Parking in Glasgow

• For arts, entertainment or the University of Glasgow (G12 8QQ), park in the creative west end. There are car parks just off Ashton Road and Lilybank Gardens.
• Riverside and the Hydro Multi Storey Car Park are convenient places to park your hire car while visiting attractions such as the SSE Hydro events venue (G3 8YW). Ibrox Stadium (G51 2XD) and Govan Cross Shopping Centre (G51 3JW) are just across the River Clyde.
• NCP Park Glasgow King Street is a great option for easy access to the city centre or Glasgow Green, which is home to People’s Palace (G40 1AT).

Traffic in Glasgow

Some roads in Glasgow become busy at rush hour, including the M8, A83 Great Western Road and the M74 – especially between junctions 3 and 8. Peak traffic times are weekday mornings between 7:30am and 9:30am, and afternoons from 3:30am until 6:30am.

How to get from Glasgow Central to George Square

Glasgow central is one of our most popular car hire locations in Glasgow, and George Square one of the city’s most popular areas. The address is: George Square, Glasgow, Scotland, G2 1AL.

To get from Glasgow Central Train Station to George Street:

1. Exit the train station on to Argyle Street, which is part of Glasgow’s one-way system.
2. Turn left on to Robertson Street, then left again on to the Broomielaw thoroughfare, heading eastbound.
3. Keep driving parallel to the river as this road merges into Clyde Street (A814).
4. At the junction, keep left and exit on to Bridgegate (A814). Drive until you reach a crossroads, then take a left on to Saltmarket (A8) which merges with High Street
5. Turn left on to Ingram Street, right on toMontrose Street and takeCochrane Street towards George Square. TheNCP car parks on George Street and Mitchell Street are both within walking distance.

Roads and motorways

Main routes in Glasgow

• The M8 – one of Scotland’s most important arterial roads – goes right through the centre of Glasgow. It connects Glasgow city centre to the airport, Paisley and Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park (PA19 1BE).
• The A739 runs connects north and south Glasgow via the Clyde Tunnel.
• The M77 leads south from Glasgow, past attractions such as Pollock Country Park (G43 1AT).

Glasgow to Edinburgh

Driving from Glasgow to Edinburgh in a hire car is easy – just follow the M8 eastbound for an hour. When you reach the roundabout that connects the M8 to the City of Edinburgh Bypass (A720), take the third exit and keep left. Calder Road (A71) will deliver you to Edinburgh.

Glasgow to Loch Lomond

The journey from Glasgow to Loch Lomond takes just 40 minutes in a hire car. Head west on the M8, using the M898 to cross the River Clyde at its mouth. From here, the A82 charts a scenic road among Scotland’s western lochs.

What to see and do in Glasgow

Style Mile

Glasgow has a celebrated shopping scene, and Style Mile is the pinnacle. It centres around Buchanan Street, Merchant City and St Argyle Street and features hundreds of big-name fashion houses.

People’s Palace

A museum of social history and historic glasshouse set within the fields of Glasgow Green, People’s Palace is an architectural gem dating back to 1898. The stories of local life it champions date back all the way to 1750.

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

Glasgow has many esteemed museums, but Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is one of the most popular in all of Scotland. Its 22 themed galleries showcase more than 8,000 objects, including arms and armour, fine European art from many eras and natural history exhibits.

Two themed galleries, Life and Expression, have separated art from history since 2006.

St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art

Between the University of Strathclyde campus and Glasgow Necropolis lies a reconstructed medieval-style castle that’s home to a unique museum. It’s named after Glasgow’s patron saint and is dedicated to religion.

This part of town is home to some of Glasgow’s richest heritage, including its oldest house and Gothic Glasgow Cathedral.

Pollok Country Park

Glasgow is a great city for fresh air and recreation – the urban area alone boasts 90 separate parks. Pollok Country Park is one of the best, thanks to its combination of woodland, gardens, nature trails and the formidable Pollok House.

Inside this ancestral country house, you can see the esteemed Burrell Collection, which features important artwork from five millennia.

Glasgow’s best hotels

Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel

Glasgow’s city centre is filled with beautiful buildings, including the former Royal Scottish Automobile Club, which has become this beautiful five-star hotel. The interiors are at once grand and modern, and there’s nearby parking for the hire car, too.

Hotel du Vin at One Devonshire Gardens

Planning a weekend with Glasgow’s finest theatres? Staying in the fashionable west end stands you in good stead for seeing the city’s artistic side. This boutique hotel is popular for weddings and business trips thanks in part to the superb French cuisine it serves.

Crossbasket Castle

The ultimate Scottish holiday calls for a fortress, and Crossbasket Castle lives up to every expectation. This 17^th-century castle is now one of the Glasgow region’s most charming hotels – it’s just 25 minutes south of the centre by hire car in a popular spot for outdoor activities such as fishing and shooting.

Glasgow’s best places to eat

Rogano

Thought to be the oldest restaurant in Glasgow still trading, Rogano serves up 1930s Art Deco ambience from its restaurant, oyster bar and cafe. Over the decades, this establishment has become something of a polestar for fresh seafood lovers.

Bilson Eleven

Bohemian fine dining in the suburbs – what could better surmise Glasgow’s bold and outlandish east end? At Bilson Eleven, there’s an emphasis on artistic presentation and striking flavour combinations – the tasting menu is the quickest route through its catalogue of truffles, coal-oiled trout and vegetables coated in 20-year aged balsamic.

Blue Lagoon

Glaswegian cuisine may have taken great influence from France over the centuries, but today it’s better known for deep-fried chocolate bars than hors d’oeuvres. Blue Lagoon is a no-frills family-run fish bar that’s been widely heralded as one of the best fish and chip shops in Glasgow since the 1970s.

Best day trips from Glasgow

Loch Lomond

Loch Lomond is Britain’s largest lake, a glistening body of water that stretches for 24 miles. It’s set in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, which is home to some of the country’s most beautiful landscapes. Take to the southern trails and you might spy red deer. Or, drive the hire car into the peaks and glens of the far north.

Culzean Castle

An hour south of Glasgow by hire car, Culzean Castle is set in a relaxing country park beside the cliffs and beaches of western Scotland. Step inside to see the famous Oval Staircase, an architectural masterpiece designed by Robert Adam, or explore the nearby pond, woodland and parks.

Alloway

Alloway is a lyrical village just outside Ayr which is known as the birthplace of Scotland’s most famous poet, Robert Burns. It’s just 45 minutes from Glasgow by hire car and boasts attractions such as the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, Burns Cottage and the vast sands of Ayr Beach.