8 Best Glasgow Hotels with a Freestanding Bath

6

Want a long soak after a day on Buchanan Street? Book a suite, then name the bath. A freestanding roll-top is a room-by-room feature, and two suites of the same type don’t always share the same tub. Ask the hotel to confirm yours before you pay. Here’s where I’d book, from Merchant City to the West End.

Glasgow Hotels with a Freestanding Bath

Other Glasgow Suites with a Roll-Top Bath

Several hotels have more than one room type with a freestanding tub. A few sit outside the usual room categories, so you book them with the hotel.

• Presidential Suites: Both top-floor Presidential Suites at House of Gods Glasgow add a private cinema system to the gold roll-top. Book one for a bigger night in.
• A tub on a platform: The Alamo Guest House gives its Arran Suite a clawfoot tub on a raised platform. Bute, a Superior King room, has a metallic freestanding tub of its own.
• Ask for the room with the tub: At One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin, some Suites put a roll-top in the bedroom while others have twin showers and sinks instead. Rooms are individually styled, so name the bath when you book.
• Behind the bathroom door: One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin puts its Signature Suite tub in a large bathroom with a walk-in shower, not in the bedroom. Ask the hotel for a photo of your room’s bath if you want it in view of the bed.
• Book these direct: Sherbrooke Castle Hotel keeps a stand-alone bath and a walk-in shower in its Tower Suite, and the Grand Deluxe Suite at Dakota Glasgow comes with a roll-top. The Two Bedroom Apartment at Radisson Blu Hotel, Glasgow has a freestanding bath too, so call the hotels for these.

Glasgow Hotel Rooms with a Shower, Not a Bath

At several of these hotels, the entry rooms have a shower and no bath. Check the room type before you pay for it.

• Dakota’s standard rooms: The Classic, Superior and Executive rooms at Dakota Glasgow have showers and no bath. Its suites have the baths.
• Kimpton’s smaller rooms: At Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa, the King Room, the twin rooms and the Sleeping Room are shower only. Premium Rooms, Premium King rooms and suites have baths.
• What does voco’s standard room get? Standard and Premium rooms at voco Grand Central Glasgow have showers, with no bath. Baths come with the suites, the Grand rooms and the concourse-view Premium King.
• Clayton’s Deluxe rooms: Deluxe rooms at Clayton Hotel Glasgow City have a shower in the en suite. Executive King rooms add slippers and an espresso machine, with no freestanding tub.
• Devonshire’s Classic Rooms: Most Classic Rooms at One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin have a separate bath and shower, but some have a shower only or a shower over the bath. Ask for one with a separate bath.

Where to Stay in Glasgow for a Hotel with a Bath

The roll-top suites are spread across five parts of the city. The West End and the south side are quieter, and the centre puts you closer to the trains.

• Merchant City: House of Gods Glasgow stands at the top of the Merchant City, just east of George Square. Buchanan Galleries and the main shopping streets are a short walk away.
• Blythswood Hill: Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa overlooks a private garden square, and Dakota Glasgow sits a street away on West Regent Street. Both are within walking distance of Buchanan Street.
• By Central Station: Trains to London Euston leave from Central, and the airport bus stops on nearby Bothwell Street. Stay at voco Grand Central Glasgow or Clayton Hotel Glasgow City if you’re arriving by train or by air.
• West End: Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and the University of Glasgow are a short walk from The Alamo Guest House. Further out on Great Western Road, One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin is a walk from Hyndland station and the Botanic Gardens.
• South side: Sherbrooke Castle Hotel stands in leafy Pollokshields, a few minutes’ walk from Dumbreck station. Bellahouston Park and Pollok Country Park are close by.

Parking, Lifts and Stairs at Glasgow’s Bath Hotels

Parking is tight at the city-centre hotels, and several old buildings have stairs. Check both before you arrive with heavy bags.

• Driving to Dakota? Dakota Glasgow has a few spaces next to the hotel and validated parking in nearby car parks. A ramp at the front leads to the lifts.
• Valet at the Kimpton: Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa has no car park of its own. Its valet service takes cars to a public car park nearby.
• No lifts at One Devonshire Gardens: One Devonshire Gardens by Hotel du Vin has no lifts, and some Suites spread over two floors with stairs inside. Ask for a lower floor if stairs are a problem.
• Station parking for voco: Guests at voco Grand Central Glasgow park at the NCP on Oswald Street at a reduced rate. The car park’s fifth-floor exit leads onto the station concourse.
• Stairs at The Alamo: The Alamo Guest House has no lift across its two floors. Parking is on the street outside.
• One lift at House of Gods: House of Gods Glasgow has a single lift alongside the stairs. Hallways and stairwells are kept deliberately dim.
• Clayton’s car park: Clayton Hotel Glasgow City has no car park on site. Guests use the Q-Park at St Enoch nearby.

