Radisson RED: This Glasgow hotel is the perfect spot for music lovers
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Glasgow is undoubtedly a city for music lovers, and on the banks of the River Clyde is the best hotel in the city to explore its rich musical offerings.
The Radisson RED hotel is located within yards of not one, not two, but three of the city’s incredible music venues. From your window, there’s a good chance you’ll catch a glimpse of the Armadilo, the SEC and the Hydro, all of which host incredible international and local acts.
It’s no wonder therefore that the hotel leans into that theme, with music playing a big role in the decor and styling of the hotel. And it was fitting perhaps that I was invited to spend two nights there as Glasgow Green welcomed TRNSMT.
With the focus of my stay in Glasgow covering TRNSMT, I had a relatively short checklist of must-haves from the Radisson RED, albeit they were important to me. First of all, I wanted to be able to get a good nights sleep after a day traipsing from stage to stage. I’m in my 30s these days, and I’m sad to say that I just don’t have it in me to endlessly bound from the main stage to the Slam Tent, or its TRNSMT equivalent, and back again day after day without falling to bits by Sunday morning.
On this front, the room was absolutely brilliant, the beds at Radisson RED are absolutely huge and ridiculously comfortable. I reckon my head was on the pillow about 30 minutes after 50 Cent left the stage on Friday night, and I was out like a light. The Saturday night wasn’t too different, although it was a little longer as we chose to walk back from Glasgow Green to the hotel.
Which leads me onto my next must-have, it had to be easy to get to. I’m fortunate enough to live less than half an hour from Glasgow by car. However, I didn’t want to forgo a few drinks at the festival and rely on public transport, which adds about an hour on to the journey. On Friday night, we took a taxi back from Glasgow Green. Even in fairly busy conditions, and with numerous roads closed off, it couldn’t have taken more than 25 minutes to get to the hotel.
The following night we decided to walk back and, thanks to Glasgow being an incredibly walkable city, it took about 40 minutes and we got to saunter along the Clyde waterfront. That might seem like a bit of a trek, but it’s worth noting that Glasgow’s three biggest venues are literally across the road from the hotel, and the O2 Academy is about 30 minutes walk away.
The last must-have was the ability to grab a shower after a day in the absolute baking heat covered in suncream. The Radisson RED facilities were absolutely brilliant, and I can’t understate how welcome that shower was after temperatures hit 31 degrees on Saturday afternoon.
The hotel managed to excel elsewhere as well. The staff couldn’t have been more helpful, allowing early check-in so that I could drop-off my bags before getting to Glasgow Green for 12pm on the Friday. And, most appreciated, allowing me to order food whilst still at the festival and have it delivered to the room for our return. And those views along the Clyde! They might sound like small things, but it’s those small things that tend to set hotels like this apart.
It should also be noted that Radisson RED operates a brilliant bar-restaurant on its ground floor. We were able to visit on both mornings for breakfast. On offer was a buffet-style breakfast that exceeded my expectations. If you could want it, it was there. It was especially appreciated that it ran until 11am each morning, with plenty of food available for those of us that didn’t make it down until the bitter end.
Whilst I said that it is within viewing distance of three Glasgow venues, that is technically only half true. The Radisson RED itself is one of Glasgow’s great venues. The Radisson RED Skybar has been attracting some of the world’s top DJs since re-opening after COVID and is an absolute must visit for anyone who loves electronic music.
We caught up with Graham Chalmers, curator at Radisson RED Skybar, earlier this year to hear how the venue became a much sought after spot in that world. You can read about it here.
All in all, Radisson RED is a stylish hotel that blends brilliantly trendy design with real quality. The service from those involved with the hotel is perfect, and it really is one of the city’s truly cool hotels. If you’re in the city for a gig, you could do a lot worse than stay here.
The Radisson is easily reached by train. Tickets from London and Edinburgh start at £42 and can be found on avantiwestcoast.co.uk
Callum McCormack was a guest of Radisson RED, the hotel is at 25 Tunnel St, Finnieston Quay, Glasgow G3 8HL
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