Three for the kids: Edinburgh

Edinburgh will captivate the kids. Photo / Getty Images

The Scottish capital has much to offer your wee brood.

1 The Potter Trail

A must-do for Harry Potter fans, this walking tour visits the cafe where JK Rowling wrote the first Potter book and takes you to the locations that inspired scenes and characters in the series. You'll take a trip down the real-life Diagon Alley and have a chance to be sorted outside the school that inspired Hogwarts. And best of all? It's free and requires no bookings — but you're welcome to place a donation into the sorting hat at the end.

2 The Edinburgh Dungeon

For older kids and teens, this interactive experience into the darker side of Scotland's history will keep them well entertained. With 80 minutes of immersive theatre, the stories of the colourful characters of the Edinburgh Dungeon come to life through special effects and thrilling underground rides. You'll even get to smell the stench of Edinburgh before it had a proper sewerage system, and be accused in a modern-day witch hunt.

3 Museum of Childhood

"When I was your age . . . " is a refrain kids are used to hearing — and now they can learn what it was like for youngsters in the past. It's the world's first museum of its type, with displays of toys and games from across the generations. There's a puppet theatre, a dress-up area and a Victorian street complete with vintage outdoor toys, so the kids will have fun exploring the past while the adults enjoy a slice of nostalgia.