Get ready for an up-close-and-personal look into the lives of King Charles and Queen Camilla. Balmoral Castle, the Scottish holiday residence of the British royals, will open its doors to the public for private tours of the interiors this summer—a first since the castle’s completion in 1855.
In a new promotion dubbed “The Balmoral Experience,” guests will be taken on a guided tour through rooms in the castle used by the royals from July 1 to August 4. Visitors will learn about the history and use of the spaces along the way. A tour of the Aberdeenshire castle is priced at about $126 dollars (£100) for an adult ticket, plus an extra $63 (£50) for those who add on the option of afternoon tea.
“Travel through time from the purchase of the Balmoral Estate by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, through to the present day, where you can see a selection of rooms within the castle that are used by Their Majesties The King and Queen and other members of the Royal Family,” states the castle’s official Instagram page.
Since 1931, Balmoral’s gardens and grounds open up to the public every spring. The ballroom has been the only interior space previously accessible to outsiders until now.
Fans of the British royals expressed their excitement in the comments section of the Instagram post. Unfortunately, if you haven’t already purchased a ticket, you’ll have to wait until next year for an expedited or guided tour; according to the official website, those tickets are already sold out just only one day after the announcement. General admission tickets are still available, but those are also quickly being snapped up.
Located in the Scottish Highlands, Balmoral Castle is one of two properties personally owned by King Charles (the other being Sandringham Castle). The King inherited the property after Queen Elizabeth II’s death in September 2022. Balmoral Castle was one of the late Queen’s favorite places, and where she took her final breaths. “I think Granny is the most happy there,” Princess Eugenie once told ITV of the estate.
King Charles is also quite fond of the retreat. “I cannot tell you how much I miss Balmoral and the hills and the air—I feel very empty and incomplete without it all,” he said in 1968, before leaving for his second year at Cambridge. Last year, the King began his contribution to the gardens, which include a stretch of cherry blossoms and thousands of daffodils, expanding the work that royals have been adding to the gardens since Prince Albert.
