Glasgow's Grosvenor Casinos Review for November 2024

I am on a quest to find, explore, and review all the top land-based casinos on the UK’s streets. Such is my commitment that I’ve spent a long weekend in Scotland to share with you my journey and tour of Glasgow casinos. Well, the ones I’m told are worth visiting, at least.

In this particular review, I visit another Grosvenor site. Correction, two Grosvenor sites. Scotland’s biggest city boats two venues from this well-known chain, and they’re very much neighbours, so I’ll be rolling the experience into one. I’ll cover everything from how to find them to casino games, customer service, membership benefits, and how my returns looked compared to the best payout online casinos today. Now, this will be the third and fourth Grosvenor Casino that I have been to, and as crazy as it sounds, I’m intrigued to find out if Grosvenor does things differently here in Scotland than they do in England.

Should they be the same, then this will make for an easy casino review to present. If they’re noticeably different, then I guess this will also make the review fun to write. That’s a win-win for me, and you come away with my take on whether the Grosvenor Casinos in Glasgow are worth your time and money. 

Both the Grosvenor Casinos in Glasgow are a stone's throw from Glasgow Central Station. 

Now, the first of the two Grosvenor Casinos is located next to the King George V Bridge, in an area called Broomielaw. This is less than a 5-minute walk to and from the main Central Station. In fact, you walk straight down Hope Street and Oswald Street, and you arrive at Broomielaw. This casino is fittingly known as the Grosvenor Casino Riverboat because of its location at the water’s edge. 

From the station to the other Grosvenor Casino, which is on Glassford Street, it's more like 10 minutes. Once you exit the station have buses and taxis that can take you to the casino, but it’s really not far to travel at all. This second casino is known as the Merchant City Casino, the bigger and some might argue more central of the two. You have the Glasshouse Car Park a few doors down and all your main high street shops nearby.

Grosvenor Riverboat Games

With the Riverboat only being able to host some 300-odd players, it’s understandable there aren’t too many games available. The entire bottom floor is dedicated to the games, with the upper floor for the restaurant seating. There are nine table games available, these include poker, roulette, and blackjack. There are several slot machines around the edges of the Riverboat. Electronic roulette games also accompany these. There are no set events or tournaments inside the Riverboat. I can’t recall seeing a VIP area, but if memory serves me, there were high-stakes tables to compensate. The quality of the gaming features was impeccable. And I doubted the other Grosvenor Casino will come up with the same high standards. 

This leads us nicely to the Merchant City Grosvenor Casino.

Grosvenor Merchant City Games

When you step into the Merchant City Grosvenor, you’re immediately hit with the sound and lighting of slot machines. There are more than 100 slots inside this casino alone, making it the largest collection of any casino in Glasgow. Even more slot games for real money are located at the back end of the building on the first floor. 

Take the stairs down to the lower level and, yes, more slot cabinets with many electronic roulette games included. There are four live roulette tables with the option of three blackjack tables and an impressive ten poker tables as well. I was wrong to assume the games might not be in as good of a condition as the Riverboat, but credit where due, the gaming quality was very good. 

The Merchant Grosvenor does host poker tournament nights, with information for these synced to the Grosvenor app. With this said Grosvenor Casino is also an online gaming emporium. Yes, they have far more games, promotions, and sports betting here. But, online, you can’t enjoy a great steak meal with your gambling experience. Though for a more authentic experience from home, games from the Merchant City Grosvenor are streamed live and made playable online. 

My hotel was located at the Ibis in Springfield Quay, which is a short walk from the crossing on the south bank of the River Clyde. It’s just short of a mile to walk from my Ibis hotel to the Central Station, which takes 20 minutes to complete. I’ll admit I’ve gone for a budget option here, but other options are available. Namely the city’s five-star Kimpton Blythswood Square hotel at the other end of the spectrum.

If you wanted a hotel that was equidistant to both venues, then your best bet is to go with the Holiday Inn Express. You’ll have a 10-minute walk in either direction to get to a Grosvenor Casino. One is a short stroll up Stockwell Street, and the other along the river on Clyde Street and Broomielaw to get to the other.

Grosvenor Riverboat

The Grosvenor Casino Riverboat opens from midday to 6:00am, and this was my first port of call. The casino is small, there’s no denying that. However, inside, it's possibly the most perfectly decorated casino that I have ever been in. This place is all about the wood and the chandeliers. Having arrived once it opened, the staff count was fairly low. This is a Saturday, so I highly expected it would pick up. The casino had just been freshly cleaned. It looked immaculate and threw you right back to the early 1900s, a time I almost feel like I remember. 

Even though it’s the early evening, the view out onto the Clyde is wonderful and it gives this casino an added touch of elegance. The staff, though minimal in number at the time, were friendly. I pretended it was my first time, which made the excuse why I was here before things really got going. The receptionist asked what games I was interested in and so I stated roulette. I was guided over to the table and the dealer having spoken to the receptionist began to explain the rules to me. 

Highly embarrassing, but it’s the kind of sacrifice I make for my reviews. The gentleman was really nice, chatty, and clearly knew what he was talking about. The experience thus far was actually quite perfect, and I still couldn’t get over how amazing the interior décor was. 

Smoking: Players must head outside, which can be by the entrance or on the 2nd floor balcony. 

Accessibility: the building is fully accessible by wheelchair and disabled toilets are available throughout.

Food and drink: There is a top-quality restaurant and bar inside. However, food was only available after 6:00pm. The seating area was impressive with booth tables and a warm ambience to the area, with views onto the Clyde. I also noticed some bar snacks being provided for free.

