As the New Year unfolds, so does a fresh calendar of engagements and royal tours for the esteemed Royal Family.
While some plans have been made public, a slew of engagements and tours will remain undisclosed until the eleventh hour due to security considerations. However, it's confirmed that King Charles and Queen Camilla will journey to Canada in May, responding to prior criticism regarding the delay in Commonwealth travels after the King's ascension to the throne. Last October, they visited Kenya, marking an earlier engagement.
Moreover, the royal couple is slated to participate in the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa in October. Speculation is rife that this trip might include visits to Australia and New Zealand, countries they haven't visited since assuming their roles. Though Buckingham Palace is yet to confirm, sources within the Australian government indicate a potential visit scheduled for October.
In other royal travel news, there's buzz about possible attendance by members of the British Royal Family at the wedding of Prince Mateen of Brunei and his fiancée, Anisha Isa Kalebic, in Brunei. Anticipated to be a grand affair, it's expected to draw international royals from Europe and Asia. Some sources hint at the attendance of the Prince and Princess of Wales, who had previously attended the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein and Rajwa Al Saif in Jordan last year.
The Princess Royal, accompanied by her husband, Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence, is scheduled for an official visit to Sri Lanka in January 2024. This three-day diplomatic venture, at the request of the Foreign Office, marks 75 years of diplomatic ties between the UK and the South Asian nation. During her visit, the Princess plans to engage with Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe and interact with local communities and faith groups in Colombo, the capital. Her last visit to Sri Lanka was almost three decades ago in 1995, in her capacity as patron of Save the Children, an organization dedicated to addressing children's issues.
Additionally, there are murmurs, as yet unverified, about a potential visit by the Prince and Princess of Wales to Italy later in 2024, adding to the anticipated international engagements of the Royal Family. Photo by Mark Tantrum, Wikimedia commons.
