Things to Do in Glasgow — 13 Days Out in Scotland's Coolest City

Edinburgh gets the postcards, but Glasgow gets the atmosphere — warmer, funnier, and packed with free culture and the best live-music scene in Scotland. Here are 13 days out.

Free and world-class

• Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum — free, gorgeous, and gloriously eclectic (Dalí's Christ of Saint John of the Cross is here); one of Scotland's best days out for nothing.
• The Riverside Museum — a stunning Zaha Hadid building full of trams, cars and a recreated old street; free, and brilliant for kids.

The West End

Kelvingrove Park, the Botanic Gardens (free glasshouses), and the lanes around Byres Road and Ashton Lane make a relaxed, characterful day — coffee, browsing, and green space.

Rainy-day and science

• Glasgow Science Centre — hands-on floors, a planetarium and an IMAX on the Clyde; a reliable wet-weather family day.

Music and food

Glasgow is a UNESCO City of Music — a night (or matinee) at King Tut's or the Barrowland Ballroom is a rite of passage. Eat around Finnieston, the city's best food strip.

Practical notes

The subway (the 'Clockwork Orange') loops the centre and West End cheaply. Most headline attractions are free, so Glasgow is a superb budget city break — build a West End day around Kelvingrove, and a waterfront day around the Riverside and Science Centre.