Hands down a must visit in Glasgow! Free admission!…read moreLocated in Kelvingrove Park, West End. This is a popular museum and art gallery with the likes of Dali and more. It's a large space and it's divided up by fine art, natural history, etc. I wandered through all of the rooms and believe that I saw almost every exhibit. I spent hours and just took my time taking it all in. Stopped by the cafe' for a cuppa tea too. Fantastic museum.

The museum is one of the top attractions in Glasgow. It was established in 1901- 125 years ago. The…read morearchitecture of the building itself is a marvel. I'm not much of a museum person, but entrance is free. The expansive museum's west wing focuses on "Life" (natural history/prehistory), while the east wing focuses on "Expression" (fine art). There are 22 galleries with 8,000 objects. Salvador Dalí's "Christ of Saint John of the Cross" is one of their most famous works of art. I was most interested in "The Floating Heads" installation by Sophie Cave. We spent most of our time viewing Scotland's Wildlife, where most of the kids were. While we were there, we also enjoyed an organ recital- 1:00pm Monday-Saturday and 3:00pm on Sunday.

Free entry at the National Museum of Scotland. Filled with rich history and interactive booths…read more There is a cafe with grab and go options and a gift shop too. The best photo op is the third floor balcony overlooking the atrium! Such a gorgeous spot and great option to get out of the rainy weather!

It's the museum on Chambers Street. The entrance is in the round tower that is across the street…read morefrom Greyfriars Bobby. You might as well rub his nose for good luck before crossing over. There is a beautiful & bright atrium in the heart of the museum. You can see all 4 floors from this spot as you look up from the first floor. There are galleries and exhibits all around it. We started our journey on the ground floor of the tower in the Kingdom of the Scots, and then worked our way up and over. It truly is the perfect place to go on a rainy morning. The best part is that it's free admission, but donations are always welcomed. There were many highlights for me. The Maiden that was used for public executions in Grassmarket, Mercat Cross, and Castlehill was certainly eerie to look at along with some of the torture devices used back in that period. The display of items belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots was presented beautifully. Especially that lovely jeweled necklace. The exhibits of the Americas was nicely done. I even saw a gut parka on display that was similar to one we saw in Alaska earlier this year. The displays of musical instruments and ceremonial dance costumes was vibrant & interesting. I was drawn to the Bloody Empire display. It was a very artistic expression of anarchism in the form of wallpaper. It's unique. I have to say the same thing about the Slit Gong musical instrument that is said to bring out the voices of a dead ancestor. Very creepy stuff! The subject matter lightened up a bit as we walked through the technology & industry part of the museum. It was cool to see "The Hawk" as well as the display of bicycles and phones (including a Mickey Mouse one). But, I think the best part was the spectacular view of Edinburgh from the open rooftop. It would have been better on a sunny day, but it was still a great sight to see. It's worth taking those outdoor spiral steps up to see it. I love that there's a mini garden with upland grasses and plants along the lookout walls of the roof. A nice little touch. We spent about 2 hours here, but could have easily stayed longer. There's a balcony café on what is technically the 3rd floor of the building (2nd floor when looking up from the main atrium). There is a fee-based exhibit called "Monkeys Our Primate Family" that may be of interest to some. It ends on 30 Nov 2025. Overall, the museum is great fun for all ages. It's a great way to learn more about the Scottish innovators throughout history.

I bloody love this place!…read more Completely forgot about it until a trip back home saw me passing the front door of the Museum and flooding back came the memories! The Museum and Art Galleries is an absolute asset to the Inverclyde area. The museum itself has some seriously amazing exhibits. Everything from Stone Age artifacts to ancient Egyptian relics and a preserved mummy kept in a climate controlled viewing cabinet! The building also plays host to some beautiful British and Scottish art but my favourite section depicts the history of the Clyde from Shipbuilding to the present day. Wondered what all those place looked like that your grandparents talked about? Well you'll get a good feel of them by seeing all the old pictures, the little bits of history people have kept and by reading the stories as you walk around. The also offer classes during the holidays for school children but these are extremely popular! One or two day events they usually revolve around art and gives your kids the chance to be hands on in a number of different art projects! Highly recommended!

I used to come here years ago when it was mainly a natural history museum in the upstairs part of…read morethe building. It has had a huge face-life and undergone extensive work and now it is a small but beautiful museum with extensive displays of many kinds. There are collections from many cultures across the centuries, industrial, marine and local history, and there is still a fine natural history section too. A nice little shop is found downstairs too where you can buy books on the area, gifts and small toys. There's free internet access as well. Highly recommended. Video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQFanSNgg18

We happened to come across the museum while walking around Glasgow University. It's free, so we…read moredecided to check it out. It's the oldest public museum in Scotland. There were some interesting artifacts.

