If you (or a member of your family) have read the books, been entranced by the movies and/or generally love the art of filmmaking, this is the tour for you! The 3 of us (2 adults and a six year old) loved every minute of our recent visit there and would happily return again. It does help if you have an interest in the HP films and have seen them - although there were a few people on our tour who hadn't and they seemed to be enjoying the spectacle of it just the same. My little one is a Harry Potter nut and at 6 years old has only seen the first 3 movies - the rest of the films are a bit more scary so they will come when she's older. That didn't seem to matter though as the costumes, the majority of the characters and the locations are in all the films - and she seemed to like spotting new characters that she hadn't seen yet. Seeing her face as she entered the grand hall where the students of Hogwarts have their lunch was one I will treasure forever. She also danced with Dobbie, took a ride on a broomstick, tried butter beer*, took a wand choreography lesson, learnt about animatronics and got to step on the Hogwarts Express. The stuff dreams are made of! (*A note on the butter beer - let's just say it's an acquired taste! My recommendation would be to buy one and see if you like it before getting a round in. The butter beer ice cream on the other hand? Yum!) Remember to pick up a passport from the ticket desk - they're free and make a nice little souvenir, plus it's fun getting the special stamps in them as you go around the tour. Things to note: - It takes around 3 hours to get around everything and by the end of it my little Harry Potter fan was flagging. It's a lot to take in and can be a bit overwhelming. - We didn't buy the audio guides and our visit wasn't hindered by that. There are plenty of signs and videos to watch that explain what's going on. - It's described as a tour but you don't have to follow a tour guide around - after the introductory presentation you are left to your own devices. - Be prepared for the HUGE gift shop at the end! - The food in the cafe was good - sandwiches, etc - and reasonably priced. You can also take your own food which I think is great as so many places don't let you do that. - The tour is busy - goodness knows how many people pass through their door every day, but at no point did we feel like we were cramped or couldn't get to see anything. I think the longest we had to queue was for about 15 mins to take a ride on a broomstick. They really have organised it so well - we were really impressed by that. - Make sure you book up in advance and well ahead of your chosen date - I wanted to book for a specific date in Feb and in December all the slots had gone. - Finally, if it's your little one's Birthday make sure you tell the guide when you start the tour (as you enter the cinema room)... That's all I'll say :)

***See website for timings***

Recommended by Amanda Kerridge with children ages 6 - Sat Feb 18 2017