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Scottish Country Dance Weekend
Budapest
17-19 October 2025

for intermediate and advanced dancers with

Shona MacFadyen (fiddle)
Ewan Galloway (accordion)
Heather Cowan (teacher)

Click on the button above and complete the Registration Form

In 25 years, we have had participants from 33 countries


Facebook-event ; Team ; Venue/Accomodation ; Prices ; Tourist program ; Contact

Schedule

Wednesday-Friday, 15-17 October
Tourist program #1
Friday, 17 October
17:00 - 20:00 Registration
20:00 - 23:30 Welcome dance
Saturday, 18 October
09:00 - 12:30 Workshop with coffee break
15:30 - 17:00 Walkthrough
18:00 - 19:30 Gala dinner
20:00 - 23:30 Ball
Sunday, 19 October
10:00 - 13:00 Workshop with coffee break
Monday-Wednesday, 20-22 October
Tourist program #2

Musicians

Shona MacFadyen, Ewan Galloway

Shona MacFadyen Shona started playing violin at the age of 8 at school and later became enthralled with Scottish music when her sister started learning the accordion. She has received lessons from several different teachers including Jenna Reid, Gill Simpson and Douglas Lawrence.
Shona has won numerous competitions, including the RSCDS Class, Senior Solo Fiddle MSR, Slow Air and the Overall Senior Fiddle trophies at the NAAFC. She was Senior All Scotland Fiddle Champion in 2011 and 2019 and was awarded this title in 2021 as well.
Shona has played for country dances up and down the UK and further afield with her sister, Susan's band for the last 17 years and has recently been playing with Nicol McLaren & the Glencraig SDB whom she has played in Bahrain and Shetland for the annual Up Helly Aa Fire Festival, as well as all over the country. Shona has been involved with the RSCDS Summer School, firstly as a tutor on the musicians course, then as a class musician as well.
Shona has also played for the RSCDS Winter School in Pitlochry on 4 occasions and was invited, along with Ewan Galloway, to play for RSCDS Sydney's Winter School in 2023 in Kiama. Along with her sister, Susan, Shona attended the MG Alba Na Trads Awards - the Scottish Music's version on the "Oscars" where they walked away with the title of Scottish Dance Band of the Year 2018.

Ewan Galloway Ewan, based just outside Edinburgh in Dalkeith has been playing the accordion since the age of 14. He thinks playing Scottish music gives everyone a great lift, and loves to see dancers smiling and enjoying themselves. He is proud to keep Scottish music alive. Ewan has performed a number of broadcasts for the BBC show .Take the Floor. with his complete band. Ewan is the mastermind behind the wildly popular "Stagger Inn" events, a virtual haven for Scottish music lovers worldwide. These events became a lifeline during the pandemic, uniting fans from across the globe. He even produced a special one-hour show dedicated to Scottish Country Dancing. He has travelled to the Netherlands, Argentina and more recently with Shona on Fiddle to Australia to perform for the RSCDS Summer School in Sydney. As well as this he has also taken part at the RSCDS Summer School in St Andrews for a number of years. His presence at any event secures high quality music and endless happy faces on the dance floor.


Teacher

Heather Cowan

Heather Cowan Heather grew up dancing in Forres, and after time in London, Edinburgh and Glasgow, is currently based in Falkirk. She has been a frequent teacher at Summer School in St Andrews since 2012, and has also taught at Winter School, Spring Fling and Spring Fringe in the UK, and the RSCDS AGM Weekend. She was invited many times to teach at day schools or weekend courses close and far, last time as far as Ottawa, Canada. Some of Heather's dancing highlights include being presented to the late Queen at both Buckingham Palace and Holyroodhouse. She currently sits as a member of the RSCDS Management Board and guest teaches for the Glasgow, Falkirk, Stirling, and Dunfermline branch classes. Smiling faces are guaranteed when she is teaching!


Venue / accomodation

Hotel Bara Budapest - 1118 Budapest, Hegyalja út 34-36.

Accommodation is NOT included in the course fee, and you need to organise it yourself, but we agreed with Hotel Bara Budapest that it would offer a limited number of rooms to course participants, which you can book through us. So, you do NOT need to contact the hotel directly, we will book and confirm your hotel room in Hotel Bara Budapest and you will pay for the hotel accommodation at the hotel reception by cash or card on arrival.
The hotel does not require any deposit or bank details in advance.

If there are no more vacant rooms in the hotel or you would prefer another hotel, you can see the list of nearby hotels below:

Other hotels nearby


Prices

Course fee

The full course fee is EUR 195 (for those under 35 years old EUR 180, for non-dancers: EUR 60)
It includes the dance classes, the welcome dance, the ball, the gala dinner on Saturday, the interval tee/coffee, mineral water.
Please note that only dinner on Saturday evening is included in the course costs. For dinner on Friday night or Saturday and Sunday lunch there is a great variety of restaurants, cafeterias, sandwich bars and supermarkets near the hotel.

You can secure your place at the weekend course with a non-refundable deposit of EUR 50 (or an equivalent amount in another currency) after your registration has been confirmed. Payment details will be included in the email with your course confirmation. The rest of your participation fee is to be paid in cash in October on arrival.

Cancellation policy:
- We cannot refund the deposit (but you can transfer your place to a new applicant)


Price of Accommodation

Hotel Bara Budapest ***

  • Single room: 51 Euro/room/night
  • Double room: 62 Euro/room/night
  • Triple room: 93 Euro/room/night
  • Quadruple room: 124 Euro/room/night
The above prices include buffet breakfast. Tourist tax: 500 HUF/person/night, payable for hotel guests over 18 years of age.