I visited The Hunterian, located on-campus at the University of Glasgow, for the first time on…read moreWednesday 17 July 2019. I was following a geologist on Twitter who worked/collabed with the museum (I have since deleted my account - in the first half of 2021) and decided it would be fun to check the exhibits out. The building was straightforward to find and was marked for The Hunterian. The entrance was located up some stairs and had posted hours just outside the entrance. The admission was free. I enjoyed the different exhibits overall. Workers were friendly, but not nosy. The artifacts were well labeled and contextualized. As well as items of historical significance, such as stone altars from the Romans, exhibits also highlighted different people and their contributions to social and scientific development in Scotland. As a woman who is part Scottish by ancestry, I still find it neat that the term "scientist" was coined for female Scotswoman Mary Fairfax Somerville. I found the informational placards accompanying the displayed items to be easy to understand.

A small but fascinating museum and aquarium, well worth a visit if you're on Cumbrae. We went there…read morelast month - partly to get out of the rain, if I'm honest, but we thoroughly enjoyed finding out about all the creatures which live in the River Clyde! I was astonished to discover that such large, beautiful and colourful anenomies thrive there, along with huge crabs and starfish, not to mention a large number of fish. The aquarium is fairly small but there's a lot to see. The museum is named after Dr David Robertson, "The Cumbrae Naturalist" (1806 1896). The history of marine science is outlined and there are examples of current research at the Marine Station. There's a tiny 'shop' inside near the entrance which sells small items including pens and postcards and there is a free car park outside. Opening times: Mon Fri 09:00 16:15 Adults £2.00 Concessions £1.00

It took me an embarrassingly long time to actually visit The Lighthouse, and I'm even more…read moreembarrassed to admit that I *still* haven't been up the top to look at the view over Glasgow! Next time, I promise! The Lighthouse is tucked down Mitchell Lane and has a wonderful gift shop on the ground floor. I am a certified museum-gift-shop addict and this one is nearly as good as the one at GOMA. At the moment, they're selling some great stuff to accompany the "Hello My Name is Paul Smith" exhibition and I couldn't resist getting a couple of the pencils, an eraser as well as a nice card from the range. There's a lot of nice Scottish stuff if you're looking for a gift so it's worth a browse even if you're not planning on going to an exhibition. We were there to see the Paul Smith exhibition which is on the first floor and ticketed at £6 per adult. While I think the price is a little steep, it's a fab exhibition which was really interesting, stimulating and thought-provoking - I think we were only there for half an hour or so, but really enjoyed it. I'll definitely be back sooner rather than later for a visit to the viewing platform so I'll update accordingly! But for now, I'm already a massive fan so I can't expect the rating to change for this lovely gallery.

The Lighthouse is a lovely museum that you'd probably never find, and I genuinely didn't even know…read moreabout until about 6 months ago! It's a lovely hidden museum, with free entry, and has all your museum-y needs, from general Glasgow goodness to a lovely Mackintosh exhibition. There's a 6th floor viewing platform, but you can also go to the 3rd floor and climb to the top of the viewing tower - which gives you phenomenal views of all of Glasgow. It really is something you must see! There's a cafe, a bar and a gift shop all included, and I genuinely can't believe I hadn't discovered this sooner! Go see it if you haven't already!

A friend recommended this place and her elevator pitch was simple "it has a wall of vintage cars"…read more A very interesting museum that has transportation displays but also a recreation of a classic Scottish main street, glasgow punk vinyls, and old toys. It was one of the most unique museums we've been to and like all the museums in Scotland it was free! The architecture is interesting and was done by one of my favorite architects, Zaha Hadid. The roofline is undulating and angular and the whole form is extruded backwards toward the river to form the museum. From the back you get a very interesting view with the restored old ship and the modern museum juxtaposing each other. The interior is also distinctly Zaha, with curved lines that seem to guide you and your eyes through your space. The only jarring thing is it feels a bit disorientating, especially when trying to take photos and videos and looking for horizontal and vertical lines to help line you up. The wall of motorcycles and cars are visually stunning though the ones high up are really hard to see so I enjoyed the vehicles on the floor more because you could see everything much better. There is a second floor you can get to with all the interactive displays and a hypnotizing carousel of giant model ships that move in a continual loop.

