Some stories make us want to travel. Not just to see a place, but to feel the atmosphere that shaped the plot. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is one of them, and Bath offers a visitor experience that shows how powerful story led tourism can be.
The Frankenstein Experience, created by Mary Shelley’s House of Frankenstein with Show of Strength Theatre Company, is a two part visit that blends performance, place and museum interpretation. It begins outside Sally Lunn’s (4 North Parade Passage) with a one hour theatrical walking tour through Bath’s Regency streets and side lanes. Visitors “walk in Mary Shelley’s footsteps”, see where she lived, and follow a Gothic tale of secrets, lies, scandals, suicides and ruined reputations, woven through the creation of her legendary novel, Frankenstein. Tickets are pre-booked, and the package combines the walking tour and museum entry in one ticket.
The walk finishes at Mary Shelley’s House of Frankenstein (37 Gay Street). Museum entry is included, and most visits take 45 minutes to an hour, so the full experience lasts up to two hours. Inside, interpretation is multi-sensory: unusual objects, ominous soundtracks, bespoke smells and special effects help visitors connect with Shelley’s life and the cultural afterlife of the Monster.
This kind of attraction already does something essential: it turns a city into a narrative space. But it also highlights a wider opportunity. Many visitors want more context while they walk, more choice in how they engage, and more accessible formats (including language options and different sensory needs). This is where immersive digital tools can enhance, rather than replace, the on site experience.
In the UPLIFT project, we explore how AR, VR and AI can support film and literary tourism in practical, inclusive ways. For a tour like this, an optional AR layer could add simple “story cues” at each stop: a short audio clip, a historic image, or a prompt that links the location to a moment in Shelley’s life or a theme in the book. A small VR module in the museum (or online, before travel) could let visitors explore a reconstructed setting that cannot exist on site, while keeping the main visit rooted in the real walk and the real building.
UPLIFT’s mission is to bridge traditional tourism and the digital age by building skills for VET providers, learners and tourism SMEs, supported by research and hands on workshops. The goal is simple: better storytelling, stronger learning, and experiences that respect heritage while meeting modern visitor expectations.