The Riverside Museum of Transport and Travel

The Riverside Museum of Transport and Travel

The Riverside Museum of Transport and Travel
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
11:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Riverside Museum is Glasgow's award-winning transport museum. With over 3,000 objects on display there's everything from skateboards to locomotives, paintings to prams and cars to a Stormtrooper. Get hands on with our interactive displays. Walk through Glasgow streets and visit the shops, bar and subway. Climb aboard a train, tram or bus and get a real feel for old public transport. Discover Glasgow's rich shipbuilding history, explore the car and motorbike walls and help put out a fire with our interactive fire engine. There are over 90 large touch screens panels full of images, memories and films that tell the fascinating stories behind the objects. There really is something for all ages to enjoy at the Riverside Museum.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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What is Travelers’ Choice?
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: West End
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See what travelers are saying
  • Meg A.
    1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A wonderfully engaging day
    What a stunning museum this is. Just when you think you've seen it all, you find something else that grabs your attention. It's much more than just vehicles: it's the life of Glasgow and its people, from locomotives and ships right down to wheelchairs and school crossing keepers - and my favourite car. The staff I spoke to were wonderfully friendly and engaging; lunch in the cafe and then afternoon refreshments in the coffee shop both hit the spot. It's unbelievable that it's free! Everyone should fill the donation boxes with as much as they can afford. I'll keep coming back to this gem of a museum.
    Thanks so much for your kind review, please come back and visit us again soon!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written April 1, 2023
  • K78steve
    York, United Kingdom192 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Super transport museum
    Super museum with a superb collection of motorcycles, cars, trains etc plus a “street” with shops of yesterday and the original Glasgow underground. Enjoyable but why have so many cars and bikes mounted high up on the walls? Can’t help but feel that too much was spent on an iconic building design rather than on ensuring the collection was viewable. Also so much of Glasgows rich heritage seems to have been lost. Maybe there is more locked away somewhere.
    Thanks very much for visiting!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 7, 2023
  • Jamie A
    Aberdeen, United Kingdom3 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Highly recommend,free to enter!
    I went with my brother and father and we all had a great time! There was so much to look at and even a boat on the river Clyde. I would highly recommend this for all ages and the best part is that it is completely free to enter and walk around the exhibits.
    Thanks very much for your review Jamie!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written April 8, 2023
  • Klaudia K
    Derby, United Kingdom4 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fantastic way to spend the day
    We were 3 adults and chose to go there on Easter Sunday. It has been busy but still very enjoyable. Wasn't expecting the amount of different transport vehicles, from bikes, scooters, trams to cars. It was interesting and you could also enter some of them which was fun. The best attraction in our opinion was the ship - it was magnificent and they had some old navigation and diary pages laminated to see. I definitely recommend this museum.
    Thanks very much for coming along!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written April 10, 2023
  • Kellyowe
    8 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great day out!
    A fantastic, informative day out for the whole family. The restaurant was lovely too. The staff were friendly and helpful. The only downside os the ship out back, it seems to be under some construction and areas were shut off, the lift wasn't operating either so with a pram it wasn't accessible. All in all a great day had by all.
    Thanks very much for your review!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written April 12, 2023
  • Jessica M
    Aberdeen, United Kingdom9 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Definitely worth a visit!
    We enjoyed our visit over the Easter hols. We had been before but this time we had our two toddlers with us also and they loved it. The museum was so busy so we spent most of the time chasing the little ones but there is so much space. There’s lots to interact with and seating areas dotted around the museum. Parking accessible for the Motorhome and all within close walking distance of the museum. We had a lovely ice cream on leaving also! We would return - possibly on a quieter day but it was great to see so many families visiting and so many children having fun!
    Thanks so much for your visit!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited April 2023
    Written April 14, 2023
  • Alison K
    3 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Museum
    We went to the motor transport museum and luckily found Duncan who was a volunteer guide. His wealth of knowledge was amazing and as a Glaswegian really bought it to life. He made the museum for us. Absolutely brilliant! Thanks Duncan so much!!!
    Thanks so much for your review Alison, we'll pass your kind words on to Duncan.
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written May 11, 2023
  • Sandy W
    Vancouver, Canada1,383 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    An incredible visit and a walk through memory lane and then some
    We took an Uber here and found an incredible museum. An entire wall of classic cars and three levels. Steam engines, a portion of a street of a small town, airplanes, motorcycles, in fact, any form of transportation, you can imagine. All for free. They do ask for donations. you can also climb aboard a tall ship and explore the entire ship from top to bottom, prow to aft. Also free. The museum staff were friendly and helpful. This is a must see museum if you are looking for displays on any aspect of transportation. There are not too many interactive displays, and that is something they could work on.
    Thanks very much for your kind review Sandy, we're delighted to hear you enjoyed your day!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 17, 2023
  • Mary M
    Exeter, United Kingdom64 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Interesting inside and out
    This is a great museum for all ages. The very young get to be train drivers and the older ones see cars and motorbikes that they may have owned back in the day! Great fun for everyone in this purpose built museum. It works really well with interesting displays and a little street which takes you back in time. Highly recommended.
    Thanks so much for your kind review Mary!
    Written May 21, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited May 2023
    Written May 19, 2023
  • Carolyn S
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great trip to the Riverside Museum
    Fantastic museum. So much to see on all modes of transportation. The exhibits are incredible and lots of interactive opportunities. We went primarily to visit and explore the ship but found so much more. The highlight was the reproduction of an early street and town with buildings and cars. Definitely worth a visit.
    Thanks so much for your kind review Carolyn!
    Written August 27, 2023
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
    Visited May 2023
    Written May 22, 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles9,750 reviews
Excellent
6,442
Very good
2,340
Average
627
Poor
205
Terrible
136

