New Lanark Visitor Centre

Looking for a fun and educational day out with the kids that’s easy to get to from Glasgow?

Done.

Snap up today’s Big Deal for a child or adult’s ticket or family pass to New Lanark Mills World Heritage Site.

UNESCO World Heritage site

A UNESCO World Heritage site, New Lanark Mills is an incredible piece of Scottish social history which welcomes visitors from around the world.

It tells the story of the cotton mill village of New Lanark founded in the 18th century by social pioneer, Robert Owen.

Robert Owen provided his workers with decent homes, fair wages, free health care, a new education system for villagers and the first workplace nursery school in the world.

Fun and educational

Now beautifully restored as a living community, New Lanark is the perfect combination of fun and educational.

One of the sights at the community is Annie Mcleod Experience dark ride which features mill girl Annie who magically appears and reveals the amazing story of her life and times in New Lanark in 1820.

Guests can also visit New Lanark’s roof garden, Robert Owen’s School for Children, the Mill Workers House in 1920s and 1930s, Robert Owen’s House, the Village Store and the working textile machinery which made the cotton.

Falls of Clyde

New Lanark is also the gateway to the spectacular Falls of Clyde where you will find the Scottish Wildlife Trust Visitor Centre, woodland walks through breathtaking scenery, stunning waterfalls and the Clyde Walkway.

Visitors might catch a glimpse of kingfishers, otters, deer and badgers, or even see the rare peregrine falcons.

Mill Cafe with ice cream

Hungry or thirsty guests can pop into New Lanark’s Mill Cafe which serves a range of lunches, light refreshments, home-baking and Fair Trade tea and coffee.

You could also try New Lanark’s own ice cream which has won numerous awards and comes in delicious flavours like lavender rose and pineapple, coconut and Malibu.

Traditional textiles shop

Visitors can also pop into the New Lanark Mill Shop which sells yarn and textile products produced on site using the mill’s historical textile machinery.

It also sells a range of gifts, books, Scottish produce, traditional Scottish sweets and retro toys.

Rave reviews

New Lanark has rave reviews on TripAdvisor. The sight currently has an average rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 from 987 reviews.

Recent reviews, edited for length, say:

“The hotel is first class, the walk to the Falls of Clyde are a joy, the centre is informative and Robert Owen is my hero. Walk up to the falls, where you can imagine Wordsworth writing poetry, inspired by nature and the solitude. I love the shop too, and there is a great range of gifts.”

“A fascinating journey into the past. There was so much here for the whole family to see and discover. A beautiful setting with great exhibitions and so interesting to learn how Robert Owen provided so much in the way of care and education for his workers. My grandchildren got to experience schooling from the 1800s … their teacher played her part extremely well … adults found this as interesting as the children. We spent a whole day here and could happily visit again.”

Fantastic day out

Take your kids (or just yourself) to this World Class Heritage sight for an education into a crucial part of Scottish history.

With gorgeous surrounding walks, a lovely cafe and shop and plenty of features about the history of the mill and the village, there’s plenty to do for visitors.

And just a 35 minute drive from Glasgow it’s easy to get to too.