Erraid is a small island off the west coast of Scotland, in view of Iona. From the 1870s it was a home to lighthouse keepers and their families till the automation of the Scottish lighthouses in the 1950s. Since 1977 the Dutch family Van der Sluis has owned the island. In 1978 they gave the Findhorn Foundation custodianship of the island. For 11 months of the year the community holds the island and each summer the Van der Sluis family returns for a month-long holiday.

Our small community lives and works on this square mile of island. The size of the group varies between three and 12 people – families and singles. Life in the old lighthouse keepers‘ cottages seems pretty much as it must have been when they were built. Our lives are determined by the sea, tides, moon and wind as we work in the gardens, heat the cottages and our water with woodburning stoves, bathe in peat water, drink rain water, use outdoor composting toilets. We live a life very close to the elements and allow our guests to share this unique experience.

Britta Schmitz