What a fun, big and FREE museum! We spent four hours here and probably could've stayed a bit…read morelonger. We got licky and made it just in time for a FREE guided tour. The tour guide took us around the whole museum highlighting the more Scottish items. The museum is mostly transportation but also has a section that is a recreation of a 1920's street complete with shops you can walk into. I highly recommend coming solo, with friends, or family! Donations are asked to help keep this amazing museum free to the public and there is a parking lot for a fee

Situated in the heart of Edinburgh, the Scottish National Gallery is a small but delightful museum…read more While Scottish artists are the main focus, the National Gallery also houses works of art from famous European artists. All of Edinburgh's publicly owned museums and galleries offer free entry to their permanent collections, and National Galleries Scotland manage five buildings which provide access to a fantastic array of artworks. In the very heart of Edinburgh, on the Mound, which connects both Old and New Town, is the original National Gallery of Scotland itself, alongside its sister gallery, the Royal Scottish Academy building. Inside the building is a sumptuous series of open spaces with works by some of the world's greatest classic artists on display, alongside iconic works by Scottish painters. Artists like Rembrandt and Van Dyck are represented alongside Monet, Reubens and Titian, as well as British painters like Constable and Turner. One iconic picture which is often considered a definitively Scottish work is Edwin Landseer's Monarch of the Glen, featuring a majestic stag in front of a Scottish Highland backdrop.

Superb gallery in Edinburgh - well worth the visit…read more We stopped by on our third morning and had a wonderful time. This is not a massive (aka tiring) place, but it has excellent representation of Masters (Rubens, Rembrandt, Titian), and even a specially designed octagonal room dedicated to Nicolas Poussin's Seven Sacraments (1644-1648) - considered one of the greatest sets of paintings in the history of Western art. But my favorites pieces were by lesser known English, Scottish and Italian artists - such as Monarch of the Glen, Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch, and The Campbell Sisters. They have a small cafe which we visited when we needed a little coffee and cookie break, and the staff were very helpful and gracious. Would be happy to return.

I visited this time for Puff's toddler group trip and was delighted to go back. Smudge has now…read moredeclared herself far too grown up for this sort of activity much to my disgust as I loved our trips here when she was little. This visit was a beautifully sunny day so the perfect day to wander around checking out all the animals; goats, donkeys, GIANT bunnies, guinea pigs, cows, sheep, rats, collie dogs, geese and puff's favourite a cat - we have a cat at home!!! As well as a farmyard full of animals to check out, you can pet lots of the wee ones. A whole barn full of fluffy bunnies, chickens and guinea pigs to stroke. Unless like me you're allergic in which case not touching is a much better option - puffy eyes, manic sneezing and a snotty nose does not make for a fun day out. Once you have spent a happy hour trying to teach a stubborn one year old any animal noise other than meeow, and failed, there is still plenty to do here with an inflatable cow bouncy castle, indoor soft play area, tractors to ride, trampolines to bounce, fossils to uncover and a lovely cafe to eat cake and drink coffee in. It has to be said that a rainy day would not completely ruin a trip to Almond Valley. There is plenty to do under cover and even a big picnic barn to eat in, not to brag but we used it for shade because it was so hot.

This is a lovely little place, a great day out for all the family. Lots of animals to see, an lots…read moreto learn. they're upgrading it all the time so it just keeps getting better and better. They do lots of special activities, Christmas Fayres, Easter, all year round really. they have soft play for toddlers and a new bigger area for older kids. It's got a great little cafe too with friendly staff and good food. It really is worth a visit, you will undoubtedly learn something and have fun while doing it.

Great big park with lots to do. There is a sand pit, spiders web, flying fox, swings and lots of…read moreother fun things for the kids to play on. There is benches and picnic tables which I think there should be more of as it's usually quite busy but there is a grassy area if you can't get a table or bench. There is toilets, a small shop to get a tea or coffee and an ice cream van nearby!

Kids these days don't know how lucky they are. This is such a middle class playground it is…read moreunbelievable: not content with just swings, you have race car chair swings. There's a zip wire, a climbing wall, some form of big swinging disk thing and numerous other structures bringing unadulterated joy to me...and probably little kids as well. During the day this playground is absolutely rammed with screaming children as mothers discuss the latest issue of glamour or yesterday's tea party. This is the time to avoid, mainly because you'll look a bit weird swinging with a load of 5 year olds (careful those of you with innuendo based minds). In the evening though, or better in the small hours of the morning, this is a drunkard's paradise. Everything becomes so much more amazing...and more difficult. Whether it be the swings, the climbing frame or simply the spinning disk then it is a joy. Also the playground is one of the best places to meet fellow boozehounds, there's a real community of idiots there. A word of warning though, when on the swings, make sure you don't look at the hypno-disk, it will definitely make you feel queasy at the least. An amazing park with brilliant features for all kids, both little and large