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Hi! I’m Claire Hall, a copywriter and digital content creator ready to help boost your profile online

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My recent travels

tinboxtraveller

UK travel writer in Oman
Adventure | holidays | travel tips
šŸ†@Vuelio Top 10 blog
āž• @omanwanderlustcom @devonwithkids
šŸ“© claire@tinboxtraveller.co.uk

Eight school terms in Oman šŸ‘‰ Their last day (mu Eight school terms in Oman šŸ‘‰ Their last day (mufti, obvs) and their very first day in January 2023 šŸ‘‰

This marks the end of an amazing era for our girls. Moving from a tiny Devon primary school to an all-through international in Muscat has been a life changing experience.

We are so proud of them and all the opportunities they have grabbed: making friends from all over the world, taking part in international sports competitions, stepping into student rep roles, learning that there are two 5 o’clocks in the day, bringing home the class toy more times than I can count and even the odd D grade on their end of year reports #keepingitreal #mathsishard

The wonderful memories they have made here will stick like paint stains on their uniform, which we’ve been pushing on until the bitter end of term.

There will be new uniform all round from September. And no, we still haven’t had confirmation of which school the 10-year-old will be attending back in the UK. Life admin continues šŸ˜…

#tinboxoman #endofschool #movingon #muscatmums #travelfamily #leavingoman #expatlife
Every sunset is hitting different now. We have 14 Every sunset is hitting different now. We have 14 left to go in Oman!

This weekend we had our last staycation in the Sultanate and it felt like we’d gone full circle, revisiting the first hotel we went to for a pool day back in 2023.

We’ve made some great memories with 
family and friends at @shangrilabarraljissahresort and this time was no different. Enjoying the lazy river, private beach and laughs with @performerpreneur and family was super special, even during the hotter than lava summer season.

The Shangri-La’s Al Waha hotel is one of the places I always recommend families stay a few days to relax before or after an adventure in Oman. It’s also great for a low season deal for residents, which is what we took advantage of this weekend. 

The only downside was that half the places we could eat were closed for maintenance because there are very few tourists about. On the upside, the pools and beach were mostly deserted, and we got a lovely leaving card and chocolate cake from the hotel team 🄰.

So, we are starting our final fortnight feeling as relaxed as we can under the circumstances. International moves are not for the faint-hearted! 

#omanvibes #shangrilabarraljissah #shangrilahotel #shangrilabarraljissahresort #omani_lens #omanblogger #uktravelblogger #travelfamily #travelkids #omantravel #omantourism #experienceoman #luxuryhotel #familyhotel #omansunset #tinboxoman #omanwanderlust #omanunpacked
Dubai part two: @atlantisthepalm. One of the most Dubai part two: @atlantisthepalm. One of the most recognisable hotels in the world. 

So, what did we think?

I’m totally unbiased when I say this is the best hotel we have ever stayed at. And for the money, I’d expect nothing less. This was a huge treat for us in our last month in the Middle East.

We were immediately wowed by the red carpet and lobby which took me back to the Ballagio in Vegas where we spent part of our honeymoon. The 10 metre fountain under a glittering dome is captivating.

The hotel has two wings. We spent most of our time in the east wing which is home to the Imperial Club Lounge, aquarium and the Aquaventure water park. 

But the girls’ favourite part, which was a bit of a surprise to me, was the kids club in the west wing. At 10 and 12-years-old I thought they might be a bit beyond stay and play, but after a half an hour taster they were hooked. 

This is no normal kids club through. There’s nine areas where children can role play, take part in sports, read quietly, craft and use game consoles. That’s not to mention a tube slide and interactive games.

We all agreed that two nights at the Atlantis was nowhere near enough. 

Our room: we had originally booked an Ocean View Queen Room with half board including access to the Imperial Club Room for all day snacks, the water park and aquarium. 

But when we arrived we got a great deal on an upgrade to a Terrace Suite. I filmed a walk-through video that I didn’t get round to posting on my stories. Let me know if you’d like to see it.

I will do a full review on Tin Box Traveller but bear with me while we move back to the UK!

#atlantisthepalm #dubai #dubaitravel #familytravel #hotelreview #luxuryhotels #theatlantis #tinboxdubai #travelfamily #waterparkadventures #dubailuxury #explorewithme #uktravelblogger #familytravelblog
Ah, Dubai. I’ve talked before about my love/hate Ah, Dubai. I’ve talked before about my love/hate relationship with the City of Gold. Its jagged skyline, spaghetti-like road network and ambitions to be the biggest and best at EVERYTHING are the ultimate sensory overload. 

But we’ve kept going back - four times in the past two years - thanks to it taking less time to drive there from Muscat than it would between Devon and London in the UK šŸ˜† 

And this month we had our best visit yet, enjoying thrills and five star luxury. 

We split our four nights in half starting at @dubaiparksresorts where we stayed at @lapitahoteldubai. This five star Polynesian-themed @marriotthotels was a great base for @riverlanddubai and @motiongatedubai.

Either side of the theme park we lounged by the Lapita pool and enjoyed nightly firework displays from our terrace. 

I’d definitely recommend Lapita for families with kids who are not into Lego (@legolanddubai hotel is nearby). 

There are two pools and a lazy river, two free hours of kids club a day (if you have time), family rooms with twin double beds, a play park and lawn games, and a golf buggy service to all the resort attractions. 

We also took advantage of a room rate that included theme park access - one park for each night we stayed. It worked out cheaper to book a stay with breakfast than the park tickets on their own! 

I’ll share part two of our long weekend in Dubai soon. 

