The Winter Garden - now the Discovery Centre

Rothesay’s famous Grade A-listed Winter Garden now houses one of Scotland’s most innovative and exciting visitor centres, following an extensive and sympathetic restoration programme undertaken by Argyll, the Isles, Loch Lomond, Stirling & Trossachs Tourist Board. Your exploration of the beautiful Isle of Bute begins here. We’re open every day including Saturdays and Sundays. We look forward to welcoming you.

Located on the Esplanade in Rothesay, overlooking Rothesay Bay, the Isle of Bute Discovery Centre provides tourist information for the island, together with interactive exhibits illustrating local attractions and historical insights into life on Bute. The award-winning centre includes a restaurant, Genealogy Centre and the 90-seater Discovery Theatre, which serves as Rothesay’s cinema.

The building was erected in 1924 under the direction of Alexander Stephen, Rothesay’s Burgh Engineer. A circular cast iron and glass structure which was prefabricated at the noted Saracen Foundry in Glasgow, the building features a shallow dome 25m (82 feet) in diameter, two square corner towers with pagoda-shaped roofs and Art Nouveau decorations on the iron-work.

After years of decline, it closed in 1976 and was threatened with demolition. Following a complete restoration, the building reopened in 2001.