I vacated the Riverboat a little after 8:00pm, then made my way over to sister venue Merchant City Grosvenor.

Grosvenor Merchant City

When it comes to the Merchant City Grosvenor Casino, it’s immediately clear as the bigger of the two, is spread over more floors, and is open 24 hours a day, every day. Inside, this is the kind of Grosvenor that I have been more used to seeing, which makes the Riverboat Grosvenor Casino more special in a way.

The Merchant City Glasgow Casino is your classic high street casino, and because it’s open all day and all night, there were far more staff. I arrived here just after 8:00pm having spent a couple of hours inside the Riverboat. The Merchant staff were lively and in good spirits. The venue wasn’t packed to the rafters, but it was beginning to pick up nicely.

With any casino that’s open 24/7, I expect it to be showing signs of wear. Yes, the carpets aren’t in great shape, and you do see the odd scuff marks here and there. But it doesn’t detract, the place still looks great. The staff were friendly, and plenty of dealers were working which tells you how busy it was. 

Food and drink: Merchant Grosvenor Casino Glasgow comes with an in-house restaurant and bar, and it’s here that I took the opportunity to eat before I departed. The menu here offered a standard selection of meals, with nothing that really pushes the boat out but something for everyone. I opted for the Pit Boss Chicken and despite a bit too much BBQ sauce, it filled a hole nicely. There’s also a sports bar, though I didn’t spend any time at it, it looked like a great spot with tons of screens.

Smoking: at this casino it’s only permitted outside by the entrance. 

Cash Machines and withdrawals: As you snake through the building, you’ll find several ATMs that provide free cash withdrawals. Anytime you want to change your chips for cash, there's a permanently-staffed desk where you can do so. That's one thing even fast withdrawal casino sites will never have over bricks-and-mortar venues - that cash is yours to hold right there and then.

There is wheelchair-appropriate lift access to all floors. Meanwhile, disabled toilets can be found on the first and lower floors.  

Most land based casinos fall far behind the best online casinos for bonuses, but Grosvenor's expertise in both areas makes it one of the better bricks-and-mortar venues if you're hoping for a little extra. 

Should you want to take your experience of any Grosvenor Casino to the next level, you can register online to become a member. The benefits of doing this include fast-track access to all Grosvenor Casinos, instant access to your funds within the casinos, and the ability to transfer money between online and high street casinos. You can also set control limits. Online, there’s even the potential for some player bonuses, including their welcome bonus offer.

Your use of the casinos both online and offline will reward you with points. These points can help you to qualify for monthly freebies and additional promotions. There may even be a free drink in it for you if you flash staff the membership card.

The Riverboat and the Merchant Grosvenor Casinos are two very different venues, and of the two, the Riverboat was my clear favourite. You won’t find establishments that look like this anymore. Outside, you have no assumptions, but once inside, wow. If it were me, all casinos would look like this. At the time I visited it was on the quiet side, I can’t fault the venue for that, as I walked in before the evening really got going. Nevertheless, the casino was in immaculate condition. 

In somewhat contrast, the Grosvenor Casino in Merchant City was as you would expect of any casino. I arrived at this venue later in the night and it was a lot busier. Merchant Grosvenor Casino comes with a different vibe. This is more fun, while the Riverboat felt more serious. The casino was in a nice clean condition, particularly given its doors never close. More is offered in the way of gaming, and even in terms of food and drink options. This casino sits on a high street in the middle of Glasgow, so it does what it needs to do, and does it very well. 

Both casinos are great, but still, the Riverboat is somewhere I would go back to. 

⭐ Standout Moment

Exactly that. Stepping foot inside the Riverboat is a really special experience and its interior styling stuck with me. It really has something a lot of other modern casinos have lost. 

While the Grosvenor Riverboat Casino is not quite technically central, it’s within a walkable distance from the core city centre. The Merchant City Casino is in the beating heart of Glasgow, and it wouldn’t be at all surprising if this was the busier of the two. I only learnt of the Riverboat venue upon my arrival in Glasgow and not before, so you can only wonder how many people are unaware that such a lovely venue exists. 

If your focus is on having a whale of a time and going nuts, then the Grosvenor Casino in Merchant City is the ideal place for you. It has the games, and it most certainly has some of the most innovative and exciting new slots in the UK. If, however, you prefer the quiet time and want a rounder experience, then the Riverboat is the better option - but the gaming is limited. I can’t imagine this casino ever gets busy to the point that people are waiting for table spots to become free. 

Are there safety concerns with either venue? No. Security personnel work at both casinos once the day runs into the evening. The exits are well-marked and everyone inside is there to have fun. But the big question is this; are Grosvenor Casinos in Scotland the same as those in England? Had I not been to the Grosvenor Riverboat Casino, I would say that they are indeed all the same. But this casino really did stand out.

If you’re following in my footsteps, you’ll be travelling into Glasgow by train. Most services arrive into Glasgow Central, and both casinos are within 10 minutes’ walk from the station.

If you’re heading to Riverboat first, you simply head down Oswald Street towards the river. Any taxis or public transport would take up far more time than this short walk. As for Merchant City, the number 18 bus from the Union Street side of the station will take you pretty much to the casino door. 

If you’re driving in, you’ll want the postcode G1 4RJ for Grosvenor Riverboat. There’s limited onsite parking, and its free in the evenings. As for Merchant City, head for G1 1UL. There is parking provided a part of the complex the casino is in, but it will cost you and it isn’t especially cheap.

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