Tips needed: I’d love to hear about any stay and play offers you’ve spotted in the UK - we need ideas for theme park visits when we are back this summer! 

#dubaiweekend #dubaiparksandresorts #motiongate #visitdubai #lapitadubai #familytravel #adventurefamily #uktravelblogger #travelfamily #themeparkfun  #themeparkworldwide #dubaitravel
Happy Fathers Day Mr Tin Box! Thank you for being Happy Fathers Day Mr Tin Box!

Thank you for being the bringer of fun and energy to everything we do. 

The mover and shaker-upper. 

The spotter of opportunities, sharer of huge hugs and the person that encourages us all to follow our hearts.

You make everything and anything possible for our girls. The world is their oyster.

PS Sorry we forgot to give you your card before you left for work 🤪😁

#happyfathersday #traveldad
We’ve hopped across the border to the UAE for Ei We’ve hopped across the border to the UAE for Eid in Dubai.

Our first stop is @dubaiparksandresorts. The 10-year-old has been asking to go back to the Motiongate theme park for a while, so we made it part of her birthday present.

And, good news for the wallet was we could get tickets as part of a hotel deal. 

But before that we spent our first afternoon and evening by the pool and exploring @riverlanddubai with its super Instagrammable French village, mini landmarks and new pirate-themed restaurant.

I’ve already had a few DMs about our favourite things to do in Dubai. We’re not experts but here’s some places we have enjoyed during previous trips:

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ @legolanddubai hotel, theme park and waterpark are awesome for kids under 10

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ @motiongatedubai has some great rides themed around films by the Lionsgate, Columbia, Dreamworks. It’s good for families with pre-teens and teens. 

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ @thedubaimall has to be seen to be believed. Even if you’re just window shopping

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ Get some selfies and see a fountain show in front of the @burjkhalifa

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ Eat at @timeoutdubai Market for affordable food at the centre of Downtown

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ Blast forward in time at the @museumofthefuture which has some brilliant interactive exhibitions. 

šŸ‡¦šŸ‡Ŗ Visit @qe2dubai for a ship tour or afternoon tea. Staying onboard is super special too (if you’re into cruise ships and history, like us!).

This is our last visit to Dubai from Oman but if you have any other recommendations please drop them below for other people to browse.

#dubai #tinboxdubai #familytravel #omanblogger #uktravelblogger #explorewithme #familytravelblog #visitdubai #dubaitravel #experiencedubai #travelfamily #citybreaks #eidholidays #eidholiday #expatlife
The fun thing about family life is that it can plo The fun thing about family life is that it can plod along slowly…until it doesn’t!

In the past month we’ve found out where we’ll be living back in the UK, swum with Whale Sharks, had kids birthdays every weekend and one fabulous adult one, wadi-ed (new word), sold two cars, said goodbye to the desert and the turtles.

And in the past four days our worldly possessions have left for the UK, our return flights have been booked, we’ve confirmed one out of two school places for September, and reserved Dog’s three hop journey home through Doha and Brussels.

It’s time for a long weekend thanks to the Eid Al-Adha holiday - much needed as there was no May half term here in Oman. 

Eid Mubarak!

šŸ“øšŸŽ„ from our final trip to the Daymaniat Islands last weekend 

#omanlife #expatlife #movingabroad #omanblogger #uktravelblogger #daymaniatislands #travelfamily #familytravel #familytravelblog #explorewithme #littlestoriesofmine #expatmum
What happens when you can’t get out of the way o What happens when you can’t get out of the way of a whale shark? ā©

First: don’t panic!

This shark swam past a few people in our group, but by the time it got to me it had had enough of detours. 

All I could do was make like a star fish on the surface as it skimmed underneath me.

It was so surreal. It took my breath away.

Sadly I had a total GoPro fail and accidentally recorded the close encounter as a Timelapse video. Scroll through for some stills, including our 12-year-old looking super cool about it all, and to see the whole two minute experience reduced to six seconds.

Props to both our girls for taking it all in their stride. From getting ready to enter the water to watching eight metre long sea giants sailing by, they made us so proud. 

To be fair, I’m not sure I would have gotten in the water with whale sharks 2.5 years ago. Oman has brought out the adventurers in us!

In other news…most of our belongings were packed up yesterday and have started the journey back to the UK. It’s been another weekend of mixed emotions! 

#whaleshark #whalesharks #oman #omanwanderlust #omantravel #daymaniatshells #explorewithme #tinboxoman #adventurefamily #uktravelblogger #omanblogger #travelfamily #familytravel #omansea #middleeasttravel
ā€œIt was just like on TVā€, said the 12-year-old ā€œIt was just like on TVā€, said the 12-year-old getting back on the boat. She wasn’t wrong. And she got to be in the picture (keep watching!!) šŸ‹

Yesterday we took our last trip to the Daymaniat Islands off Muscat and had the hugest of privileges to swim with more than 10 whale sharks. 

We’ve missed them by hours on two or three other occasions but this weekend the magic happened.

Thank you @fahadalmaashari and @daymaniat.shells for your keen eyes, excellent instruction and efforts to educate expats and visitors about Oman’s incredible marine life 🄰

Have you seen whale sharks or would you be brave enough to swim with them?

#whaleshark #omantravel #omanwanderlust #visitoman #daymaniatshells #omansea #gulfofoman #arabiansea #uktravelblogger #tinboxoman #familytravelblog #travelfamily #adventurefamily #familytravel #omanblogger #whalesharks #beautyhasanaddress #experienceoman
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