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  • About me
  • Content creation services
    • Brand partnerships and advertising
    • User generated content
    • Social media management
    • Words for your website
  • My travel blogs
  • thoughts on blogging
  • Contact

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

Mid-life mum sharing adventures big ✈️ & small 🌱, places I 💚 & unpolished moments
I’m also @omanwanderlustcom @devonwithkids @travinfluence More👇

Bath’s honey coloured townhouses and sweeping Geor Bath’s honey coloured townhouses and sweeping Georgian crescents of are more famous for inspiring Jane Austen’s books. Yet here we are, a few doors down from a chap fitted out like dashing Mr Darcy, at Mary Shelley’s House of Frankenstein.

It’s the first museum dedicated to the 19th Century English author who, at the age of 19, arrived in Bath with a fiendish idea.

Despite her delicate age, it was a dark time for Mary; running away from scandal, fighting for the attention of poet Percy Shelley with whom she had a child, and coping with the death of her half sister. 

Frankenstein channeled her emotions, coming to life between September 1816 and May 1817.

The House of Frankenstein showcases her inspiration, the challenges she faced in her own less than conventional life, and the impact her work continues to have centuries later.

Do you need to be a have read the book to enjoy it? 

No. The monster is so keenly woven into modern literature, film and culture that few people would be unfamiliar with Shelley’s creation.

What you do need to prepare for is an unapologetically graphic and delightfully gory journey into the mind of Shelley. 

The museum is decked out like a premium house of horrors (think film studio rather than funfair) with spine-tingling sound effects, severed body parts in jars and interactive science experiments. 

For the brave you, can also visit the basement for a creepy walk-through experience with live actors ready to make you jump.

I’ve written more about our experience over on the Tin Box Traveller website. It would make the perfect October half term experience for horror fans.

Looking for something a bit more gentle? The Jane Austen Centre and the delectable Mr Darcy are ready to welcome you a few doors down.
⏰ Five hours in Bath - short on time? Save this! ⏰ Five hours in Bath - short on time? Save this!

I’ll be honest and say up front that we had hoped for more time in Bath. But due to our last minute decision to go (we just missed a bus) and train delays, five hours is what we got.

Luckily, I know Bath better than I do Oxford, which we visited last weekend!

Here’s what we squeezed into this mini adventure:

🚣 Admiring the iconic weir and boutique shops of Pulteney Bridge. It was awesome to see @salcombedairy representing Devon in Somerset

🍽️ Lunch at @chezdominique - £24 for two courses

🛍️ Browsing Guildhall Market where we spotted lanterns that reminded us of the souqs in Oman (can’t lie, I felt a bit teary when I saw them)

📚 Mary Shelley’s @houseoffrankenstein_bath museum, which tells the story of her life and how her most famous character has inspired literature, film and culture. Not somewhere I’d be confident to take the kids, but we loved it

🏠 The Royal Crescent - Bath’s iconic 18th Century town house arc 

🥂 Bath was buuussssy! So we completed our day trip by crossing over Halfpenny Bridge to quieter, but still just as pretty Widcombe, for a drink at The Ram before our train home

We didn’t have time on this occasion, but other places I can recommend from our previous visits:

🏛️ The Roman Baths

🔔 Bath Abbey and a climb up to the roof for views across the city 

🇺🇸 The American Museum & Gardens 

Save this for your next mini adventure in Somerset
So what does Dragon Hill have to do with a dragon, So what does Dragon Hill have to do with a dragon, pagan rituals and a German spy? 

🐉 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Myth - the white scar on top of the hill is said be where the dragon’s blood was spilt

🩸🗡️ Theory - the white scar is believed to have been caused by fires used in pagan rituals or even sacrifices

🇩🇪💣 Fact - it’s true. German scientist Klaus Fuchs used the hill for clandestine meetings with the Russian secret service during which he revealed details of the Manhattan Project. 

Most people come to White Horse Hill to see the 3,000-year-old chalk horse or the ruins of the medieval Uffington Castle. 

