Step-free Glasgow – Riverside, Kelvingrove and GoMA
A day by car, from Glasgow Central and back.
The route
Three of Glasgow's great free museums have lifts to every public floor, and this day joins them by wheelchair-accessible cab, for anyone using a wheelchair or a pushchair, or who can't manage steps.
Between them they hold Dalí's Christ of St John of the Cross and a grand old organ in a sandstone hall, and trams, trains and ship models beside the Clyde. In the city centre, contemporary art fills the old Royal Exchange, where ramps rise on either side of its columned front. There's lunch in the middle of the day, and with nearly all of it spent indoors it's as good in the rain as in the sunshine.
Before you go
Book a wheelchair-accessible cab
Book four wheelchair-accessible cabs with Glasgow Taxis on 0141 429 7070, for about half past nine from Gordon Street at Central, a quarter to twelve from the Riverside, three o'clock from Kelvingrove and a quarter to five from the Gallery of Modern Art, on a Monday to Thursday or a Saturday, when all three museums open at 10am, and give the size of the chair or pushchair.
Book a Blue Badge exemption, if you're driving
If you're driving with a Blue Badge, Kelvingrove has ten free bays in its car park and the Riverside signs its bays on the day (check at the machine whether you pay), but the Gallery of Modern Art has no car park and is in the city centre, where Glasgow's Low Emission Zone applies: if your car doesn't meet its standard, register a one-day Blue Badge exemption online before midnight on the day, or you may be fined.
The day
Glasgow
The day sets off from Glasgow Central at about half past nine and is back there by five, with a cab booked for each move between the museums. Lunch and the organ fall in the middle of it, at Kelvingrove.
24 min at the wheelAbout 7 miles
Riverside Museum
An attraction
It's 8 minutes' drive from Central to the Riverside Museum, Glasgow's museum of transport, where the Kelvin flows into the Clyde. Both entrances are level, lifts reach every floor, and the displays sit at a height you can see from a chair. The recreated Main Street inside is cobbled, so ask at the desk whether there is a smooth way through. The Changing Places toilet is on the ground floor by reception, with no key needed, and there is baby changing. The road outside has changed with works on the quay, so ring the museum on 0141 287 2720 before you come to ask where a cab sets a wheelchair user down. Your next cab is booked for a quarter to twelve.
7 min by car
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
An attraction
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is 7 minutes' drive on. It has three doors, one on Argyle Street and two from the car park, and scaffolding may close some. Ring the museum on 0141 276 9599 before you come to ask which is level and open, and whether a cab may drive into the car park or must stop on Argyle Street. Lifts reach every floor, with accessible toilets on each and baby changing; across Argyle Street, Kelvin Hall has a Changing Places toilet. Dalí's Christ of St John of the Cross is on the ground floor. Be in the Centre Hall by ten to one for a good space at the free organ recital, about half an hour from one o'clock. Then take the lift down to the KG Café for lunch; if it's full or the lift is out, the KG Coffee Shop in the main hall serves at the counter. Your next cab is booked for three o'clock.
9 min by car
Gallery of Modern Art
An attraction
It's 9 minutes' drive into the city centre to the Gallery of Modern Art, the old Royal Exchange, with the Duke of Wellington on horseback in front of its columns, a traffic cone on his head more often than not. There's no level way in: ramps rise on both sides of the columned front to automatic doors, and a lift serves every floor. Ask the driver to stop on Queen Street in front of the gallery, and ring the gallery on 0141 287 3050 before you come to ask which ramp is easier for a manual chair. The accessible toilets are on the lower ground and top floors and may need a RADAR key, so ask whether staff will open one. There is baby changing but no Changing Places toilet, so use Kelvin Hall's before leaving Kelvingrove, or Central's at the end of the day. The gallery shuts at five, so the last cab is booked for a quarter to five, back to Central. In winter it's dark by five, so keep the cab.
If it rains
Every stop is indoors from the door, so rain changes little: the only time outside is between the cab and each entrance. Ask each driver to stop as close to the door as they can, and bring a cover for the chair or the pushchair.
