Three years ago, I was coming back to the US after a wonderful trip to Edinburgh and Glasgow. It was a trick getting into the city – you may recall, our train didn’t exist – but once we got there, we had the opportunity to really see the city at its holiday peak. This was the last time we spent the holidays away from home, and I think back on it fondly, especially as we start planning our trips for this year. This is how we spent four days in Glasgow…
Day 1: Buchanan Bus Station
With pre-booked train tickets in hand, we learned that there were no trains going in or out of Edinburgh – including our planned train to Glasgow. We had to pivot our plan, and we purchased tickets for the next bus heading that way. We ended up getting to Buchanan Bus Station that afternoon and immediately seeking out a late lunch.
We found The Citizen Glasgow, which offered some delicious Scottish dishes and really hit the spot. It also gave us an opportunity to further explore Buchanan Street before making our way to our gorgeous Airbnb. We settled in then called it an early evening at home. We figured we earned some rest after a trying travel day.
Day 2: Christmas Fair at George Square
We spent the morning shopping – even though I’d packed my good coat, I still needed gloves! We found some at Primark before hitting up the Christmas Fair at George Square. As I’ve mentioned before, I love a good Christmas market! Highlights include the Kris Kringle Nook Glühwein House, as well as some very tasty macarons.
We later made our way to Bread Meats Bread, a family business with some really great burgers. I’d highly recommend it! We then shopped for groceries at Sainsbury’s to bring back to our Airbnb, and we spent the rest of the evening cozying up there.
Day 3: Glasgow Mural Trail
This was definitely the day we did the most running around, as we tried to follow the Glasgow Mural Trail! Highlights include:
- Glasgow Green, a huge park near our Airbnb and home to the People’s Palace museum
- The Willow Tea Rooms, where Tyler and I had a delightful afternoon tea
- A return to the Christmas Fair at George Square
- Glasgow Cathedral and the Necropolis, two must-visits for any Glasgow tourist
- Drygate Brewing Co., which offered us the perfect pints right when we needed them
At the Airbnb, we did run into an issue with the washing machine that turned into a whole event – essentially, our clothes were locked in there – but the host worked with us to quickly get it resolved. She even sent them out for drycleaning, which we got back the next day!
Day 4: WEST Brewery
As we finalized the laundry drama, our day was off to a slow start. We ended up grabbing lunch at WEST Brewery, which gave me a chance to try haggis! (Full transparency: I got vegan haggis.) We also enjoyed neeps and tatties, as well as a walk through Glasgow Green.
Our afternoon and evening was spent checking out the local shops. A fun one we found was in St. Enoch Centre, called the Selfie Store. I know these are more common now, but we hadn’t seen one before, and we had a lot of fun taking pictures! We also made another visit to the Christmas Fair at George Square, followed by dinner and drinks at Speakeasy.
Day 5: Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
We checked out of our Airbnb and dropped our luggage at Glasgow Central Station, as we prepared for a very full day running around. We meandered through Kelvingrove Park as we made our way to BrewDog Glasgow for lunch. It’s definitely worth a visit for solid food and beer! We then had a great time exploring the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.
Of course, since our train wasn’t leaving until late that night, we still had a lot of time to run around the city after our museum visit. Highlights include:
- Oxfam Bookshop, which had a wide selection of wares
- Glasgow Botanic Gardens, which has some gorgeous greenhouses
- Loop & Scoop, where we indulged in ice cream and churros
- Browns Brasserie & Bar, where we had a wonderful dinner before heading back to the train station
We then boarded our Caledonian Sleeper train to London, where we’d wake up just in time to celebrate New Year’s Eve…
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