Dragon Hill also deserves a spot on your walk route. 

Parking: there’s a National Trust car park (SN7 7QJ) which is free for members. Non- members can use Just Park or pay at the machine. Follow the sign-posted footpaths and stay outside of the fenced areas protecting the White Horse from damage.
We took a trip into Oxford yesterday. If you’re ex We took a trip into Oxford yesterday. If you’re expecting tips on things to do and hidden gems, I’m going to disappoint you. I mean…look at Mr Tin Box’s face 🤣

It was only when we arrived that he announced this was his first ever visit (I’ve previously only been with our girls while he’s been a work). If I had known, I’d have been more prepared. 

To be fair, this was a very last minute day trip and we will have more opportunities to explore. 

So, Oxford experts, I need your recommendations! 

I’ve been to the Natural History Museum with the kids and we did have a lovely and very good value brunch at Taylor’s in the Covered Market. 

What should be on our list for next time?
A self proclaimed hidden gem of Oxfordshire, @busc A self proclaimed hidden gem of Oxfordshire, @buscot_park and House, is not so much hidden as it is allusive.

It’s 20 minutes from where we live, so an obvious choice for a walk. But fitting in a visit isn’t easy as it’s only open from 2pm to 6pm for six months of the year.

Was it worth it? Yes, totally. We went for a mid-afternoon wander and got so much more. 

We had no expectations as we stepped inside Buscot House - the National Trust website is extremely light on information. But our interest was immediately piqued by an Omani Khanjar (a ceremonial knife) that we saw displayed in The Dutch Room. Pictures inside can only be taken for personal use, so you’ll have to take my word for it.

The 18th Century house and gardens are packed with carefully curated treasures, from the Rossetti, Gainsborough and Burne-Jones artwork hanging inside to the Italian water garden, obelisk and lake compete with fresh water muscles and enormous fish.

Buscot is still lived in, hence the limited opening times, and this gives it a homely feel compared to some National Trust places. You can see a smattering of family photos in between the art and the swimming pool is obviously still very much in use.

Allow at least a few hours to look around. Check the Buscot Estate before you visit as the house opening times vary throughout the week. 

If you’re in the area, you have until the end of September to visit. Or add this to your 2027 bucket list. Buscot reopens in April.

I can recommend combining Buscot with a walk at Coleshill National Trust, which is a short drive away. The cafe there, Blakes Kitchen, is a super popular stop for brunch, lunch or delicious bakes.
Stonehenge is famous worldwide. But just 20 miles Stonehenge is famous worldwide. But just 20 miles to the north is a circle of rocks that dwarfs it.

The Avebury’s henge is 430m in diameter and is thought to have had more than 170 stones the it was built - compared to Stonehenge’s 80 - making it the largest in the world.

I’m a bit embarrassed that it’s taken us over a year to visit after relocating to the Oxfordshire/Wiltshire border.

Avebury’s scale becomes clear when you drive into village and realise it is partially contained by these gargantuan rocks.

Like smaller neighbour, Avebury is shrouded in mystery; facts about their construction, meaning and destruction mostly lost over the past 6,000 years.

Some locals even went as far as pulling down, burying and breaking up the stones to use in new buildings.

The vast, partially restored curves that you can see today have been resurrected thanks to drawings made by Devon clergyman William Stukeley, who visited in the 18th Century. 

We know him as an ancestor of the Stukeley family who still live in Hartland Abbey in North Devon - a place we visited this summer. Stukeley was a man about the Southwest and had a keen interest in Avebury and Stonehenge.

Later, in the 20th Century, archeologist Alexander Keiller excavated Avebury’s henge and restored the circles as they stand today.

You can visit the stones, village and National Trust cafes for free - just pay for parking*. 

Add on Avebury Manor and gardens to find out about the people who have called it home since the 12th Century, and the small museum which tells you more about Avebury’s archeology. Both are managed by the National Trust. 

New exhibition: if you’ve been to Avebury before it’s worth revisiting to see the autumn sculpture exhibition that has just opened in the gardens. This continues until 18 October 2026.

