Balmoral Castle—nestled in the Scottish Highlands—is the official summer retreat of the British royal family, where the family heads off to every August for time together in the outdoors, away from the glare of the public fishbowl that is life as a royal. It is said to have been Queen Elizabeth’s favorite place in the world and, though filled with family memories, is also tinged with sadness—it is where Her late Majesty died at age 96 in September 2022, and also where Prince William and Prince Harry were staying with their father, then Prince Charles, when they learned that their mother, Princess Diana, had been killed in a Parisian car accident at age 36 in August 1997.
Apparently plans are already being made for this summer’s trek to Balmoral—a poignant one, as so many members of the royal family are battling cancer. (King Charles, the Princess of Wales, and the Duchess of York were all diagnosed with the disease this year; Sarah Ferguson is battling skin cancer, and the exact type of Charles and Kate’s cancers remain unknown.) Four months from now, the royal family will be retreating to the residence, and the King reportedly wants the Sussexes there this year—and “desperately” wants to see his grandchildren Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet who, with their parents Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, call California home, an ocean away from Charles in the United Kingdom.
“I can see Charles desperately wanting to see the children, and extending this olive branch to Meghan and Harry,” a source told Page Six. “He may decide that life is just too short.”
Familial relations have been strained over the years between the Sussexes and the rest of the royal family, but it’s certainly worth noting that within hours of learning his father had been diagnosed with cancer, Harry was on a transatlantic flight from California to London to see his father, flying 5,000 miles roundtrip even though he only got to be with him for about 30 minutes. Of Balmoral, the source added that it “is truly the perfect, restful place for a reunion. If he [Charles] does issue an invite, then Harry and Meghan should surely agree to a visit.”
Harry and Meghan still lived in the U.K. when Archie was born in May 2019; Archie was less than a year old when the Sussexes relocated from the U.K. to the U.S. in early 2020. Lilibet was born in June 2021 in the U.S., and because of the ongoing pandemic, the distance, and relations that were perhaps more strained in 2021 than they are today, the King didn’t meet his youngest grandchild face-to-face until Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee in June 2022, when she was turning a year old. (There were surely video chats and FaceTimes, though.)
The visit was called “very emotional” and of the time together, a source said “It was a fantastic visit and, of course, the King was delighted to see his grandson and meet his granddaughter for the first time.”
As for Balmoral in August, the potential visit will take place the month before Harry turns the milestone age of 40 on September 15; August is also Meghan’s birthday month. (She will turn 43 on August 4.) It might not take much to twist Harry’s arm, as he expressed his love of the place in his memoir, Spare—he especially remembered his grandmother Queen Elizabeth’s salad dressing, and his grandfather Prince Philip tending the grill “amid a thick cloud of smoke, tears streaming from his eyes,” Harry wrote. “He wore a flat cap, which he took off now and then to mop his brow or smack a fly.”
Harry added “As the filets of venison sizzled, he turned them with a huge pair of tongs, then put on a loop of Cumberland sausages. Normally I’d beg him to make a pot of his specialty, spaghetti Bolognese.”
Balmoral is about to undergo a significant change this summer, opening its doors to tourists for the first time since the castle was completed in 1855. People reports that the new “Castle Internal Guided Tours” is the most intimate view of Balmoral yet, as visitors have previously only been able to see the grounds and gardens and the castle’s ballroom, but nothing else. This new tour is a “historical journey” through “several of the beautiful rooms,” led by a private guide that takes visitors through the castle’s history, from its acquisition by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1845 to how the royal family uses the space today. Tours run July 1 to August 4 and are capped at 10 people per session; ticket prices range from around $126 to $189, which includes an afternoon tea.
“Balmoral is a private property,” royal biographer Robert Hardman told The Times. “However, it needs public footfall not just to help pay the bills, but to bring benefits to the wider community and to remain in step with other stately homes.”
