I have no idea about the guided tours but when I visited Edinburgh I remember going to the Elephant House, the café where they say Rowling loved to go and write the first HP when she was still unknown More on reddit.com

I always hear them here leading groups along Victoria street and Grayfriars Kirk, and they are saying different stuff each time, im sure its just BS they are making up But people seem to enjoy them! More on reddit.com

...So? Maybe there's no direct, conscious inspiration. Maybe she didn't see the street and think "oh, I'll use it for my story". Doesn't mean some of it couldn't have subconsciously sneaked in, and if it's the case it doesn't make her a liar. On top of that, the book description of Diagon Alley is a typical old and busy street in the center of a big, old city. I'd be more interested in the film makers' inspiration than the author, if you're going for this. Also, when I have to ad diversity to a story set in a world roughly equivalent to where I live, my first thought is "ad North-Africans and Arabs" because that's the non-white ethnicities present in the village/small town where I grew up. I wouldn't call that inspiration for all that, even if it did shape a small facet of my worldbuilding. More on reddit.com

I hope you at least tipped the guide, its the only way awesome things like this can keep running.

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