Little has been shared about the Prince and Princess of Wales‘ summer plans with their children while the Princess continues to recover from her chemotherapy treatment. However, it seems most likely the Wales family will soon join King Charles and his wife, Queen Camilla at Balmoral – the royal family’s beloved estate in the Scottish Highlands where they traditionally spend the end of the summer. In the past, William, Kate, Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and six-year-old Prince Louis have flown economy to Aberdeen airport.
Balmoral is a fitting choice for the Wales family to spend the final weeks of the summer. With around 50,000 acres of space made up of forests, mountains, arable pastures, lochs, grouse moors, and gardens, the Prince and Princess of Wales can relax knowing their children can play and spend time with their grandparents in private.
There’s even more of a reason for the Wales children to go to Balmoral during the summer – they have their very own private playhouse. The King and Queen previously gave unprecedented access inside the grounds of their royal residences in the documentary King Charles III: The Coronation Year, and one of them acts as the best playground for their grandchildren.
In the BBC One documentary, the royal couple were spotted strolling around the 52,000-acre grounds of the Birkhall estate in Scotland with their pet Jack Russell Terrier, Beth. Showing off her playful side, Camilla ran after her pet pooch on the bridge over the wide, shallow water of River Muick, before explaining why the young royals spend „hours“ playing in the secluded area.
„Every child when they come here rush there and bounce about on the bridge for hours,“ she said, before walking past what we imagine is another hot spot for the likes of Princess Charlotte, Mia Tindall and Prince Archie when they visit – the Wendy house.
Originally built in 1935 for Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret, the mini thatched house features a wooden exterior and a rounded roof with a small turret at the top. A pale green picket fence separates the woodland forest around the Wendy house and the manicured lawns that lead up to Birkhall.
Located on the Balmoral estate, which was known as his late mother Queen Elizabeth’s favourite place, Birkhall was inherited by King Charles following the Queen Mother’s death in 2002, and he spent several years transforming the gardens. The historic home holds lots of memories for the royal, as it is where Charles and Camilla spent their honeymoon after getting married in 2005, and it also acted as their lockdown base during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.
Charles previously described the home as „a unique haven of cosiness and character.“ The monarch also told Alan Titchmarsh for Country Life: „It is such a special place, particularly because it was made by my grandmother. It is a childhood garden, and all I’ve done, really, is enhance it a bit.“
Sloping lawns, a vegetable garden and a large array of flowers and hedges now make up the gardens thanks to King Charles‘ keen eye for gardening. „There was only one hedge at Birkhall to begin with, so I put in some more for structure – I love topiary, anyway. It’s all in the details and not overdoing things. You have to be careful about the amount of statuary you put in and having too many objects. However, the eye should be led- you want to think: ‚I wonder what’s around that corner?‘ Little follies are terribly important, too, as they give a focus to reach or sit in once you get there,“ he continued.
In conclusion, Balmoral is not only a special place for the royal family to spend their summer but also a place where the Wales children can create lasting memories playing in their very own private playhouse on the Birkhall estate. With its rich history and beautiful gardens, Balmoral is the perfect setting for the Wales family to relax and enjoy quality time together.