The best things to do with kids in Edinburgh

Although this tourist attraction dates back to the Victorian era, and has an bona fide camera obscura as its centrepiece, its other galleries will do much more to entertain younger children. There are optical illusions, tricks of perspective, a giant plasmasphere, holographic Liquorice Allsorts and much more. Be prepared for squeals of delight and confusion. 

If you want scary animals, there are lions and tigers; hyperactive squirrel monkeys provide the slapstick; creatures like anteaters and tapirs are strange and otherworldly. The big stars, however, are the cuties: koalas, pandas, penguins and pygmy hippos. The zoo covers 82 acres of hillside in the west of the city – so plan to spend at least half a day here, maybe more.

Edinburgh Castle is a world-class visitor attraction but its chapels, interiors, memorials and museums don’t exactly take to kids who jump around and shout. But at the ruins of Craigmillar Castle in the south of the city it’s hard to imagine kids doing anything else. The venue attracts relatively few visitors, there’s ample space to play, and a six-year-old with a plastic sword will wreak no damage.

Resembling a cross between a massive futuristic marquee and a crashed spaceship, Our Dynamic Earth is an educational visitor attraction for children. Through interactive exhibits and displays it tells the story of our planet and how it has been shaped by forces of nature: climate, evolution, tectonics, volcanism and more. It’s all high-tech fun and there’s a 360-degree ‘ShowDome’ for science-flavoured movies too.

Open since 1982, this venue has two key selling points. For older children it can be an educational experience as it’s an urban farm with chickens, cows, goats, pigs and sheep. And if you want to entertain younger kids, there are accessible pet lodge animals, from the challenging (a snake called Dougal) to the cuddly (hamsters, guinea pigs and rabbits).

It may be based within an unlovely commercial estate out in the far west of the city, but Time Twisters is generally viewed as the most entertaining soft-play venue for kids in Edinburgh. The play area has a happily cartoonish Egyptian theme while the café makes an effort to provide healthier options than the average children’s menu.