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The Dear Green Place

Glasgow architecture

Glasgow was named European Capital of Culture in 1990 and the UK City of Architecture and Design in 1999. Its Victorian boom earned it the title 'Second City of the British Empire', and much of the grand architecture from that era still lines its streets. It is also the city of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, whose buildings are scattered from Garnethill to Maryhill.

  • 15Landmarks
  • 1197Oldest · Glasgow Cathedral
  • 32 mTallest · Glasgow Cathedral
  • 11Architects

Before you go

  • Fly intoGlasgow Airport (GLA)

    Glasgow Airport sits in Renfrewshire about 8 miles (13 km) west of the city centre, and buses link it directly with the main bus station. It is the larger of the two airports dedicated to Glasgow; Glasgow Prestwick lies about 30 miles to the southwest and has a direct train from Glasgow Central. Edinburgh Airport is also within easy reach.

  • CurrencyBritish Pound Sterling (£)
  • LanguageEnglish

    English is spoken everywhere, usually with a strong Glaswegian accent and plenty of Scots words mixed in. The city's name comes from Brittonic and is often said to mean 'dear green place'; in Scottish Gaelic it is Glaschu and in Scots, Glesca.

  • Getting aroundGlasgow Subway & Trains

    The Glasgow Subway is the world's third-oldest underground railway, after the London Underground and the Budapest Metro, and the only fully underground metro in the UK. The Subway is run by the regional transport authority SPT, alongside a large suburban rail network. Four direct railway lines connect Glasgow with Edinburgh.

  • Where to stayFind hotels in Glasgow on Expedia Vacation rentals on Vrbo

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  • Tours and ticketsFind tours in Glasgow on GetYourGuide More tours on Viator

    Skip-the-line tickets and guided tours of the landmarks. Stamped! may earn a commission.

15 landmarks in Glasgow

  1. Glasgow School of Art
    Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Twid assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Glasgow School of Art

    Renfrew Street, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Perched on Garnethill along Renfrew Street, the Mackintosh Building of the Glasgow School of Art is the masterpiece that made Charles Rennie Mackintosh famous. He designed it with Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh and built it in two halves, finished in 1899 and 1909. The building became a pioneer of the Modern Style, Britain's own take on Art Nouveau, and its renowned library became one of Mackintosh's best-known interiors. A fire in 2014 badly damaged it, and a second blaze in 2018 left only a burnt-out shell. Plans are in place to rebuild it in Mackintosh's original style.

    Built
    1909
    Architect
    Charles Rennie Mackintosh & Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh
    Style
    Art Nouveau (Modern Style)
    Today
    Awaiting Restoration
  2. The Lighthouse
    Photo: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    The Lighthouse

    11 Mitchell Lane, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Tucked into Mitchell Lane, this A-listed building began life as offices for the Glasgow Herald newspaper and was completed in 1895. It was Mackintosh's first building for the firm Honeyman and Keppie, and its tower has been compared to the campanile in Siena. In 1999 it reopened as Scotland's Centre for Design and Architecture, with a helical staircase climbing to a viewing platform over the city centre. The centre closed in 2020, and in 2025 the building was leased to new tenants.

    Built
    1895
    Architect
    Charles Rennie Mackintosh (Honeyman and Keppie)
    Style
    Art Nouveau
    Stories
    6
    Today
    Office
  3. Willow Tearooms
    Photo: JJCMarshall, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Willow Tearooms

    217 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    These tearooms at 217 Sauchiehall Street opened in October 1903 and are the only survivors of the rooms Mackintosh designed for his patron, Miss Catherine Cranston. They quickly became the most famous of Glasgow's many tearooms. After decades of decline, a trust bought the building in 2014 and restored it largely to Mackintosh's designs. It reopened as working tearooms in 2018 and is now owned by the National Trust for Scotland.

    Built
    1903
    Style
    Art Nouveau
    Today
    Tearoom
  4. Queen's Cross Church
    Photo: dave souza, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Queen's Cross Church

    Garscube Road, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Known simply as the Mackintosh Church, this is the only church Mackintosh designed that was ever built. It stands where Garscube Road meets Maryhill Road and was completed in September 1899. Instead of a soaring spire, the red sandstone church has a squat, castle-like tower modelled on one he saw in Somerset. Inside, the double beams and pendants even show Japanese influences. Since the congregation left in the 1970s it has been the home of the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Society.

    Built
    1899
    Style
    Art Nouveau
    Today
    Museum & Venue
  5. Scotland Street School Museum
    Photo: Finlay McWalter, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Scotland Street School Museum

    Scotland Street, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Mackintosh designed this school in the Kingston district between 1903 and 1906, battling the school board over a design that ran over budget. Its most striking features are two glazed towers holding the staircases, inspired by Scottish castles. Built for 1,250 pupils, the school closed in 1979 when enrolment fell below 100. It reopened in 1990 as a museum of education, where actors play strict Victorian teachers in a recreated classroom.

    Built
    1906
    Style
    Art Nouveau (Modern Style)
    Today
    Museum
  6. Glasgow Cathedral
    Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Julesn84 assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Glasgow Cathedral

    Castle Street, Glasgow G4 0QZ, United Kingdom

    The oldest building in Glasgow and the oldest cathedral in mainland Scotland, this Gothic church was dedicated in 1197 over the tomb of Saint Mungo, the city's patron saint. Much of what you see today comes from a major rebuilding in the 13th century, and the central tower and spire were added in the 15th. Along with St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney, it is one of only two medieval Scottish cathedrals to survive the Reformation almost intact. The University of Glasgow even held its first classes in its chapter house.

