TRAVEL

The 19th World Congress of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology (WCP2023) will take place at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC), located just outside Glasgow city centre in the west-end. The city of Glasgow itself, is in west central Scotland, United Kingdom. As Scotland’s largest city, it is easy to get to from the rest of the UK and from overseas by road, train, sea, and air.

Below you will find numerous transport options for travelling to Glasgow and the SEC, and for getting around Glasgow.

Travelling to Glasgow and the SEC

Road

Scotland has an extensive motorway network. Glasgow is easily accessible from many cities via the following motorways:

• Edinburgh with the M8 (about an hour and a half – two hours)
• England on the M74 (at least seven hours from London)
• Stirling with the M80 (about an hour)
• West coast of Scotland with the M77

The SEC is conveniently situated just off the M8 motorway.

The venue postcode for your satnav is G3 8YW.

A multi-storey car park near the SEC is operated by Glasgow City Council. Further information, including prices, is available on the SEC and Glasgow City Council websites.

More parking options around Glasgow are available.

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Train

Glasgow is well connected by train from across the UK by its two main stations:

• Glasgow Central Station links Glasgow to the south, included from London
• Glasgow Queen Street Station operates routes mainly to Edinburgh and the north

A three-minute train ride will take you from Glasgow Central Station to the SEC’s own dedicated railway station – Exhibition Centre. There are six trains an hour (around every 10 minutes) from Glasgow Central station, departing from Platform 17 (low level).

If you arrive at Glasgow Queen Street Station, you’ll need to walk or get a bus to Glasgow Central Station first, and then catch the train to Exhibition Centre.

Train tickets can be booked via ScotRail, Transpennine Express and Avanti West Coast or purchased from the station. To view all available routes from across the UK, visit Trainline.

If you are planning a trip from London to Glasgow, check out the Caledonian Sleeper and arrive refreshed after a comfortable overnight journey.

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Sea

You can travel to Scotland by ferry from the major ports of Belfast and Larne in Northern Ireland. Ferries dock at Cairnryan in the southwest of Scotland, with a bus service taking passengers to the city centre in just over two hours.

You can also travel from mainland Europe, and arrive in either:

• Hull in the northeast of England where it’s around a five hours’ drive to Glasgow.
• Newcastle, which is around a two hours 40 minutes drive to Glasgow.

Visit Stena Line or DFDS for more information.

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Air

Glasgow has three international airports nearby, with connections across the UK and the world:

• Glasgow Airport is the closest airport to the city centre. Catch the express bus service from outside the terminal and arrive in the centre of Glasgow in around 15 minutes. You can then catch the train from Glasgow Central Station to the SEC. Alternatively you can catch taxi, located just outside Glasgow Airport’s terminal building, which can take you straight to the SEC in around 15 minutes for roughly £20 – £25. Visit Glasgow Airport’s website for more information.
• Glasgow Prestwick Airport is 32 miles (51km) from Glasgow. It is very accessible with train and bus services to the city centre. Visit Glasgow Prestwick Airport’s website for more information.
• Edinburgh Airport is 39 miles (63km) from Glasgow. There is a direct bus service from the airport to Glasgow’s Buchanan Bus Station which takes around 1 hour. Visit Edinburgh Aiport’s website for more information.

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By taxi

Glasgow’s taxi drivers are some of the friendliest in the world. Glasgow Taxis operate five and six-seater cabs in and around the city. If their yellow light is on, they can be flagged down on the street, or alternatively, call +44 (0) 141 429 70 70 to book.

An average taxi journey from Glasgow city centre to the SEC is a short five-minute ride and will cost around £7.

An average taxi journey from Glasgow Airport to the SEC is about a 15-minute ride and will cost roughly £20 – £25.

There is a Glasgow Taxis pick-up and drop-off point outside the venue. Check out the Glasgow Taxis website for more information.

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By bus

Coach operators run services from throughout the UK to Glasgow’s Buchanan Bus Station.

• The Riversider 100 service will take you from George Square in Glasgow city centre directly to the SEC.
• The X19 Stagecoach service also operates near to conference venue, stopping on Finnieston Street only a few minutes’ walk from the venue.

Visit Traveline for more information on train and bus travel in Glasgow.

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For the most up-to-date up travel information for Glasgow, please visit People Make Glasgow’s Getting Here page.

Getting around Glasgow

During your stay, we encourage you to go out and explore the welcoming and cultural city of Glasgow. It’s a compact city and it’s easy to find your way around, whether on foot, by bike or public transport.

Walk

Glasgow is a very walkable city, especially the city centre, so you can easily explore it on foot whilst taking in the beautiful buildings and architecture around you – don’t forget to ‘look up’ when you’re in the city.

Get your bearings by visiting People Make Glasgow’s neighbourhood guides.

Bicycle

Glasgow is home to a fantastic cycle hire scheme, operated by OVO Bikes. Visit OVO Bikes website to find out how it works.

For ideas of the best routes in the city and surrounding areas to follow by bike, check out the Sustrans website.

Subway

The subway is one of the easiest ways to get around the city centre, west end and southside of Glasgow. Running every four minutes at peak times, it takes just 24 minutes to complete a circuit of the 15 stations.

You can either buy a single ticket or, if you’re here for a few days, you might want to get a Subway Smartcard, which offers the best fares and you can top up as you go. Visit the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) website for more information.

Train

Glasgow Central Station links Glasgow by rail to the south, with Glasgow Queen Street Station operating routes mainly to Edinburgh and the north. Visit the ScotRail website for information on all routes and timetables.

Need to travel between Central Station and Queen Street Station? Check out ScotRail’s handy walking routes or bus link service.

A Roundabout ticket gives one-day unlimited travel on ScotRail and Subway services to over 110 stations in the Greater Glasgow area. Find out more information on the Roundabout ticket.

Bus

First Bus Glasgow operates over 80 routes across the city and has a variety of tickets to choose from, including day tickets allowing unlimited travel in your selected area all day, or a weekly ticket if you’re staying here longer. For the cheapest prices, download the First Bus App where you can buy and store tickets on your phone, plan your journey in advance and track the arrival of your next bus.

First Bus also operate an express service between the city centre and Glasgow Airport with a journey time of around 15 minutes. Visit the Glasgow Airport website for more information.

City Sightseeing Bus

The City Sightseeing Glasgow open-top bus tour is one of the most convenient ways to visit Glasgow’s top tourist attractions and iconic sights. Stopping at the People’s Palace, Glasgow Cathedral, Riverside Museum, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and The Clydeside Distillery, the hop-on-hop-off service is a fun way to enjoy the city.

The complete tour lasts approximately one hour and 25 minutes. Full accessibility for wheelchair users is available on all tours, with one dedicated wheelchair space available on the lower deck of each bus.

Tickets are available from the City Sightseeing Glasgow website, the driver or pavement staff and are valid for one or two days.

Taxi

Glasgow’s taxi drivers are some of the friendliest in the world. Glasgow Taxis operate five and six-seater cabs in and around the city. If their yellow light is on, they can be flagged down on the street, or alternatively, call +44 (0) 141 429 70 70 to book. Check out the Glasgow Taxis website for more information.

For the most up-to-date up information on getting around Glasgow, please visit People Make Glasgow’s Getting Around page.