Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are on their first joint overseas tour as a married couple, visiting Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga.
They marked their arrival in Sydney on Monday by announcing they are expecting their first child, meaning their Australian tour will forever be celebrated in history.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s tour will last 16 days and will see them make a total of 76 engagements.
But what exactly is a royal tour, why do they take place, do they get any down time and why are is Harry and Meghan’s first tour in Australia?
What is a royal tour and why do they take place?
A royal tour is when members of the Royal Family go on an official visit – also known as a state visit – overseas, touring as many locations as they can make time for and visiting officials and the locals.
The royals are typically invited by the countries’ local governments, although the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will also make suggestions.
Usually, the host country will put forward suggestions of places to visit and these will then be approved by the Royal Family. Typically, the visits during the tour will relate to the matters the host government wants to draw the most attention to, while also showcasing their country as a tourist destination to the world.
It’s for this reason that the host government will usually cover the costs of a royal tour, apart from the international flights to get there and back, which are covered by the UK government.
It’s a mutually beneficial deal – a tour is the Royal Family’s way of acting as ambassadors for the United Kingdom; helping to improve relations between us and other countries.
The royals will meet members of other Royal Families, heads of state, prime ministers and senior officials who all go gaga.when they clap eyes on the British Royal Family – few others could have this affect. After all, for many overseas, the Royal Family is synonymous with what being British is all about.
Royals are also greeted by thousands of local well-wishers as they visit each place, again serving to remind the public of the virtues of Great Britain.
Why are Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on a tour of Australia?
A royal tour is meticulously organised with attention to detail put in at ever element – they can take up to one year to plan.
Harry and Meghan were invited to visit Australia and New Zealand by the respective local governments, with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office requesting that they also visit Fiji and Tonga.
The tour is set to focus on environmental and conservation efforts, youth leadership and the recovery and rehabilitation of servicemen and women Invictus Games.
Both Harry and Meghan have previously said that work in the Commonwealth will be a priority for them both.
As a pre-wedding gift to the prince, the Queen appointed her grandson a Commonwealth youth ambassador, his most high profile role to as a royal to date.
A spokesman for the couple reportedly said: ‘They are already planning for all the work that’s happening in the second half of the year which is going to be incredibly busy.’
The last royal tour to take place in Australia was in November 2015 when HRH Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall visited Adelaide, Canberra, Sydney, Albany and Perth.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Uluru and Adelaide in 2014 too. Harry was last in Australia on tour in 2013 when he visited Sydney.and Perth.
What are they doing during their tour?
One event we’ve known Harry and Meghan will be attending is the Invictus Games, which are taking place in Sydney from 20 to 27 October.
Kensington Palace has now released a full location schedule, showing they will be visiting Sydney three times, as well as travelling to Dubbo, Australia; Melbourne, Australia; Fraser Island, Australia; Suva, Fiji; Nadi, Fiji; Nuku’alofa, Tonga; Wellington, New Zealand; Abel Tasman, New Zealand; Auckland, New Zealand and Rotorua, New Zealand.
Harry and Meghan's Australia schedule
Tuesday 16th October: Sydney, Australia
Wednesday 17th October: Dubbo, Australia
Thursday 18th October: Melbourne, Australia
Friday 19th October: Sydney, Australia
Saturday 20th October: Sydney, Australia
Sunday 21st October: Sydney, Australia
Monday 22nd October: Fraser Island, Australia
Tuesday 23rd October: Suva, Fiji
Wednesday 24th October: Suva, Fiji
Thursday 25th October: Nadi, Fiji and Nuku’alofa, Tonga
Friday 26th October: Nuku’alofa, Tonga and Sydney, Australia
Saturday 27th October: Sydney, Australia
Sunday 28th October: Wellington, New Zealand
Monday 29th October: Wellington and Abel Tasman, New Zealand
Tuesday 30th October: Auckland, New Zealand
Wednesday 31st October: Rotorua, New Zealand
The Invictus Games will be a poignant event for the couple to visit, given the Invictus Games in Toronto, Canada, in 2017 are where they made their first public appearance together.
Prince Harry founded the games, which are for sick and wounded military personnel, in 2014.
Will Harry and Meghan get to enjoy many date nights in Australia?
They’re doing 76 engagements in 16 days. The short answer to whether Harry and Meghan will get to enjoy and date nights is: no.
Whereas royal tours used to last for months on end, they now tend to be much shorter and more visits are crammed into their days. There are usually at least four engagements a day.
With flights and car journeys in-between the engagements, Harry and Meghan will get very little alone time. They will be granted one morning or one afternoon off work to recharge, however.
How long are Harry, Meghan and bump Down Under for?
The Sussexes (yep – all three of them), will be away for just over two weeks, with the flight to Australia from London being around 24 hours.
Their tour is a little shorter than the Duke and Duchess Of Cambridge’s tour Down Under. They visited Australia and New Zealand in April 2014, spending 18 days away. It was their first visit their as a married couple.
And when Harry’s parents Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, made the same voyage in 1983, they were away for more than double this length of time, spending 41 days overseas.
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