Was Avebury on your ancient monument radar?

*Free for National Trust members.
Double take 👀 I promised the girls a day trip to L Double take 👀 I promised the girls a day trip to London over the summer and the Museum of Illusions was firmly at the top of their capital wishlist. 

It’s a collection of 70 hands on and walk in exhibits that use science to mess with your mind. 

The London museum is one of 70 around the world, so if you’ve seen somewhere similar during your travels it’s was probably part of the same chain that originated in Croatia just over a decade ago.

The 11-year-old and I loved it. The 13-year-old was a bit less impressed, but mostly because of the bottle necks at some of the exhibits. I’ve got a tip below to avoid toe-tapping teens.

Here’s some handy things to know:

🎟️ A family ticket (2+2) costs from £84 depending on the current discounts. Book in advance for the best price.

⏰ Allow at least an hour and book an arrival time before lunch for a quieter experience

⚠️ Some of the illusions are more popular than others. My tip is to skip the queues and keep moving. Once you are in the museum you can go back around as many times as you want 

🚇 Nearest tube station Tottenham Court Road

🦽the whole museum is on one floor and there’s a lift to access it. There’s a disabled toilet 

🗺️ each interactive illusion has written or video instructions 

🧺 The museum doesn’t have a cafe but there’s lots of places to eat in the area. We opted for sushi from Sushinoya and donuts from Donutelier - both a short walk from the museum 

📍 Tottenham Court Rd, London W1T 1BJ

Have you been somewhere similar? What did you think?
🎶 This is the end 🎶 As we swung onto the motorwa 🎶 This is the end 🎶 

As we swung onto the motorway slip road, Adele’s 007 anthem sounded downbeat against the K-pop heavy playlist that had accompanied us on the two hour journey to school. 

The 13-year-old promised it was Spotify that had randomly picked the track.

But Adele was correct in many ways. This was the end of the summer, back to school and the start of new chapters for us all. 

📚 Our girls are now both at boarding school 

🪹 Mr Tin Box and I have found ourselves empty nesting much sooner than we ever imagined.

🪖And we were all on the cusp of finding out which way military life is going to take us next. 

To be fair, we’ve turned many pages in the past year. If the Meta algorithms have been in my favour, you might have spotted that.

So this isn’t the end, but things might change around here. Less family days out, more grown up adventures and lots of precious family time in between. 

All empty nester advice very welcome!
Not all gems are hidden, but this is one I’m guilt Not all gems are hidden, but this is one I’m guilty of gatekeeping 🙊

📍 Blackpool Sands, Dartmouth 

We spent A LOT of our summer here and have no regrets.

Whole days, half days and evening dips 👌 

Here’s some handy things to know before you visit:

⏰ There’s no need to check the tide times. You’ll always find plenty of beach at Blackpool Sands

⚠️ First-time visitors are always perplexed that this is a shingle beach, not a sandy one. Honestly, I prefer it!

🌊 This beach is great fun for water confident swimmers, but the steeply shelving shingle means there’s often large waves along the shoreline. Children need to be supervised

🛟 RNLI lifeguards are on duty over the school summer holidays

🛶 This is a great place to kayak and paddle board. Both can be hired with buoyancy aids from @redequipment

🏄 Our girls like to float around on their body boards, but this is not a good beach to catch a wave - the shoreline is too steep

🧖‍♀️ Pimp your beach day by booking into the  @brya.life beach sauna 

🚗 The car park has an ANPR system. Pay at one of the machines before you leave. Prices vary throughout the year. A full day costs £9 in the summer holidays

🐶 Dogs are banned over the summer and welcomed back from October to April 

🧺 Bring a picnic, or visit the takeaway or restaurant for fresh food on the go or al a carte dining 

🕺 Check the @blackpoolsandsdevon socials for updates about live music, themed dining and events throughout the year

📍 Blackpool Sands, Dartmouth, Devon TQ6 0RG
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