Ireland on itinerary for royal jubilee tour

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be among those carrying out overseas trips this spring to mark the monarch’s 70 years on the throne.

Among the tours will be a visit by heir to the throne Charles with Camilla to the Republic of Ireland from March 23 to 25.

William and Kate will travel to the Caribbean, touring Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas from March 19 to 26.

The Earl and Countess of Wessex will visit Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines from April 22 to 28, and the Princess Royal will visit Papua New Guinea from April 11 to 13.

The Queen, who currently has Covid, reached her Platinum Jubilee on February 6, becoming the first British monarch in history to do so.

She called time on her overseas travel a number of years ago, leaving the duties to other family members.

Jubilee tours abroad have long been carried out in celebration of the Queen’s milestone anniversaries.

William and Kate, in a personal message on their Twitter account, said they were “so excited” ahead of their trip.

The couple wrote: “We are so excited to visit Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas next month as we mark The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

“We can’t wait to meet people in all three countries, celebrate local cultures and understand more about innovative work being done across communities.”

The message was signed off with “W & C”.

Kensington Palace said it was their first joint tour since the start of the pandemic, and they have asked to meet as many local people as possible.