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Held by Montrose with Raven
Note: This journey will begin with a van pickup at Aberdeen Airport on May 15th. However, for those who like, there is a train station that is walking distance to Raven and Steve's home and Montrose's High Street. The detailed itinerary will be sent to participants 30 days before travel. Even then, we leave space for surprises and unexpected discoveries.
"Held by Montrose" is not a tour of Scotland's highlights. It is an invitation into one place — a real town bordered by the North Sea with rich heritage, lived in by real people — experienced from the inside, in the company of Raven and friends, those who grew up there or chose it as their home. You will not see everything, but you will come to really know some things. That's the difference. This tour is recommended for those who have already traveled to Scotland more than once and crave a deep exploration of a less touristed area.
Be advised that this is an active tour. There are long walks and hotel stairs.
Itinerary
May 15-24, 2027
Many people pass through Angus, a council area bounded by the North Sea and the Firth of Tay, on their travels. This journey asks you to stop.
Montrose is part of Angus — a working port town, a wildlife sanctuary, a community of fishermen and makers, musicians and historians, all going quietly about their extraordinary lives. It is not necessarily on the tourist trail though it is filled with treasures, both hidden and fully exposed.
Raven is only in the early stages of knowing Montrose, in the limited time she has between tours to pop up. This is a town she and Steve chose, not as a visitor or by accident, but by decision. She will share Montrose with you in the same way she continues to discover it as a newcomer: with presence and warmth, and through the friendships and open doors that make a community a home. You will meet her new friends; locals who have deep history in the area. You will be a guest in Raven and Steve's home and you'll be shown a Montrose that most visitors never see.
The days unfold slowly here. There are mornings on the tidal basin watching the geese come in with a local expert who knows this landscape well. There is time on an empty beach with nothing required of you. There are conversations with people who make things by hand, who have fished these waters for generations, who carry old songs and play them for the love of it. There is a dinner at Raven's house, with a few friends and music afterwards.
There is a special ceremony on the sands of Lunan Bay as the light fades over the North Sea — an evening to hold in your heart. Day trips take you along one of Scotland's most characterful coastlines — to towns with their own deep stories — and inland to landscapes that hold thousands of years of human presence lightly, in open fields and quiet glens.
This is a journey for people who travel to understand, not to collect. The group is small by design — limited to ten— because that is a good number of people to be introduced to a real community without changing it. It is my intent that this experience will travel back with you, to your own communities, and inspire you to see the world and your experience of it in new ways.
It is my pleasure to invite you to Montrose.
Total Price Per Person
4600
4600.00
Single supplement rate: $1,000 (We are limited to two single rooms) Email info@tracelesstours.com for availability.
Deposit of $1800 per person holds your space.
2nd payment of $1400 per person is due 6 months before departure.
The remaining balance of $1400 per person is due 90 days before departure.
Best Price: Pay in full for a savings of $200. Email me for details.
Included in Tour Price
Included in tour price:
9 nights accommodations at The George Hotel, just a short walk from Raven's place
3 group dinners
1 foraging nature walk with an expert, then meals cooked on the beach afterward with a master chef
breakfast each day
site entrance fees, including House of Dun and Gardens
ground transportation
private concerts
expert local guides
gratuities for venues, guides, driver and group dinners
Note: The van will pick you up from Aberdeen Airport on the 15th or we will help with info if you want to take the train. We will try to coordinate flights so that most arrive from Edinburgh into Aberdeen together. You will be shuttled back to the Airport on the morning of the 24th or we will assist you with train schedules for any onward journeys you want to take.
Please see FAQs for details.
