Homegrown hotel stay proves key to unlocking secrets of Glasgow

When we imagine a city break, many of us picture hopping on a plane and spending a few days immersed in the culture of London, Dublin, Paris, Barcelona and the rest. But sometimes looking closer to home can be just as rewarding.

I don’t know how many times I’ve walked past the beautiful building in Glasgow that once housed the headquarters of the Anchor Line Shipping Company. Hundreds, I’d wager. But never, until recently, did I think about what might lie behind those historic walls.

Native Glasgow gave me the chance to find out, and I’m grateful they did.

Native Places first opened this exquisite aparthotel in 2018, offering visitors a luxurious base for Glasgow adventures. Recently, the apartments have been extensively remodelled and redesigned, and the results are stunning.

The Native Glasgow aparthotel is in a building that once housed the headquarters of the Anchor Line Shipping Company.

I arrive at the building with my younger daughter, Mollie, and after a short climb up a feature staircase we are greeted at the front desk by possibly the most helpful reception staff I’ve ever met. They explain that our apartment is home to a very special feature: an old vault that once kept the Anchor Line Company’s valuables safe and now serves as a walk-in closet. This welcome is one of the many touches that makes our stay special.

Anyone with high-school kids will know that it’s not easy to impress them, but a glance at Mollie as we open the door and walk into our apartment tells me this place is already working its magic on her.

Phone lying forgotten in her pocket, she looks around, wide-eyed. I am equally bewitched. Soaring ceilings lend an instant feeling of grandeur, while tall windows flood each room with light. Everywhere we look we see wonderful original features, and these are complimented by flashes of contemporary flair, including bespoke furniture. A neutral colour palette enriched with accents of earthy greens and warm orangey rusts makes you feel instantly at home.

Finishing touches include artwork and photography by local artists, and textiles from Glasgow’s own renowned textile designers, Timorous Beasties. All come together to add personality and pay homage to the city’s unique character.

The living room boasts a modern, open-plan kitchen with everything you’d need for a longer stay, and an enormous couch that folds out to become a bed which will be Mollie’s nest for the night. It’s on the lounge walls that we discover one of my favourite features of the apartment – a series of vintage Anchor Line Shipping Company posters, each a glimpse into the golden age of ocean travel.

In the bedroom we find the old vault our friends at reception mentioned. Complete with a solid-iron door, it now serves as a spacious walk-in closet, but with the nautical history of the place firing our imaginations, it’s easy to picture piles of glittering treasure stowed here.

Unpacked, we decide to make the most of Native Glasgow’s central location and head out for what I suspect is the real reason Mollie has come along: shopping.

The apartments really are right in the middle of the action, a one-minute saunter from George Square, so we are spoilt for choice when it comes to shopping options. Of course, visitors from out of town will not only be bowled over by the array of stores – Glasgow also boasts an embarrassment of riches when it comes to dining, culture and everything else expected of a modern city.

We spend a couple of hours browsing shops and shopping centres, Mollie delighted and me slightly bewildered that her shopping bags seem to be multiplying at an alarming rate, before heading back to the apartment to put our feet up.

Mollie video calls a few of her pals to show them her shopping haul, and I settle down in a comfortable chair by one of the tall windows and read for a while, taking time every now and then to look down at the street and watch the world go by. It is quiet and comfortable, and I feel myself unwind as the seconds tick past.

It occurs to me, as the nights begin to draw in, that this would be a magical space to spend some cosy autumn or winter evenings. Glasgow is a beautiful city year-round, but I think it comes into its own in the autumn, when the air is crisp and the trees golden, and that magic continues to build as the months melt away towards Christmas. I picture returning to the opulent warmth of this apartment after a walk in the biting winter air, wrapped in gloves and scarves, feet crunching in the leaves and the shop windows sparkling with Christmas lights, and I already know that we’ll be back.

We love the apartment so much that we abandon dinner plans and order pizza, eating by the window, where we people-watch and chat.

Later, we settle down for the night, and I leave Mollie cosy and content in the huge living room sofa bed while I drift off to sleep in the master bedroom, already planning our return for a wintry trip with the rest of the family.

If Native Glasgow has reminded me of one thing, it’s this: sometimes, if you care to look, you’ll find treasure right under your nose.

P.S. The Anchor Line Shipping Company was famous for its sleek, comfortable ships, and built a reputation for offering great-value marine travel. It became well known for employing some of the finest marine artists of the day to create beautiful posters.