The City Chambers marble staircase
Three storeys of marble and alabaster inside a council building, seen on a free weekday tour.
Glasgow's most famous square spent more than a year and a half behind hoardings and is emerging, in autumn 2026, as a brand-new civic space. The Avenues redevelopment began in January 2025: the historic bronzes were lifted off to storage for restoration, and the old red tarmac gave way to granite paving, dozens of new trees, raised lawns and long benches. Fencing came down on the western half in early September 2026, the rest is due by late October, and the restored statues have been going back onto their plinths since August, repositioned to frame the two halves of the square rather than dotted across it. Visit now and you get a freshly polished square still finding its feet, with the last hoardings coming down around you. What has not changed is the east side: the City Chambers, Glasgow's council headquarters, opened in 1888 in a lavish Italian Renaissance manner with a dense carved facade and a central tower. The exterior is handsome, but the interior is the point. A marble and alabaster staircase climbs three storeys as though this were an Italian palazzo rather than a municipal office, and the banqueting hall is wrapped in enormous murals. Free guided tours run on weekdays at 10:30 and 14:30, with tickets handed out at the reception desk half an hour beforehand, first come first served and no advance booking, and they are dropped on certain dates such as council-meeting days, so check the council's tour page on the morning you plan to go. The council approved charging for tours in its February 2026 budget, so a fee may appear once its new visitor experience launches. The tour, more than the square, is the real reason to stop here. The square works better as a starting point than a destination. Queen Street railway station sits on its northern edge, Buchanan Street subway is two minutes away on foot, and Buchanan Street itself, the main shopping street, is a short block west. It is flat and effortless with a pushchair or for older relatives, and twenty minutes is plenty if you are only passing through. In December it has traditionally hosted the Christmas market and an ice rink; the council has said the redesigned square has less open floor for large events, so whether they return in 2026, and at what size, was not confirmed when this was written. Plain advice: do not schedule it. Walk through on your way to Buchanan Street or to the Edinburgh train, and add an hour if you can catch a City Chambers tour. In Glasgow's wet winter, when it is dark before four, that lit marble staircase is a warmer and finer sight than any open square.
Three storeys of marble and alabaster inside a council building, seen on a free weekday tour.
After the 2025-2026 rebuild: granite paving, new trees and raised lawns, with the restored bronzes returning to new positions since August 2026.
Queen Street station, Buchanan Street subway and the main shopping street all meet at its edges.
George Square, Glasgow G2 1DU
Just pass through. The square itself is an open space you cross in minutes, though the newly restored statues and the City Chambers facade make it a handsome crossing. The one exception is the free weekday City Chambers tour; if the timing works, it is by far the best thing here.
The tour climbs a long marble staircase and lasts about 45 minutes, so it suits older children better than toddlers, and a pushchair is impractical on the stairs; ask at reception about lift access if you need it. The square outside is flat and perfectly easy with a pram.