiful.
The Necropolis is right beside the Tennent’s brewery, so it was a great place for us to walk off the beer. I’m no stranger to haunted hills, and this one is as spooky as they come. There are many old and famous graves, including one that belonged to the “Queen of the Gypsies” Corlinda Lee. You can place a coin on her grave for good luck, if you can find it.
The whole area hums with an eerie kind of beauty. There are huge ornate gravestones, and local teens come here to smoke weed and watch the sunset. We took the opportunity to admire the sunset as well, and as you can see in the photo, it’s rather spectacular.
9. The Scotia Bar
Celebrate a successful day of adventuring at The Scotia Bar, “the oldest pub in Glasgow.”
When we stepped into Scotia, we were stunned. This was the Scottish pub experience.
As soon as we descended a few steps into the cozy, dimly-lit pub, we were struck by the sound of lively Scottish folk tunes. The majority of clientele were old Glasgow locals — a good sign — and many of them were jamming out on traditional songs. Those who weren’t playing music were laughing and nursing whiskeys.
There’s no food here, just drinks. We hadn’t eaten so we had to wrench ourselves away from the beautiful experience to find dinner, at which point one of the older gentlemen scoffed and asked us “had enough already?”
So when we came back, we made sure to do it right, enjoying the whiskey and warm, wooden atmosphere late into the night. The Scotia Bar comes highly recommended.
Is 48 hours in Glasgow enough?
Spending just 48 hours in Glasgow, you can experience culture and art, whiskey and beer, scenic nature as well as local energy.
Of course, there’s more to be seen, and this is a city worth savoring. But it’s possible, in a short time, to get a sample of Glaswegian living that will leave you ready to plan your next visit.
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Photography by Bryson Kohnhorst for Mind Body Globe