marion g
Glasgow, UK1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
A fabulous experience . So much to see . A beautiful building housing all modes of transport and a memorable trip down memory lane , greatly enhanced by the knowledge and humour of our volunteer guide Duncan . A great big thankyou .
Written March 14, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

797dennisp
Montrose, UK30,370 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2023 • Solo
Good to be back in Glasgow again where I usually try and make the trip here and the Tall Ship opposite.

Pretty much the same displays as my last visit but that does not take anything away from the enjoyment of my visit.

Always take time over the vintage car section on the ground floor and of course the Steam trains and trams. Well worth seeing again !!
Written March 14, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Nicole K
North East England, UK21 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2024 • Family
Visited here as a quick stop in between 2 other activities. I came with my 13 year old daughter and we were both impressed. Lots to see. We only had 30 mins spare to look around
But could have spent at least an hour, an hour and a half. My daughter likes walking up the steps and looking at the seats in the trams and trains.
Written March 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Alexandra B
Glasgow, UK197 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2023 • Couples
Beautiful and very interesting, the Riverside Museum of Transport and Travel is a true gem of Glasgow – a place where history comes alive and the spirit of innovation thrives. Whether you're a transportation enthusiast or simply looking for a fun day out, a visit to the Riverside Museum is an experience you won't soon forget.
Written March 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Thomas J
Glasgow, UK6 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Family
This is a great experience for all the family to look at transport that is long gone, street cars trolley buses and vintage cars. The grandkids received the quiz at the main entrance and were busy for an hour trying to solve the questions. GREAT DAY OUT
Written March 6, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Considered Review
Norwich, UK129 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2023 • Solo
Brilliant museum. Free entry and full of things not just transport-related. If you're over 30 you will find yourself pointing at many, many exhibits, tapping your partner on the arm, and saying, 'Oh my word, do you remember those...?'. A wonderful place.
Written March 3, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

tartnjohn
Olney, UK2,404 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Seeing many different comments both good & bad, about this museum, I decided to visit it to make up my own mind. I loved the Kelvin Hall layout so how had Glasgow DC fared with a blank sheet?

The building itself is quite difficult to get to and despite a Sat Nav, we took a wrong turning due, in my opinion to poor signage right in front of the "wavy building". This led me to driving around the new Finnieston area (which I had been very familiar with 30 years ago) before ending up back where we started from. At least we only had to turn left to get into the car park this time.

Parking up, as I had no change, and the machine didn't like notes, I attempted to make a credit card payment via phone. Following the instructions to the letter, I was simply being taken round in circles inputting data from the keypad until I had to speak, then the voice recognition system sadly could not understand my Scottish/Glasgow accent and I was taken round in circles. 4 attempts later, I was for leaving but fortunately, thanks to another visitor, who could change our £10 note for coin, we paid and were satisfied we could enter.

