Camera Obscura & World of Illusions, Edinburgh
Enjoy five floors of fantastic family fun at Camera Obscura & World of Illusions, Edinburgh. At the top of the Royal Mile, in the heart of Edinburgh, explore over 100 interactive exhibits and fun things to do for kids and kids alike. A visit packed with mind-bending illusions and hands-on experiences. Complete your visit with some of the best panoramic views of Edinburgh from our Rooftop Terrace and a demonstration of the 173-year-old Camera Obscura. Open every day, book your visit now.
Attractions
What's Inside?
-
6 Rooftop Terrace & The Camera Obscura Show On Floor 6, at the very top, high above this World Heritage Site, our Rooftop Terrace offers a blockbuster...
-
5 Magic Gallery On Floor 5, the Magic Gallery houses some of our most electrifying exhibits, a great variety of cool optical...
-
4 Light Fantastic Our Light Fantastic exhibition, on Floor 4, is a filled with interactive fun, tricks, and illusions – many...
-
3 Eye Spy Edinburgh See Edinburgh from a different vantage point on Floor 3. Get interactive and use our cameras and mirrors...
-
2 Bewilderworld On Floor 2 immerse yourself in Bewilderworld, a collection of our most popular, biggest and fun illusions. A...
-
G Entrance and Gift Shop Start your visit on our Ground Floor. Our friendly team are waiting to welcome you and answer any questions....
Halloween Comes to Life!
Join us for a Halloween trail, meet mischievous characters and discover spooky surprises.
A Which? Recommended Provider
We've ranked #3 in the UK Theme Parks and Attractions Which? Recommended
Reviews
Find out why our customers
are raving about us
This was so much fun! We started from the top with a fun and very enjoyable presentation by Sarah. Its fun to learn about how Camera Obscura works. Then you have the amazing views of the city and all the interactive games. We really had fun and learnt a lot. Highly recommended for all ages.
Anneliese P - Sept 2026
Took our 10 and 13 yr old daughters here. All of us enjoyed every element of the visit especially the talk from Maungo who was informative and humorous. Would highly recommend for anyone visiting Edinburgh.
Jeni B - Sept 2026
Brilliant experience so much to see, my two daughters and I really enjoyed it and learnt a lot! Would recommend going. All the staff were friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.
Gary S - Sept 2026
Most people find it takes about one hour and 45 minutes to get around all our attractions. Go at your own pace and spend as long as you like enjoying the illusions.
Yes. You can book a date and time slot for entry on our 'Book Now' page. We'll be monitoring the number of visitors carefully throughout the day, and capacity per time slot will be limited to guarantee that everyone gets the very best experience.
We work with genuine, reputable third party sellers to promote our attraction. We recommend booking directly to ensure the best price and availability. If you are unsure about your booking, please get in touch.
Yes, if we have spaces available, you can buy tickets on the day at our front desk. However, we would recommend booking online in advance for guaranteed entry and to avoid disappointment.
All ages. From babies to grandparents, everyone loves Camera Obscura. There’s something for everyone, even those that are hard to impress. The proof? Parents of teenagers often tell us we were the highlight of their family’s Edinburgh trip.
Yes! Our attractions are ideal for all ages, from tiny babies to hard-to-impress teenagers.
Please note that children aged 12 and under need to be accompanied by an adult when visiting the attraction. An adult qualifies as anyone aged 16 and over.
Only guide and assistance dogs are able to enter Camera Obscura & World of Illusions.
Following mixed feedback on our dog-friendly policy, and after careful consideration, we have decided that from now on, only guide/assistance dogs will be able to enter the attraction.
We know that many visitors have previously enjoyed bringing their dogs along and we’ve loved welcoming our furry friends over the years. However, the time had come for a review and bearing in mind the wellbeing of all our visitors and animals, we believe this change is the right step for our busy, interactive attraction.
Thank you for your understanding and for helping us keep Camera Obscura a safe, comfortable and enjoyable place for everyone.
Our 17th-century building only has stairs for you to explore our six floors of fun. This means that pushchairs, buggies and prams all need to be left in our admissions area before starting your visit.
You can borrow one of our brilliant baby carriers – there’s no charge. Just speak to a member of the team on your arrival.
You can use a valid Kids for a Quid train ticket to get one free child ticket for every full paying adult.
This offer is valid for bookings before and including 11am or after 6pm.
To secure your entry timeslot please book all other tickets in advance through our website here, including any under 5s. Then use code 'SCOTRAILKIDS40' to claim.
If you have any questions please call or email us.
More information can be found on the ScotRail website here.
