About

Glasgow, whose name means “green hollow” or “dear family”, is the largest city in Scotland. It is located along the River Clyde in the west central lowlands of Scotland. Although officially called “Glaswegians” other Scots often refer to them as “Keelies” or “Weedgies. Glasgow is an important hub for transatlantic trade today and one of the top twenty financial centers in Europe.

The Glasgow City Coat of Arms

Glasgow City has its own emblem, which the city got on the 25th October 1866 from the Lord Lyon. Elements of the coat of arms symbolize aspects of the life of St Mungo, the patron saint of Glasgow. The elements represent miracles that Saint Mungo performed in his life.

The city is divided into several districts. These are: 1) City Centre, 2) West End, 3) East End, 4) Southside, and 5), North Glasgow.

The boundaries of Glasgow City Centre are the High Street to the east, the river Clyde in the south and the M8 motorway to the west and north. The City Centre consists of retail and theater district, Merchant City and the Financial District.

Buchanan Street in Retail District

The retail shopping and theater district areas are Argyle, Sauchiehall and Buchanan streets. Also in the City Centre are the many cultural attractions in Glasgow. Among them are the Heritage Theatre Royal in Glasgow, the Royal Concert Hall and the Mitchell Library.

The Merchant City within the City Centre has many cafes and restaurants, and places like Old Tolbooth, Tron Theatre and the old fruit market. It is also the area where Glasgow’s art district is to be found.

Financial District within City Centre formally known as the International Financial Services District or IFSD. It is locally known as “Wall Street on Clyde”.

The bohemian West End district of Glasgow, is where there are many pubs, tea rooms, bars, shops, hotels and restaurants. Includes Kelvingrove Park, Glasgow University, Glasgow Botanic Gardens, and the BBC Scotland headquarters. It is also an area where the biggest annual festival, the West End Festival, is held.

Glasgow Necropolis

A well-known East End Glasgow  arrtraction is the Barrowland Market, also known locally as “the Barras.” It is a natural space that still contains many of the areas of the original sandstone buildings. One of the must-see places in the area is Glasgow Necropolis graveyard where there are many elaborate monuments to the tobacco lords of old aswell as many of the most influential figures in Glasgow’s history.

Southside is the largest area, located south of the River Clyde. In this area, important public buildings like Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Scotland Street School Museum and houses for art lovers and the National Stadium, Hampden Park is in Mount Florida.

North Glasgow is a residential neighborhood in the city.

Regardless of the area that interests you, visitors to Glasgow will find many Glasgow hotels  which will suit their own needs.

You can see that in Glasgow regardless of area of the city you choose to visit there will be lots of great Glasgow hotels to rest your head!