Quiet Rooms at Glasgow’s Suite Hotels

Bars, stations and late crowds set the noise level in central Glasgow. Ask for the right room and you’ll sleep well.

• Rooftop bar crowds: The Sacred Garden at House of Gods Glasgow is open to non-guests and gets lively at night. Book a table if you want a seat there yourself.
• Bar and street noise at Dakota: Rooms near the bar and the street at Dakota Glasgow pick up noise into the evening. Ask for a quiet room when you book.
• Upper floors at the station hotel: At voco Grand Central Glasgow, rooms high up and away from the lifts stay quiet despite the trains. Ask for one when you book.
• A garden square: Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa overlooks a private garden square, and its rooms stay quiet at night. Ask for a room facing the square.
• Wedding weekends: Sherbrooke Castle Hotel hosts weddings, and wedding parties share the restaurant on some nights. Pick a weeknight for a quieter dinner and evening.

When Glasgow Suites with a Bath Cost the Least

Prices at these hotels swing hard between midwinter weeknights and late-summer weekends. Pick your dates with that in mind.

• Midwinter weeknights: At House of Gods Glasgow, Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa and Clayton Hotel Glasgow City, a Tuesday in January or February costs under half a late-summer Saturday. At the others, the winter weeknight still costs less.
• September and August: In recent years, September and August have topped Scotland’s hotel occupancy figures. Glasgow’s hotels have run close to full in September, so book the suite early for those months.
• Gig and stadium nights: Big concerts at the OVO Hydro and stadium gigs push Glasgow room prices sharply higher. Check the concert listings before you fix your dates.

FAQs

1. Are there hotels in Glasgow with a hot tub in the room?

Yes: the Penthouse Suite at Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa has a sunken spa bath and a private roof garden. The other suites with baths in town come with freestanding tubs rather than jetted ones. For a shared hot tub, DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Central and Village Hotel Glasgow both have one. Book a suite with a roll-top for a private soak.

2. How do you get from Glasgow Airport to the city centre?

Take the Glasgow Airport Express, First Glasgow’s service 500, from stance 1 outside the terminal. It runs around the clock, every few minutes by day with a reduced service overnight, and reaches the centre in 15 to 30 minutes. Stops include Bothwell Street near Central Station, Queen Street Station and Buchanan Bus Station. A taxi from the rank outside the terminal takes 15 to 20 minutes in normal traffic.

3. Which Glasgow station do trains from London and Edinburgh arrive at?

Trains from London Euston, including the Caledonian Sleeper, arrive at Glasgow Central. Most Edinburgh trains run into Queen Street instead, as do services from Stirling, Perth, the Highlands and Lumo’s trains from London King’s Cross. Some slower Edinburgh trains use Central, so check the station printed on your ticket. Pick a hotel near the station you’ll arrive at if you’re carrying heavy bags.

4. How long does it take to walk between Glasgow Central and Queen Street?

Allow about 15 minutes on foot between the two stations. ScotRail runs a free bus between them for passengers holding a valid train ticket. For a connection, ScotRail suggests leaving about half an hour to change stations. With heavy bags or a tight connection, take the free bus or a taxi between the two stations.

5. What’s the best way to get around Glasgow without a car?

Use the Subway, a single loop of 15 stations through the city centre and the West End. Locals call it the Clockwork Orange for its orange trains, and a full lap takes under half an hour. Trains on the Outer Circle run clockwise and the Inner Circle anticlockwise, stopping at every station. St Enoch serves Central Station and Buchanan Street serves Queen Street.

6. What is there to do in Glasgow’s West End?

Start at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, next to Kelvinhall Subway station. Hillhead station puts you on Byres Road, with Ashton Lane, the Botanic Gardens and the University of Glasgow’s Hunterian all close by. Both stations sit on the Subway loop from the city centre. Spend a full day there and finish with dinner off Byres Road.

7. Which Glasgow hotel is best for a honeymoon?

For a bath in view of the bed, book the Alamo Suite at The Alamo Guest House, which the guest house itself recommends as its bridal suite. In the city centre, the Presidential Suites at House of Gods Glasgow add a private cinema system. At Kimpton Blythswood Square Hotel & Spa, the spa offers couples massages. Pick the West End for quiet evenings and the centre for the shops and the stations.

8. When is the best time of year for a couple’s trip to Glasgow?

Go midweek in January or February for the lowest room prices, or in January for Celtic Connections, which fills venues across the city for over two weeks every year. Early summer brings the TRNSMT festival to Glasgow Green, in June or July. Concerts at the OVO Hydro run all year, and rooms fill on big nights. Check those dates before you book a quiet stay.