Best cheap day out with the kids

MUSEUMS

In Glasgow, the Transport Museum and Kelvingrove are great for kids to run around – and of interest to adults too. In Edinburgh, the old Royal Museum on Chambers Street is being redeveloped, but there is still much to see – and in the newer National Museum next door. Further east, Prestongrange Museum – on the coast road between Musselburgh and Prestonpans – is a great day out. It tells the story of local industries and people who worked in them. You can join a guided tour or explore with a self-guided audio tour. There is loads of room for the kids to wander safely, climb on old engines and play in the woods and have a game of football. There are activities inside, too, and a cheap café.

SHOPPING CENTRE MAZES

The basement, lifts and escalators of Princes Square in Glasgow make a magical maze – with parental supervision! Escalators anywhere are always much more fun for kids than the shops – good for parents in purse-tightening times.

BOTANIC GARDENS

Kibble Palace and the Botanics play park in Glasgow are great for kids. Buy your coffee in the Dr Who box outside as is cheaper and nicer. In Edinburgh, play count-the-squirrels, have a game of tig among the trees, look in the free glasshouses and the new shell house. Take a picnic as the café isn't cheap.

DOBBIES GARDEN WORLD

As long as you can resist buying something/too much depending on your budget, Dobbies is fun for the kids. It is especially good when they have their Christmas display out, although do beware of small children's desire to buy dancing nylon rats posing as Christmas mice singing "Jangle Beals" in a Chinese accent. There are lots of fish, both inside and out, and often a show is put on by fork-lift trucks moving stuff around. Heaven for boys.

LIBRARIES

Great for rainy days, especially Partick library in Glasgow, as the kids' section is in a separate room big enough to run around in and not harass other visitors. Renewing your library books often is a free way to preventing the brain-death caused by reading the same old books for six months or more. Get a library card in your child's name – they don't pay fines! If the kids get bored with the books, you can always go online.