The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are visiting New Zealand and Australia in April, bringing eight-month-old Prince George.

This will be the Duchess’ first official visit to both countries.

 

New Zealand

7 April – The Duke and Duchess arrive at Wellington and stay at Government House with Governor-General Sir Jerry Mateparae and his wife Lady Janine. The royal couple will receive a Ceremonial Welcome to New Zealand (Powhiri).

8 April – The royal couple will spend some personal time away from Wellington.

9 April – The Duke and Duchess will attend a reception at Government House recognising the work of Plunket (Royal New Zealand Plunket Society) which provides healthcare and support to new parents and their babies. The royal couple will meet some new parents and their babies, hopefully, Prince George may be present.

10 April – The Duke and Duchess will attend a wreath-laying ceremony in Blenheim to commemorate the Centenary of the start of World War I, and to honour those who died fighting in all wars, and meet war veterans. They will also visit the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre and tour the ‘Knights of the Sky’ exhibition, where they will see displays of aircraft and vehicles from World War I, with Sir Peter Jackson.

The royal couple will return to Wellington where they will meet Prime Minister John Key, and the Leader of the Opposition. The Duke and Duchess will attend a State Reception, hosted by the Governor-General, where Prince William will deliver a short speech and unveil a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II.

11 April – The Duke and Duchess will fly to Auckland and visit the RNZAF base at Whenuapai, where they will meet base personnel and their families. It is a chance for the Duke and Duchess to recognise and thank Air Force personnel and their families for their service, as many have served overseas.

They travel into the city centre and match-race sailing Americas Cup on Auckland Harbour (weather permitting), and travel aboard Sealegs, a boat which travels on both land and sea, to Westpark Marina. They fly back to Wellington from the Air Force base.

12 April – The Duke and Duchess will be visiting Hamilton and Cambridge in the Waikato region in the North Island. Prince William will visit Pacific Aerospace at Hamilton Airport – one of New Zealand’s manufacturing success stories.

Meanwhile, the Duchess will visit a children’s hospice, Rainbow Place, in Hamilton, where she will meet children and their families, as well as volunteers and nurses.

The Duke and Duchess will travel to Cambridge in the heart of Waikato’s agricultural community, where they will formally open the new national velodrome the Avantidrome. The royal couple will meeting New Zealand’s recent Olympic medalists.

13 April – The Duke and Duchess will fly to Dunedin where they will be welcomed by representatives of Ngai Tahu, the principal Maori tribe of the South Island, before attending a Palm Sunday service at the Cathedral Church of St Paul. The royal couple will travel to Dunedin’s rugby stadium to watch a festival of Rippa Rugby (Young players’ Rugby Tournament) with some All Blacks present.

Later that afternoon, the royal couple fly to Queenstown where they will visit Amisfield vineyard, where they will sample some wine and food from the Otago region. Afterwards the Duke and Duchess will experience the Shotover Jet Trip with young people from the local tourism industry.

14 April – The Duke and Duchess travel to Christchurch where they will receive a formal Ngai Tahu welcome at the Christchurch City Council Building in Worcester Boulevard, before seeing some rebuilding of the city centre after the devastating earthquake in 2011. (Prince William had visited in February 2011, a few days later.)

The royal couple will visit the CTV Memorial Park and will also celebrate the coming of the Cricket World Cup to Christchurch in 2015.

They will also visit the Wigram Air Force Museum to view the Memorial War, dedicated to those in the Royal New Zealand Air Force who died in service fighting for their country.

15 April – The Duke and Duchess will be spending a quiet day as a family, before their departure to Australia.

16 April – Their Royal Highnesses will visit the Royal New Zealand Police College  near Wellington, which was opened by the Prince of Wales in 1981. The Duke and Duchess will also acknowledge the sacrifice of those 29 officers who lost their lives in the line of duty, and seeing police recruits in training.

The royal couple will visit Civic Square, sign the city’s Visitors’ book and meet members of the public, before heading to the airport for their three-hour flight to Sydney.

Australia

16 April – The Duke and Duchess will arrive at Sydney Airport and attend a reception at the Sydney Opera House with NSW Governor Marie Bashir. Prince William will give a short speech to mark the start of the royal tour of Australia.

The royal party will travel by boat across Sydney Habour to Admiralty House and stay with the Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove.

17 April – The Duke and Duchess will visit bushfire victims in the Blue Mountains. They  will attend an event with residents and community groups, but, hopefully, see some of the natural beauty and spectactular scenery for themselves.

18 April (Good Friday) – The royal couple will visit the Royal Easter Show at Sydney Olympic Park, before visiting Manly. The Duke and Duchess will visit Bear Cottage, the only children’s hospice in NSW, before watching surf life-saving volunteers demonstrating their skills.

19 April – The Duke and Duchess will visit the Royal Australian Air Force base at Amberbely, near Brisbane, with an inspection of the Guard and see some RAAF aircraft and meet their crew. The royal couple will also view Amberley’s Memorial Gardens, where they will plant a tree, before attending a reception for serving air force personnel, veterans and their families.

The Duke and Duchess will travel into Brisbane to attend a reception hosted by the Governor, Her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley and the Premier of Queensland, Campbell Newman. The royal couple will meet young people from a varity of backgrounds.

20 April (Easter Sunday) – The royal couple will attend a morning service at St Andrew’s Cathedral in Sydney’s CBD, and sign the ‘First Fleet Bible’ – used in the first Christian service held in Australia in 1788. Several members of the Royal Family, including Queen Elizabeth II, have also signed it.

Afterwards, the Duke and Duchess will visit Taronga Zoo, to view the Bilby Enclosure, which will be named after Prince George, before flying to Canberra for the remainder of their visit. They will stay at Government House.

21 April (Easter Monday) – The royal couple will be resting, as it is a public holiday in Australia. (It is also Queen Elizabeth II’s actual birthday, as she was born 21 April 1926).

22 April – The Duke and Duchess fly to Uluru (Ayers Rock) where they will visit the National Indigenous Training Academy, and view indigenous art works at the Uluru Cultural Centre. Later, they will attend afternoon tea given by the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, before visiting Uluru itself, and taking a short walk around its base. The royal couple will stay overnight.

23 April – The royal couple fly to Adelaide where they will visit the suburb of Elizabeth, which was named after the Queen in 1955. The Duke and Duchess will visit the Northern Sound System, a music studio and workshop for young people, before watching a skate-boarding display in the park.

The Duke and Duchess will also visit Playford Civic Centre for a lively reception hosted by the Governor Kevin Scarce and Premier of South Australia, before returning to Canberra.

24 April – The royal couple visit the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, where they will view an exhibition of artworks and meet some of the portraits’ subjects. The Duke and Duchess will attend a Reception in the Great Hall in Parliament House, hosted by Prime Minister Tony Abbott. Prince William will deliver a speech.

In the afternoon, the royal couple visit the National Arboretum on the hills overlooking Canberra, and plant a tree.

The Duke and Duchess will attend a reception at Government House in their honour, hosted by the Governor-General.

25 April (ANZAC Day) – Their Royal Highesses will attend an ANZAC Day March and Commemorative Service at the Australian War Memorial and to remember the ANZAC landings at Gallipoli 99 years ago.

The Duke and Duchess will plant a seed which was taken from the Lone Pine at Gallipoli.

The royal couple return home to London from Canberra.

History Repeating Itself?

Prince William himself was only nine months old when he first visited New Zealand and Australia with his parents, Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales in 1983.

Useful Link

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Official Web Page
 
Screen capture of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's Official Web Page
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Official Web Page

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