Istanbul · With kids

An industrial museum on the Golden Horn with a submarine to board, trains, planes and a working model railway. Ages five up, half a day.

The long ferry up to Anadolu Kavağı takes ninety minutes, costs a few lira and passes every palace and fortress on both shores.

Scale models of Turkey's monuments spread across an outdoor park by the Golden Horn, with a small train and space to run. Three to ten.

A themed walk-through aquarium out at Florya with a rainforest section — the reliable answer to rain or a forty-degree afternoon.

Cobbles and staircases everywhere; a carrier is the honest answer. One Istanbulkart works for the family, and lokantas feed children fast and early.