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Greenock is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland.

Bank Street, with Helensburgh in the distance

Get in

The town is situated at the mouth of the River Clyde in the picturesque area of Inverclyde. Greenock has easy transport routes from main population centres and airports.

By car

Greenock waterfront
  • From Glasgow/Glasgow Airport take the M8 (becomes A8) heading West.
  • From Ayr/Prestwick Airport take the A78 heading North.

By train

Looking across to Kilcreggan
  • From Ayr or the "Prestwick-Airport" Station, take the train to "Paisley-Gilmour Street", and change to platform 2 for the "Gourock" or "Wemyss Bay" Train. You can then alight at either "Bogston", "Cartsdyke", "Greenock-Central", Greenock-West", or "Fort Matilda" (Gourock Train) or "Whinhill", "Drumfrochar", or "Branchton" (Wemyss Bay train). Obviously, "Greenock-Central" is the nearest to the centre of the town itself.
  • From Glasgow Central train station, simply take the "Gourock" train and alight at either "Greenock-Central" or "Greenock-West". Journey time between 25 minutes-45 minutes.
  • From Glasgow International Airport, take the bus to "Paisley-Gilmour Street" and take the train to "Gourock" alighting at either "Greenock-Central" or "Greenock-West".

By bus

  • From Glasgow, take the 901 Citylink bus for Gourock (McInroy's Point) or Greenock (town centre) - both are hourly, Mon-Sat. There are also occasional peak services numbered 906 which extend to Largs but also travel via Greenock.
  • Also, from Glasgow, take the 901 McGill's bus service to Largs which travels via Greenock - again, hourly, Mon-Sat - but do NOT serve Glasgow Airport. Journey time is around 1 hour.
  • From Ayr, take the 585 "Greenock" Stagecoach bus - be warned though, it's half hourly (or every 20mins during the summer) frequency and takes around 2 hours to complete.
  • From Largs, you can also take the 585 or jump on a McGill's 901/576/or 577 service which all either terminate or travel through Greenock. Journey time is no longer than 30-45 mins.
  • From Clydebank, take a Scottish Travel number 22 bus which operate every half hour and take no longer than 45 minutes to get to Greenock.
  • From Port Glasgow and Gourock, almost every bus heading towards greenock terminates there, so passengers can enjoy frequencies (on "main" routes into town) of every 5 minutes or more.

Get around

Greenock is not a huge town, so it is fairly easy to get around the place on foot. However if you wish to wander around in the hills above the town to take advantage of the spectacular view of the mountains across the Clyde, then using a car to get to those places wouldn't be a bad idea. Taxi's are available all over greenock and are really cheap. The start fare is between £2 and £2.50. A trip from Greenock to Gourock will cost you less than £10.

The roads in Greenock are pretty easy to find your way around on, but you should definitely bring a streetmap. Also, watch out as the very centre of the town is governed by a quite awkward one-way system.

The locals are friendly (despite what you may have heard) and will gladly point you in the right direction.

See

Lyle Hill beacon

There are many things to see and do in Greenock. As mentioned previously there are the stunning views from the hills around the town.

  • A particularly nice spot is Craig's Top which provides a panoramic 360degree view of the whole area including a magnificent view over the gateway to the Highlands. "Craig's Top" is found at the summit of Lyle hill at the start of "Lyle Road".
  • A further enjoyable experience is to Walk the Cut. The "Cut" is an aqueduct, and beside it a near level pathway winds up round the hills to the South West of the town. This path rings round Dunrod Hill and takes you to Loch Thom, a reservoir constructed in 1824 to supply Greenock's water, now also used for leisure fishing. At the point where The Cut meets the loch the Cornalees Centre provides facilities for nature study and the focus for nature trails and pathways.
  • One of Greenock's most enjoyable walks is The Esplanade this is a beautiful road right down at the edge of the water. The views are breathtaking, with Helensburgh, Kilcreggan and the Highlands to see across the impressive expanse of The Clyde. If you are very lucky, you may even see a Baby Seal!.
  • Nestled between Greenock and the neighbouring town of Gourock is The Battery Park. This is a field of green grass and playing fields, with a stunning view to the mountains beyond. There are two children's playparks with the small one for toddlers and the larger for older children, a small but reasonable skate-park, an astroturf football pitch and a small cafe. The beautiful town of Gourock is also within walking distance. The Battery Park is just off Eldon Street.

Do

McLean Museum and Art Gallery

The town also hosts a varied range of activities. There is something for everyone in and around Greenock.

