By Royal Appointment
Whether you’re a Union Jack-waving royal fanatic, a history buff, or simply like a wander in beautiful gardens, everyone can enjoy a right royal day out at these stately palaces, castles and sights across the UK. By
Vicky Lissaman
Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace, London
Book the Royal Mews tour and see the Gold State Coach taking a starring role in King Charles III’S Coronation. At 260 years old, it has been at the centre of every coronation since William IV. Queen Elizabeth II rode in it on her Coronation Day in 1953 and most recently it appeared as part of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant.
Visitors also get to experience the royal stables and see the Windsor Greys, which draw the carriages for the monarch, Royal Family and guests.
Led by the royal wardens, these fascinating 45-minute tours reveal the secrets of the historic carriages and modern cars, plus details of the preparations for state and ceremonial occasions.
Visitors can also sit aboard a replica of a Semi-state Landau, a favourite carriage of Queen Victoria, try on the same sort of livery worn by the King’s coachmen, and tack up a wooden pony.
Adults £15, 18-24-year-olds £10, children £9, under-5s free, rct.uk/visit/the-royal-mews-buckingham-palace
Royal Yacht Britannia, Edinburgh
The first royal yacht to be built with complete ocean-going capacity, it has sailed more than a million nautical miles on 968 state visits over 40 years.
When decommissioned in 1997, it marked the end of a long tradition of British royal yachts, dating back to 1660 and the reign of Charles II.
Visitors can explore the five decks and discover what life was like during royal service on board HM Queen Elizabeth II’S former floating palace.
See the state apartments, go below deck in the crew’s quarters, admire the gleaming engine room and take in the
Royal Sailing Exhibition.
Adults £18.50, children £9.25, royalyachtbritannia.co.uk
Set among the green and golden fields of the Cotswolds, this private residence of King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort dates back to 1796.
Immediately before Charles’ arrival in 1980, the neoclassical-style house was the home of Maurice Macmillan, son of Harold Macmillan, British Prime Minister in the 1950s and early 1960s.
Back then it possessed little more than a neglected kitchen garden, an overgrown copse and some pastureland and, over the years, Charles devoted much energy into transforming it.
Visitors can take a 90-minute tour of Highgrove gardens which includes the other-worldly Stumpery to the whimsical Thyme Walk and the Chelsea award-winning Carpet Garden.
Tickets £30, highgrovegardens.com