The Diamond Jubilee celebrations will see that the Royals are kept busy for several months; as part of the celebrations, the Queen is planning to tour all over the UK, with the Duke of Edinburgh.
The rest of the Royal family’s schedules will be just as hectic, with visits to 15 other countries planned; each country in which the Queen is the head of state will be a part of the itinerary, as well as many of the Commonwealth nations.
The Duke of York will be making a trip to India, whilst Prince Harry will be visiting the Bahamas, Jamaica and Belize, according to the Buckingham Palace Diamond Jubilee schedule.
The Queen herself will be limiting herself to the tour of the UK, due to her age; she is to turn 86 in April, although her ‘official’ birthday celebrations will be held on the 4th of June, during the central Jubilee weekend celebrations.
Prince William and Kate have also made plans to travel during the Diamond Jubilee celebrations; the couple will be heading off to Tuvalu and the Solomon islands. Aside from the immediate Royal family, there will be visits made to Zambia and Mozambique by the Princess Royal and a trip to the Caribbean islands and Gibraltar by the Earl and Countess of Wessex.
Malta and the British Virgin Islands will see visits from the Duke of Gloucester, whilst the Duke of Kent will be flying off to Uganda. Prince Charles will also be going abroad for the Jubilee celebrations, with a trip to South Africa as well as Tanzania in his schedule.
Each of the countries hosting these exciting visits will be likely to hold public celebrations, parades, festivals and official banquets by way of honouring the Royal members during their visits.
The Queen will be making an early start to the celebratory tour at the end of March, when she will begin her travels in North London. From there she will be setting off to Wales, South West England after which she will be travelling to the East Midlands, East Anglia, Scotland and the West Midlands. During the middle of this tour she will of course be back in London for the Central Weekend of celebrations for the Diamond Jubilee.
For those of us spending our Jubilee celebrations a little closer to home, don’t forget to pick up a souvenir of the occasion, such as an pretty bone China jubilee mug.
