keeping up with the royals

Kensington Palace Finally Reveals Details of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s First Royal Tour

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Photo: Dominic Lipinski/AP

Kensington Palace revealed earlier this summer that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry would be heading down under in the autumn for their first major international visit, and Monday morning, the Palace finally announced the details of the trip. According to The Mirror, the duke and duchess will embark on a four-country, 16-day tour of the Pacific that will focus on “youth leadership, environmental, and conservation efforts.”

While the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have left the country a number of times since marrying in May — notably, they visited George and Amal Clooney in Italy last month — their upcoming trip counts as their first official royal tour. Starting on October 16, the couple will spend days in Sydney, Melbourne, and New South Wales; and on October 19, they’ll head back to Sydney for the Invictus Games, an international sporting event for ill and injured veterans that Prince Harry founded in 2014.

From October 22 through October 31, the royal couple will then visit Fraser Island in Queensland to see the Queen’s Canopy Project, an effort to conserve rain forest across the Commonwealth, as well as New Zealand, Fiji, and Tonga.

While Kensington Palace did not outline every intricate detail of Markle and Prince Harry’s tour for the public, a spokesperson told Australian news outlet news.com.au that the trip “across these four Commonwealth countries will focus on youth leadership, environmental and conservation efforts — including the dedication of several new Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy projects — and the recovery and rehabilitation of servicemen and women through the Invictus Games Sydney 2018.”

Furthermore, various reports have claimed that there will be a number of opportunities for the public to get a glimpse of the royal couple IRL, so book your tickets now. Just remember to stop by Windsor Castle on your return trip home to view the display for Markle’s haute couture wedding gown by Clare Waight Keller.

Meghan Markle, Prince Harry Reveal Details First Royal Tour