Glasgow & Dunoon

Trip Itinerary

Friday → Saturday → Sunday — tap a stop or a pin to link them up

River Clyde N ↑ 1Riverside 2Kelvingrove 3Uni of Glasgow 4Kibble Palace
walk drive & park
Schematic, not to scale — use “Open in Maps” to navigate
🚗
~9:00am

Set off from Blackburn

~146 miles · roughly 2h45–3h driving

Via A96/AWPR to the A90, then down through Perth. Leaving by around 9am gives you a buffer for a coffee/fuel stop (Perth or Dundee way is a natural halfway point) and still gets you into Riverside's car park for opening.

↓ arrive Glasgow ~12:15–12:30pm ↓
1
12:30pm

Riverside Museum

Hours Fri 11am–5pmCost Free
Parking On-site car park (City Parking, pay & display, up to ~£10 for the day)

Start here — the tall ship Glenlee is moored right outside. ~1.5 hrs.

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↓ ~10 min drive & re-park (a walkable route exists but runs close to 20 min, so we've kept the car) ↓
2
2:20pm

Kelvingrove Museum

Hours Fri 11am–5pmCost Free
Parking On-site pay & display car park off Argyle St (fills up — Bunhouse Rd/Kelvin Hall car park is the backup, 2 min further). Leave the car here for the whole West End loop.

Red-sandstone galleries — Dalí, natural history, a Spitfire hanging overhead. ~1.5 hrs.

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↓ ~5 min walk (same car park) ↓
3
3:50pm

University of Glasgow

Hours Grounds open dailyCost Free to explore

Wander the quad and cloisters. ~20–30 min. Car's still back at Kelvingrove, no need to move it.

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↓ ~10 min walk (same car park) ↓
4
4:20pm

Kibble Palace & Botanic Gardens

Hours Daily 10am–5:45pmCost Free

Glasshouses stay open latest of the day — a calm way to close things out.

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↓ ~12 min walk back to the car, then ~1 hr drive to Gourock and Western Ferries to Dunoon (~20–25 min crossing) ↓
☆
Overnight

Argyll Hotel, Dunoon

Night 1 of 2

Settle in for the night — back here again tomorrow after the Waverley cruise. Worth confirming guest parking when you book; if not, there's pay & display nearby on Alexandra Parade.

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Firth of Clyde N ↑ ☆Argyll Hotel 1Castle & Museum 2Dunoon Pier
walk
Everything today is within a 10-minute walk
1
Morning, from ~10am

Dunoon Castle, Castle Gardens & Castle House Museum

Hours Grounds open daily · Museum Mon–Sat ~10:30am–4pmCost Grounds free · Museum £3
Parking None needed — leave the car at the Argyll Hotel, everything today is on foot

The castle itself is long gone, but the hilltop grounds have grand views over the Clyde to Gourock, and the wee museum next door is packed with local & Highland Mary history. Round it off with a wander along the Esplanade seafront back towards the pier — about 10–15 min on foot. ~1.5–2 hrs all in.

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↓ ~10 min walk along the Esplanade ↓
2
1:00pm – 5:20pm

PS Waverley — Paddle Steamer Cruise

Departs Dunoon Pier, 1:00pmReturns 5:20pm
Cost Fares vary by sailing — book via waverleyexcursions.co.uk or 0141 243 2224

The world's last seagoing paddle steamer, out on the Firth of Clyde for the afternoon. Grab lunch on the front before boarding — worth being at the pier ~20–30 min early.

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↓ ~5 min walk back ↓
☆
Overnight

Argyll Hotel, Dunoon

Night 2 of 2

Second night here — set off back towards Glasgow tomorrow morning.

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River Clyde N ↑ 1Burrell / Pollok 2The Barras 3Cathedral 4Necropolis 5Sharmanka
walk drive & park
Schematic, not to scale — use “Open in Maps” to navigate
☆
Morning

Head back to Glasgow

From Argyll Hotel, Dunoon

Western Ferries to Gourock (~20–25 min crossing) plus the drive in — allow ~1–1.5 hrs door to door.

↓ arrive Glasgow ~11:15am ↓
1
11:30am

Burrell Collection & Pollok Park

Hours Burrell Sun 11am–5pm · park dawn–duskCost Free
Parking On-site Burrell Collection car park, off Pollokshaws Rd (pay & display, roughly £5–10 for the visit)

On the way in from Gourock — museum plus a stroll to spot the Highland cattle. ~2 hrs.

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↓ ~20–25 min drive ↓
2
2:00pm

Barras Market

Hours Sat–Sun 10am–4pm onlyCost Free to browse
Parking Park once at Cathedral Precinct car park (pay & display, ~£6/3hrs) — it's a ~15 min walk down to the Barras from there, and it covers the rest of the afternoon too

Weekend-only, and still comfortably open at this time. ~45 min.

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↓ ~15 min walk back up to the Cathedral (same car park) ↓
3
2:45pm

Glasgow Cathedral

Hours Sun 1pm–4:15pmCost Free (donations welcome)

Opens later on Sundays — this timing lines up well. ~45 min. Right by the car park.

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↓ ~5 min walk ↓
4
3:30pm

Glasgow Necropolis

Hours Daily 7am–4:30pmCost Free

Right next door — closes 4:30pm so don't linger too long, but great late-afternoon views over the city. ~45 min.

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↓ ~18–20 min walk downhill towards Trongate — the car stays put at Cathedral Precinct ↓
5
Evening

Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre

Hours Shows usually Wed–Sun, time variesCost ~£10–16

Book via ticketsource.co.uk/sharmanka once you have a firm date — the showtime should anchor this end of the evening. Afterwards it's an 18–20 min walk back up to the car at Cathedral Precinct, or a quick taxi if legs are tired by then.

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