Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Buchanan Street pedestrian precinct and Argyle Street.
Hillhead station is bang in the heart of the West End, near
the university.
5
BY TAXI
You can hail a black taxi
from anywhere in the city centre,
day or night. There are also taxi ranks at Central and Queen
Street train stations and Buchanan Street bus station. Fares
are very reasonable; from the city centre to the West End
costs £6-7, or the three-mile journey from Central station
to Pollok Park and the Burrell Collection costs around £10.
Taxis
Glasgow Taxi Ltd (
T
0141 429 7070,
W
glasgowtaxis
.co.uk), Hampden Cabs (
T
0141 332 5050,
W
hampdencabs.co.uk), West End Radio Cars (
T
0141 954
2000,
W
westendradiocars.co.uk).
BY TRAIN
Surburban trains
The suburban train
network is swift
and convenient. Suburbs south of the Clyde are connected
to Central station, either at the mainline station or the
subterranean low-level station, while trains from Queen
Street (which also has mainline and low-level stations)
head into the northeast suburbs.
Cross-city lines
There are two grim but functional cross-
city lines: the one running through Central station connects
to southeastern districts as far out as Lanark, while the
Queen Street line links to the East End and points east. Trains
on both lines go through Partick station, near the West End,
which is also an underground stop; beyond Partick, the
trains are an excellent way to link to points west and
northwest of Glasgow, including Milngavie (for the start of
the West Highland Way), Dumbarton and Helensburgh.
BY CAR
The M8 motorway runs right through the heart of Glasgow,
making the centre very accessible by car; once you're there,
however, the grid of one-way streets and pedestrian
precincts can be frustrating to navigate. You'll find plenty of
parking meters and there are many car parks
dotted
around the city centre.
Car rental
Arnold Clark, multiple branches (
T
0844
815 2129); Avis, 70 Lancefield St (
T
0844 544 6064);
Budget, West St Trading Estate (
T
0844 544 4606). Car
rental at the airport is listed under “Arrival and
Departure”.
BY BUS
Buchanan Street bus station
Glasgow's main bus
terminus (6am-11pm;
T
0141 332 6811), north of
Sauchiehall Street and opposite the Royal Concert Hall. As well
as intercity buses, this is where local city services depart from.
First Glasgow
Serves Glasgow, Edinburgh, central
Scotland, the Borders and Aberdeen (
T
0141 423 6600,
W
firstgroup.com).
BY FERRY
Govan Ferry
The Govan ferry (
T
01475 721281) runs
between the pontoon at Water Row and the Kelvin Harbour
landing stage linking the Riverside Museum with Govan.
INFORMATION
City tourist o
ce
11 George Square (April & May Mon-
Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 10am-6pm; June & Sept Mon-Sat
10am-7pm, Sun 10am-6pm; July & Aug Mon-Sat
9am-8pm, Sun 10am-6pm; Sept-March Mon-Sat
9am-6pm
;
T
0141 204 4400,
W
seeglasgow.com.
Gay and lesbian information
Strathclyde Lesbian and
Gay Switchboard (
T
0141 847 0447).
TOURS AND ACTIVITIES
City Sightseeing
City Sightseeing (April-Oct daily
9.30am-4.30pm; £11;
T
0141 204 0444,
W
citysightseeingglasgow.co.uk) run tours of Glasgow's
sights by open-top bus, which leave every half-hour from
George Square on a continuous circuit of all the major
attractions in the city centre and West End, allowing you to
get on and off as you please. Tickets are valid for two days.
The Waverly
Tour Glasgow and the Clyde on the
Waverly
(
T
0845 130 4647,
W
waverleyexcursions
.co.uk)
, the world's last seagoing passenger-carrying
paddle steamer.
Golf
The city operates several inexpensive municipal
courses. One of the best maintained and longest is
Littlehill, at Auchinairn Road (
T
0141 276 0704).
ACCOMMODATION
There's a good range of accommodation in Glasgow, from a large, well-run
youth hostel
through to some highly
fashionable (and not over-priced)
designer hotels
in the centre. The majority of the best guesthouses and B&Bs can be
found in the
West End
. Given that many hotels are business-oriented, you can often negotiate good deals at weekends.
(some good for families) in a beautifully restored church
building, run by pleasant staff as part of
a bro
ad-thinking,
approachable Baptist church community.
£69
Arthouse Glasgow
129 Bath St
T
0141 221 6789,
CITY CENTRE
HOTELS AND GUESTHOUSES
Adelaide's
209 Bath St
T
0141 248 4970,
W
adelaides.
co.uk; map pp.188-189.
Eight simple, functional rooms