The cost of parking has been criticised by others however, we were happy to pay £10 for 5 hours - not having a clue how long we were likely to be there. Our thoughts were that with Admission to the museum being free, a total of £10 for parking and admission was actually quite reasonable

Entering the museum, and being 'hit' with so many exhibits all at once, it was apparent that very little thought to the organisation and layout of the exhibits had been given. No thematic layout was obvious and in my opinion, everything was just squeezed into the space making it difficult to find an organised route which made sense. This also made it nigh impossible to clearly photograph some of the larger exhibits as with everything so close, obtaining a clear photograph of a full tram or locomotive for example, was difficult due to other exhibits forcing me to be too close to my target.

Cars 'parked floor to ceiling' on one wall did mean viewing from a distance was less attractive than having the ability to walk around them. Another lot of cars were on a roadway created around a pillar and It was only when you looked at some of the video beside it and walked to the front car, looking high up, did i realise this was meant to represent the Rest and be Thankful Hill Climb . Again cars, 30 feet above your head meant you couldn't really look in them and see the history of their development from the drivers perspective. No chance of a past owner of one of the high up cars, seeing the seating, dash board, steering etc.

A number of exhibits are behind glass which, thanks to the ceiling lighting, makes it impossible to get photographs without glare detracting from the final result. Some of these models, especially the 'Queens' are exceptional but unfortunately the lighting glare meant no clear photographs of these exhibits to look back on.

The range and quality of the exhibits we could examine was excellent and at one point, a data card referred to changing exhibits due to the volume in storage. As this site was built to house the Transport Collection, why oh why, was it not big enough to display everything and on a level where visitors could see them.

Take the push bike exhibit on the 'Velodrome ' (a donut shape suspended 30 to 40 feet above the ground. For each bike on the 'track', another one was suspended upside down, below it. With some really old bikes, you really could not see them properly and those hanging upside down were completely lost to the eye. A really poor exhibit.

We decided to have something to eat and despite following signs pointing to the cafe, we ended up asking a member of staff as we couldn't actually work out where we should be heading. Being directed upstairs, we stumbled on the restaurant on the ground level so decided to stay there. The staff were very good and the food was also excellent. In actual fact, this turned out to be one of the highlights of the visit in my opinion.

Tea and a couple of lovely sandwiches, presented with a very tasty salad, was more than reasonable at around £14 and watching the staff, they were non stop. Tables cleared, cleaned and reset by a true team and they constantly checked on customers to ensure they were happy - many an up market restaurant would welcome these folks working for them.

The village Street of the town Street really wasn't as atmospheric as it's predecessor at the Kelvin Hall and in my opinion was a little bit disappointing. It didn't exude the atmosphere of the street in the previous site. Everything looked too new and not 'aged' to match the era.

Wondering round the shop I was amazed to find absolutely no fiction or non fiction books about Glasgow and the West of Scotland. With so many authors and industrial history, this seems an area that is sadly lacking and wood, I am sure add to the income stream for the museum.

Overall I enjoyed my visit but given many of the comments on Facebook and Tripadvisor, I can understand the conflicting comments which are posted.
Written February 27, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

David M
22 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Friends
Nice museum, plenty to see for a couple hours. Not readily accessible on foot from downtown. The building is a bit weird to the point that it tries to be more interesting than its contents. But it’s not. The adjacent docked tall ship drew me to the museum, but unfortunately it was not open. The Glasgow street displays were interesting. Good for a “one time” visit.
Written February 24, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

GrumpyManLovelyLady
Berkeley, UK96 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Couples
Probably a great place if we’d had children/ grandchildren along. For adults reading/ listening to interpretation information we found it generally patronising. Some potentially interesting printed display material in dark shadows and unreadable. Looking for more engineering detail - especially as the museum is billed as transport and travel. Further, why display motorbikes in places up the wall where you can’t really see them? If space was a constraint then peripheral stuff could have been sidelined in favour of the core transport elements. There’s no real flow to the exhibits - all feels rather random. I appreciate this review goes against the grain but others seem to have enjoyed the distractions more than we did.
Written February 22, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Carl K
Stoke-on-Trent, UK152 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2024 • Friends
This is a fantastic museum to visit with loads of across the centuries of transport, and local history.
The museum has great tactile exhibits including a Sinclair C5 ride game. Plenty of cycling exhibits showing the links to cycle racing in Scotland including the cycle of the amazing Graham Obree.
Awesome exhibits and all free of charge. Partick underground station within walking distance.
Written February 19, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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THE RIVERSIDE MUSEUM OF TRANSPORT AND TRAVEL: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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