Galashiels, United Kingdom
Galashiels is a town of 10,060 people in Scotland, United Kingdom.
Why visit Galashiels
Townapedia lists 15 museums and landmarks, 9 parks and trails, 41 places to eat, 6 places to stay and 8 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Pavilion Cinema, Yair Bridge, Old Gala House and Burgh Chambers and War Memorial, Cornhill Square, Galashiels.
Weather in Galashiels
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Galashiels
Galashiels, (; Scots: Gallae; Scottish Gaelic: An Geal Àth) colloquially known as Gala, is a town in the Scottish Borders. The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile industry. Galashiels is the location of Heriot-Watt University's School of Textiles and Design. The town had a population of 10,075 in 2022.
From the Wikipedia article Galashiels (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Travel tips from other travellers: Galashiels on Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Photos of Galashiels
Things to do8
Museums and landmarks15
Burgh Chambers and War Memorial, Cornhill Square, Galashiels
Monument and historic site
War memorial in Scottish Borders, Scotland, UK
Torwoodlee Broch
Monument and historic site · 2.3 mi
Broch in Scottish Borders, Scotland, UK
3 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds9
Restaurants and cafes41
Gala Tandoori
Restaurant · Indian
36 Market Street, Galashiels
Mo,We-Su 12:00-13:45,16:30-22:30; PH closed
Fei Wong
Restaurant · Chinese · 1.1 mi
3 Marigold Bank, Galashiels
29 more on the map.
History
To the west of the town, there is an ancient earthwork known as the Picts' Work Ditch or Catrail. It extends many miles south, and its height and width vary. There is no agreement about the purpose of the earthwork. There is another ancient site on the north-western edge of the town, at Torwoodlee, an Iron Age hill fort, with a later broch known as Torwoodlee Broch built in the western quarter of the hill fort, and overlapping some of the defensive ditches of the original fort. The Romans destroyed the broch in 140 CE, soon after it was completed.
The town's coat of arms shows two foxes reaching up to eat plums from a tree, and the motto is Sour Plums pronounced in Scots as soor plooms. This is a reference to an incident in 1337 when a raiding party of English soldiers were picking wild plums close to the town and were caught by Scots who came across them by chance and slaughtered them all.
On a hillside to the north of the town, Buckholm Tower is a prominent structure that dates back to 1582 and replaced an earlier tower built on the same site but destroyed around 1570. In 1599, Galashiels received its Burgh Charter, an event celebrated every summer since the 1930s by the "Braw Lads’ Gathering", with riders on horseback parading through the town. Galashiels Burgh Chambers were designed in the Scottish Renaissance style and completed in 1867.
Read more of the history
The Paton Street drill hall was completed in the late 19th century. The textile trade caused Galashiels' population to increase dramatically from 800 residents at the start of the nineteenth century to 19,553 by 1890. A connection with the town's mill history, the Mill Lade, still links the town from near the site of mills at Wheatlands Road, to Netherdale, via Wilderhaugh, Bank Street, the Fountain and next to the Tesco/retail development street.
Despite the town's relatively low population, the early 2000s saw many new developments, including Asda, Boots pharmacy, Farmfoods, Marks & Spencer, Matalan, McDonald's, Next, Subway fast-food outlet and Tesco Extra. Most of these are on former mill and industrial estate sites, while other disused mills have been converted to living accommodations.
From the History section of Galashiels on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
More about Galashiels
Arts and culture
Robert Burns wrote two poems about Galashiels, Sae Fair Her Hair and Braw Lads. The latter is sung by some of the townsfolk each year at the Braw Lads Gathering. Sir Walter Scott built his home, Abbotsford, just across the River Tweed from Galashiels. The Sir Walter Scott Way, a long-distance path from Moffat to Cockburnspath, passes through Galashiels. There is some largely good-hearted rivalry between some of the Galashiels townsfolk and those of other border towns, particularly Hawick, the next largest town in the Scottish Borders. Galashiels' citizens often refer to their rival as dirty Hawick while the 'Teries' retort that Galashiels's residents are pail merks, supposedly because their town was the last to be plumbed into the mains water system and so residents had to rely on buckets as toilets.
Education
The following are listed by Scottish Borders Council as being in the Galashiels area and are catchment schools for Galashiels Academy.
Netherdale in Galashiels is home to Heriot-Watt University's School of Textiles and Design, which is also a shared campus of Borders College.
From the Wikipedia article Galashiels, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Galashiels
Danny GalbraithScottish association football player (born 1990)Photo: Mattythewhite, CC BY-SA 4.0
Arthur LapworthBritish chemist (1872–1941)Photo: Unknown, Public domain
Carl HoggScottish rugby union footballer and coachPhoto: Worcswarriors, CC BY-SA 4.0- John CollinsScottish association football player and manager
- Peter KempBritish swimmer and water polo player (1877–1965)
- Archie CochraneBritish doctor (1909–1988)
- Ian StarkScottish equestrian
- Gregor TownsendScottish rugby union coach and former player
- John DavidsonScottish campaigner for Tourette syndrome
- Anne RedpathScottish modern painter (1895-1965)
- Scilla ElworthyBritish activist
- Calum KerrScottish politician (born 1972)
Born in Galashiels, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Where to stay6
Churches and places of worship5
Shopping13
Gas and EV charging2
Schools, colleges and libraries11
Healthcare5
Map of Galashiels
115 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Edinburgh Airport (EDI) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 32 miles away.
- Hawick 13 mi south, about 21 min by car
- Penicuik 22 mi northwest, about 36 min by car
- Tranent 23 mi north, about 38 min by car
- Musselburgh 24 mi northwest, about 39 min by car
- Edinburgh 28 mi northwest, about 45 min by car
- Berwick-Upon-Tweed 33 mi east, about 53 min by car
- Livingston 34 mi northwest, about 55 min by car
- Kirkcaldy 37 mi north, about 1 h by car
- Rosyth 38 mi northwest, about 1 h by car
- Whitburn 38 mi northwest, about 1 h by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Galashiels
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Keep exploring
Local news
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Reviews, tips and questions
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Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- Mapillary (see each image): photos
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Statue of mounted horse, Galashiels, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Kate Richardson - 2022 Tour Series, Galashiels (Women's race), Cs-wolves, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Jo Tindley - 2022 Tour Series, Galashiels (Women's race - sprints win), Cs-wolves, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels Reiver Statue 02, Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels Reiver Statue 01, Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Noah Hobbs - 2022 Tour Series, Galashiels (Men's race - FL), Cs-wolves, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels War Memorial 01, Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Galashiels War Memorial 02, Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Yair Bridge (6902313283), Andrew Bowden from London, United Kingdon, CC BY-SA 2.0
- War memorial, Galashiels, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels Academy 2022, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Buckholm-tower01, Double Happiness, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels, ...Kingsknowe Drive, Kingsknowes Hotel, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Old Parish & St Paul's Church, Galashiels - 52574143428, itmpa, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Pavilion Cinema Galashiels, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Mercat Cross, Old Town, Galashiels, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Walter Scott in Gala 01, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- St Peter's Episcopal Church, Abbotsford Road, Galashiels, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Galashiels library, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Robert Burns in Gala 01, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Robert Burns in Gala 02, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Old-gala-house-by-night, James Denham, Public domain
- Abbotsford Home of Sir Walter Scott, NYSonnet, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Gala Policies (the pond) - panoramio, Ian Turnbull, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, Palemerk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, floatingboater, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, floatingboater, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, southglos, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, floatingboater, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, hobgoblin, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
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