Where does King Charles III live? A look inside Clarence House, the London residence Charles and Camilla call home

If you've ever been wondering where does King Charles III live, wonder no more. We take a look at Clarence House—the London residence of King Charles III and Queen Camilla.

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, Charles became King and Camilla became Queen Consort. Though the official invitations to the Coronation  Ceremony confirmed that Camilla will drop the 'Consort' part of her title and be known as Queen Camilla.

The couple have resided at Clarence House since 2003, two years before their wedding in 2005. But with Charles now being monarch, there is talk of him moving into Buckingham Palace with Camilla, as this was Queen Elizabeth's official residence as monarch.

So where does King Charles III live and will he be moving? Here's all you need to know.

Where does King Charles III live?

Currently, King Charles III lives at Clarence House, the official London residence of the the monarch and Queen Camilla.

Clarence House was built in the 1820s and has five bedrooms, a drawing room with a central fireplace, a morning room filled with personal photographs, artworks and antiques, and additional principle rooms which have been used for receptions and other official entertaining over the years.

King Charles also has homes at Highgrove, in Gloucestershire, Birkhall on the Balmoral Estate in Scotland and Llwynywermod in Wales.

Will King Charles and Queen Camilla move into Buckingham Palace?

A move to Buckingham Palace would be in keeping with tradition, as it has been the official home of British monarchs since 1837. 

The Palace has a whopping 775 rooms, including 19 State rooms, 52 royal and guest bedrooms, 188 staff bedrooms, 92 offices, and 78 bathrooms. It also has a Post Office, cinema, swimming pool, doctor's surgery, and jeweller's workshop. The Palace garden is the largest private garden in London, which includes a tennis court, lake, and helicopter pad.

However, Buckingham Palace is currently undergoing a £369m refurbishment and it's been reported that the King and Queen could move into the palace in 2027, when it's completed.

However, it wouldn't be surprising if King Charles and Queen Camilla chose to stay at Clarence House, as they've reportedly admitted they're not keen on living at Buckingham Palace.

One source had previously said that the monarch was "no fan" of Buckingham Palace, which he had branded "the Big House". Another insider told The Sunday Times, "He doesn’t see it as a viable future home or a house that’s fit for purpose in the modern world.

"He feels that its upkeep, both from a cost and environmental perspective, is not sustainable." Another source close to the Royal family suggested that Queen Consort Camilla "doesn’t want to live at Buckingham Palace" either.

Where is Clarence House?

Clarence House is based on The Mall in London's City of Westminster just meters away from St. James's Palace and the late Queen's official residence, Buckingham Palace.

The home, where King Charles III and Queen Camilla live while in London, is one of the last remaining aristocratic townhouses in the capital.

To prepare the building for Charles and Camilla moving in back in 2003, Clarence House underwent extensive refurbishment and redecoration. The renovation included new colour schemes, updated textiles, and several new pieces from the Royal Collection and from King Charles' own art collection.

A brief history of Clarence House

The London residence was previously home to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother between 1953 until her death in 2002, so holds a wealth of royal history within its walls.

In fact, the late Queen and her late husband Prince Philip also called Clarence House home before and also soon after she took the throne, but later moved to Buckingham Palace, as is tradition.

Prince William and Prince Harry also called the imposing townhouse their home from 2003, until they both moved out into Kensington Palace in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

Prince William still lives between Kensington Palace and Norfolk's Amner Hall with Kate Middleton and their children—Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. 

Prince Harry now lives in LA with Meghan Markle and their children, Archie and Lilibet. Harry and Meghan lived in Kensington Palace's Nottingham Cottage at the time of their wedding and went on to spend the start of married life at Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, before stepping back from royal duties and heading to America.

Royal fans are also usually able to visit Clarence House in person, however only during the month of August. The official tour usually allows visitors to take a look into all five rooms on the ground floor of the building, where official engagements take place.

Who owns Clarence House?

Clarence House is a royal residence. Therefore, much the same as many of the other royal properties, including Buckingham Palace, Clarence House's ownership comes under ownership of the Crown Estate. 

This means that Clarence House officially belongs to the current sovereign, rather than being personally owned by King Charles III himself.

What's it like inside Clarence House?

Fans can now view the inside of the abode thanks to a new Google function. King Charles allowed Google Arts and Culture to take 360-degree imagery of the inside of his home of 40 years, in order to allow the public to take a look at the extensive royal art collection in his luxury home. 

The tour, created to mark his 70th birthday back in 2018, allows users to look inside the King's garden room, dining room, library, entrance hall, corridor, and the Lancaster and Morning room.

The tour also allows royal fans a sneak peek into some of King Charles's private collection of photographs, assembled around the house he and Queen Camilla couple have called home for 20 years. They will also be able to see a selection of three watercolors painted by the monarch himself.

King Charles's communications secretary, Julian Payne, revealed that the King himself, and the household worked closely with Google to create the function. Google Arts and Culture also works with other museums and famous institutions to bring artwork to an online audience—an important detail for King Charles.

Julian said, "So when we received the invitation to develop the site for the [then] prince he was honored and I think fascinated by what could be done for the charities more than anything else, but also understood to share things like the artwork in Clarence House."

King Charles and Queen Camilla have regularly welcomed guests from around the world to their Clarence House home. Mostly, meetings take place in the formal living room which is adorned with historic family photos, low-lighting lamps, and stylish, blue-toned, and sage green furnishings.

Many speeches, meetings, and conferences have also taken place in the huge, wooden hallway of the historic building too.

In photos, you can catch a glimpse of the room, with a wide imposing staircase. The plush red carpet runs up the stairs, while at the bottom is a cabinet full of, likely, the family's finest china.

Pictures of the late Queen Mother scatter the house and in fact, her influence is felt elsewhere too.

Many of the pieces on display at Clarence House are from her own personal collection and are laid out exactly to her specification.

How much is Clarence House worth?

Accoriding to Forbes, it is estimated that Clarence House is roughly worth around $72 million (£57.7 million)

The cost isn't surprising though, given that the home is centrally located in Westminster. It backs on to miles of beautiful gardens and has a huge range of rooms and bedrooms. 

After all, five-bedroom homes in the area can go for upwards of £14 million, so a residence with far more than that is going to cost a lot.

What are the Clarence House gardens like?

The grounds of Clarence House are undeniably impressive, too. Formally attached to the Buckingham Palace gardens, King Charles III has had extensive input into the design of the garden, specifically creating a formal area in the grounds in honor of his late grandmother, the Queen mother.

The King's designs were then put in place by members of The Prince's School of Traditional Arts.

Clarence House's gardens are actually also shared with the adjoining royal property St. James's Palace, making it one of the biggest in London. The rest of the gardens are full of large impressive trees and colorful flowers.

Is Clarence House open to the public?

Yes, the house is open to visitors during the summer months.

However, as it is also a private home, the public are only able to have a guided tour of five of the most historic rooms on the ground floor, and the adjoining spaces. 

You can purchase tickets to visit Clarence House on the Royal Collection Trust website.