  • Underheugh Cottage. Underheugh Cottage is one of the area's most loved secrets. The Cottage is a working smallholding, which is fully self-sufficient. At Underheugh Cottage there are a range of activities you can undertake by appointment. These include Scottish Nature Treks (got for a walk on the Fell and see the wonder of Scottish wildlife), A Highland Experience (get the chance to dress up and get a feel for life as it was in ancient Scotland), A Pig-keeping course (get up close and personal with these fine animals), Amateur or Professional Gardening courses (whatever level of interest you have you will find an experience to suit you). The price of the course is well worth it when you consider the wealth of experience you will walk away with. This is a really great way to learn more about the Highlands and a range of subjects in the environment of a traditional Scottish Cottage.
  • Waterfront Cinema. This is the small local cinema. The screens are relatively small as are the selection of films available to see (normally only the blockbusters and so on). However, if you choose your time well you could be lucky enough to view a whole film in your own private cinema, as the locals rarely go to the cinema during the day on weekdays. So the place has its merits. Popcorn, sweets and drinks on sale. If you cut out the 2 for 1 Monday coupon from the Greenock Telegraph, it lets 2 people in for the price of one, which is £6 (May 2012). Not sure what day it appears but keep watching the Telegraph for it. It's been running for a few months now.
  • Waterfront Leisure Centre. This is a large and well equipped leisure centre situated at the Waterfront near the centre of Greenock. There is a large swimming pool with plenty of fun slides. There is an Ice-Rink and a well equipped Gym. The enormous glass wall on the Waterside of the building provides beautiful views while you are working out, swimming, or enjoying a skate. There is also a cafe where you can look down onto the gym.
  • McLean Museum and Art Gallery. This is a nice museum which features an interesting feature on the history of ship-building at Greenock on The Clyde. Alongside this the Museum boasts an extensive array of taxidermy specimens of animals and insects. When coupled with the regular and varied displays of local and national artist's works, the McLean makes for an enlightening experience. A welcome addition to what has been known in the past as an "Industrial Town". Greenock has its fair share of Art and Culture. A very interesting museum with plenty of interesting items.

Buy

  • The Oak Mall. In Greenock is the main shopping centre. Contains Shops such as Dorothy Perkins, Topshop, New Look, Burtons, Marks & Spencer, Clinton Cards, Boots, Millets, Superdrug, Game, Greggs, WH Smith, Internacionale, Makays, Argos, JJB Sports, Original Shoe and more.

In the Oak mall you will also find an Aulds bakery shop which is a really popular local chain where they sell the locally made popular Aulds pies. This is also a sit in cafe where you can sample some of the baked goods with a nice cuppa.

There is also an O'briens sandwich bar in the middle of the centre and a cafe called Leos both of which you can sit in.

The mall is very clean and is patrolled by security.

Outwith the shopping centre there is a large Tesco store which has electrical and clothing as well as the usual food!

There is also a wide range of shops in the streets surrounding "The Oak Mall". The main streets of interest being "West Blackhall Street" and "Cathcart Street".

Eat

Go to the famous John Beatons (Beezer) Drunken House where the Buckie flows and enjoy deep fried Mars bars

Drink

Greenock usually has a good busy atmosphere on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. Thursday is student night (With discounted entry to some clubs e.g. Word Up) and therefore can determine the croud. There are many great bands who play locally. Thursday and Saturday nights are the best for catching a good band; Places like Slanj and the Argyle have regular performers ranging from Tribute acts to some great local talent, comedians and other shows.

Pubs

Slanj - Serves food, music and entertainment in evening the Horse Shoe - old fashioned pub, popular karaoke in evenings. The Argyle - Nicely furbished small pub with beer garden, serves food, evening entertainment Black Cat - A dads favourite! Waterline - Once a restaurant with a bar, but no longer serves food, comfortable atmosphere, usually not too crowded. Harwoods - Aims for an over 23 age group (Usually the more discerning clientèle!) - Karaoke evenings. Tokyo Joes - Newly opened, beer garden, serves food, nightclub in evening (Over 25's) The James Watt - A Wetherspoons, Serves food, large building, No music, beer garden, can have drink deals The Old Bank Bar - beer garden, serves food, busy on a sat night!

NightClubs

Red - Nightclub, good mix of music, 2 bars, generally 18-26 crowd Word Up Biggest nightclub in greenock, 3 rooms, mix of music, dance, R&B, Pop, oldies, Indie depending on room, busiest club, mix of people. Strict bouncers regarding ID! Text Bar during day serves variety of drinks and cocktails, attached to Word Up. Popular bar before Word Up opens, can get free entry to club if in there before a certain time, on certain nights.

Sleep

  • Tontine Hotel, Union St.
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