Kensington Palace has released the dates for Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex’s, visit to New Zealand.
In an announcement on its Twitter page palace officials revealed:
“As previously announced, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will undertake an official visit to Australia, Fiji, the Kingdom of Tonga, and New Zealand. The visit will take place between Tuesday 16th October and Wednesday 31st October.
“Their Royal Highnesses have been invited to visit the Commonwealth Realms of Australia and New Zealand by the countries’ respective governments. The Duke and Duchess will visit Fiji and Tonga at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
“The programme 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.”
Prince Harry is a passionate supporter of the Invictus Games, and it was at the Games in Canada last year that the royal couple made their first public appearance together.
The Duke and Duchess will begin their tour in Sydney, Australia on October 16 and head to Fiji on October 23. On October 25 they’ll travel to Tonga where they’ll spend two nights before travelling to New Zealand via Sydney.
We can expect the Duke and Duchess of Sussex on Sunday October 28. They’ll spend three days here, starting in Wellington. Their New Zealand leg of the tour will unfold like this:
Sunday 28th October: Wellington
Monday 29th October: Wellington and Abel Tasman
Tuesday 30th October: Auckland
Wednesday 31st October: Rotorua
News that there would be a tour was confirmed in June.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said in a statement, “It’s wonderful news that the Duke and Duchess are coming to New Zealand as part of their first major tour outside the United Kingdom and I look forward to welcoming them here.
“I know Prince Harry really enjoyed his last visit here in 2015 and I’m sure New Zealanders will want the Duchess of Sussex to also experience our warm hospitality and manaakitanga on her first visit here as a member of the Royal family.
“This is the Duchess’s second visit to our country and I know New Zealanders will be very much looking forward to welcoming her back.”
Meghan Markle’s first visit to New Zealand was in 2014, where she spent 10 days visiting our South Island tourist hotspots before finishing off her holiday with four days on Waiheke Island in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf.
In her now-closed-down blog, The Tig, the Duchess waxed lyrical about Aotearoa, describing New Zealand as “undoubtedly spectacular,” “magical” and “one of the most beautiful countries in the world.”
Now To Love retrieved the blog posts and published them in February this year.
The Duchess climbed glaciers, visited vineyards, swam with dolphins and even indulged in some good old Kiwi fish and chips washed down with Speights beer.
This is where the royal couple will go:
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
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