    Built
    1197
    Architect
    Unknown (medieval builders)
    Style
    Gothic
    Height
    32 m (105 ft)
    Today
    Church
  7. Glasgow City Chambers
    Photo: Michael D Beckwith, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Glasgow City Chambers

    George Square, Glasgow G2 1DU, United Kingdom

    Filling the east side of George Square, the City Chambers were designed by William Young and opened by Queen Victoria in August 1888. The ornate facade mixes Renaissance classicism with Italianate details, built to show off the wealth of the 'Second City of the Empire'. Its pediment celebrates Victoria's Golden Jubilee, with the queen enthroned among figures of the nations and colonies. The building is still the headquarters of Glasgow City Council.

    Built
    1888
    Architect
    William Young
    Style
    Victorian (Beaux-Arts)
    Today
    City Hall
  8. Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
    Photo: 瑞丽江的河水, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

    Argyle Street, Glasgow G3 8AG, United Kingdom

    This red sandstone palace in Kelvingrove Park opened in 1901 as the Palace of Fine Arts for that year's Glasgow International Exhibition. Designed by the architects Simpson & Milner Allen in a Spanish Baroque style, it carries a whole programme of architectural sculpture. Local legend says it was built back to front, but the grand entrance always faced the park on purpose. Its 22 galleries display over 8,000 objects, from Dalí's Christ of St John of the Cross to Sir Roger the elephant.

    Built
    1901
    Architect
    John W. Simpson & E. J. Milner Allen
    Style
    Spanish Baroque
    Today
    Museum
  9. Riverside Museum
    Photo: Cutkiller2018, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Riverside Museum

    100 Pointhouse Road, Glasgow G3 8RS, United Kingdom

    Zaha Hadid Architects designed this home for Glasgow's transport collection on the new Pointhouse Quay, right on the River Clyde. It opened in June 2011 and won the European Museum of the Year Award in 2013. The museum is part of the regeneration of the old Glasgow Harbour, and the tall ship Glenlee is moored right alongside. Since 2024 a new bridge has carried walkers and cyclists across the Clyde from here to Govan.

    Built
    2011
    Today
    Museum
  10. OVO Hydro
    Photo: William Starkey, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    OVO Hydro

    Exhibition Way, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    This indoor arena on the Scottish Event Campus was designed by Foster + Partners and opened on 30 September 2013. Its roof and outer skin are made of translucent cushions, so the whole building glows when it is lit up at night on the waterfront. It holds about 14,300 people and regularly ranks among the busiest arenas in the world. It opened as the SSE Hydro and took its current name in 2021.

    Built
    2013
    Today
    Arena
  11. SEC Armadillo
    Photo: Thomas Nugent, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    SEC Armadillo

    Exhibition Way, Glasgow G3 8YW, United Kingdom

    Originally called the Clyde Auditorium, this Foster + Partners concert and conference hall opened on the banks of the Clyde in September 1997. Its shell of overlapping curved sections looked so much like an armadillo that the nickname stuck and eventually became its official name. The 3,000-seat hall was built as an expansion of the old exhibition centre on the former industrial waterfront. Today it sits beside the OVO Hydro as part of the Scottish Event Campus.

    Built
    1997
    Style
    High-tech
    Today
    Auditorium
  12. People's Palace
    Photo: Spike, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    People's Palace

    Glasgow Green, Glasgow G40 1AT, United Kingdom

    Lord Rosebery opened this 'palace for the people' on Glasgow Green on 22 January 1898, declaring it open to the people forever. It was built as a cultural centre for the crowded East End, with reading rooms, a museum and a picture gallery. City Engineer Alexander B. McDonald designed it, and sculptures of Art, Science, Shipbuilding, Industry and Progress decorate the front. Since the 1940s it has been the city's social history museum, with the glass Winter Gardens behind it.

    Built
    1898
    Architect
    Alexander B. McDonald
    Today
    Museum
  13. Templeton On The Green
    Photo: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Templeton On The Green

    Glasgow Green, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Few factories look like this: James Templeton's carpet works on Glasgow Green was modelled by architect William Leiper on the Doge's Palace in Venice. Templeton hired Leiper after the city kept rejecting his plans, wanting a design too grand to refuse. During construction in 1889 the facade collapsed in high winds, killing 29 women in the weaving sheds next door. Completed in 1892, the building now holds apartments, offices and the WEST brewery.

    Built
    1892
    Architect
    William Leiper
    Style
    Venetian Gothic
    Today
    Mixed Use
  14. Provand's Lordship
    Photo: TSP, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    Provand's Lordship

    Castle Street, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Built in 1471 by Bishop Andrew Muirhead as part of St Nicholas's Hospital, this is a rare medieval house that has survived in the heart of Glasgow. It stands at the top of Castle Street, within sight of the cathedral. A western extension designed by William Bryson was finished in 1670, and in the 19th century the building was a sweet shop. Today it is a museum, and recent restoration gave it a roughcast render closer to its 15th-century look.

    Built
    1471
    Architect
    Unknown (medieval builders); William Bryson (1670 extension)
    Style
    Medieval
    Stories
    3
    Today
    Museum
  15. St Vincent Street Church
    Photo: dalbera, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

    St Vincent Street Church

    St Vincent Street, Glasgow, United Kingdom

    Alexander 'Greek' Thomson designed this temple-like church, built from 1857 to 1859 for the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Its tower on St Vincent Street was probably drawn by his young assistant, Robert Gordon Wilson. The World Monuments Fund listed it on its watch list three times and helped restore the tower. Falling plaster forced its congregation out in 2021, and the building has stood empty while its future is debated.

    Built
    1859
    Architect
    Alexander Thomson
    Style
    Greek Revival
    Today
    Vacant

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