These are the royals' favourite holiday destinations, from the Bahamas to Botswana

If you're after some inspiration for your next getaway, then the royals' favourite holiday destinations may be a good place to start. While the family's official duties may take them all over the world, certain stunning locations have become their go-to places to unwind.

From Princess Margaret's love of Mustique in the Caribbean and Prince Harry's secret date with Meghan Markle in Botswana, to King Charles' ocean dips in Perth, Australia and Prince William's honeymoon with Kate Middleton in the Seychelles, the royals are a well-travelled bunch. However, you'll also find them kicking back in locations closer to home - including on Greek islands, in the Swiss Alps and even up in the Scottish Highlands.

So, whether you want to kick back on a beach during a romantic getaway or whizz on skis down a mountain with your family, the royals have already done the legwork for you. We'd sure love to see their holiday snaps...

The royals' favourite holiday destinations

1. Mustique, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The island of Mustique in the Caribbean became associated with the royals after Princess Margaret was given land as a wedding gift by its former owner Colin Tennant in the 1960s. She built a private villa, named Les Jolies Eaux, where she stayed twice a year for three decades - and would often host family, including her older sister Queen Elizabeth.

2. Botswana

Prince Harry and Prince William stopped off in Botswana during a 2010 royal tour of southern Africa. The Duke of Sussex went on to build a special bond with the country, taking Meghan Markle there on their third date where they camped out under the stars near the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park.

3. Nassau, The Bahamas

The Bahamas was a favourite of Prince Margaret and her former husband Antony Armstrong-Jones. They had passed through the Caribbean during a six-week honeymoon in 1960, and made a special trip back to Nassau for a holiday in 1967. When Prince William and Kate Middleton visited the country on a 2022 royal tour, they expressed their wish to one day bring their children back.

4. Lech, Austria

The royals are united in their love of skiing - however, over the years, they have each had their preferred destinations for enjoying the winter sport. Princess Diana was a particular fan of the village of Lech in Austria, and would often take her sons along with her.

5. Necker, British Virgin Islands

One of the more relatable peeks into royal parenting came when Princess Diana was spotted playing with her sons on the sands of Necker. She was staying on the private island in 1990 as a guest of its owner Sir Richard Branson, along with her sisters Lady Jane Fellowes and Lady Sarah McCorquodale and their children.

6. Mallorca, Spain

Back in 1987, the future King Charles took his then-wife Princess Diana and their sons to stay on the island of Mallorca with the Spanish royal family. During the trip, they were spotted on the steps of Marivent Palace, which is positioned on a clifftop overlooking Palma. The mother-of-two was such a fan she returned the next year.

7. Scottish Highlands

It is well known that every summer the royal family travels up to stay at Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands. Queen Elizabeth traditionally spent the whole of August there and would host relatives at different times of the month - where they would enjoy activities such as horse riding and grouse shooting on the estate's 50,000 acres.

8. Greece

Given that Prince Philip was born in Greece in 1921, it is perhaps unsurprising that the royal family often visits the country. Princess Margaret and her ex-husband Antony Armstrong-Jones made a special trip to see the Acropolis in Athens, while King Charles and Queen Camilla often travel to the island of Corfu for their summer holidays.

9. Klosters, Switzerland

King Charles was a big fan of the Swiss skiing destination, Klosters. So much so that they even named two chairlifts after him. He would often take his sons on trips with him - and it is where his eldest Prince William was spotted on the slopes kissing Kate Middleton publicly for the first time in 2004, alerting the world to their romance.

10. Isles of Scilly

While the royals love jetting abroad, they have also frequently vacationed closer to home. This includes the Isles of Scilly, an archipelago off the coast of Cornwall, where King Charles and Princess Diana visited in 1982 when she was pregnant with Prince William. The monarch might have been inspired by his trip there in 1967 with Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and Princess Anne. 

11. Malta

The late Queen Elizabeth spent her 1947 honeymoon with Prince Philip in Malta, where he was stationed with the Royal Navy. At the time, the then-Princess Elizabeth and Duke of Edinburgh were living in the Villa Guardamangia on the outskirts of Valetta - and the newlyweds remained at the property until 1951, a year before she acceded the throne. 

12. Montego Bay, Jamaica

Jamaica is another country with links to the royals that span decades - with Queen Elizabeth visiting on an official tour in 2002, and Prince William and Kate Middleton following in her footsteps in 2022. Several members of the family have checked into the 400-acre Half Moon resort, which boasts beautiful beaches, a golf course and an equestrian centre. 

13. Nevis, Caribbean

A year after her 1992 separation from Prince Charles, the first holiday newly single Princess Diana took was to the Caribbean island of Nevis. She stayed with her sons in a boutique hotel on the Montpelier Plantation Estate, and a decade later her youngest Prince Harry returned to raise awareness of the island's conservation work.

14. Gibraltar

To kickstart their three-month-long honeymoon in 1981, Prince Charles and Princess Diana boarded the Royal Yacht Britannia in Gibraltar - a British Overseas Territory, located on the tip of Spain. The Mediterranean cruise provided an opportunity, according to the royal bride, to catch up on sleep after all the wedding celebrations.

15. Egypt

The then-Prince and Princess of Wales wrapped up their three-month-long honeymoon in Egypt. They travelled into Port Said aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia to have dinner with the president and his wife. The couple flew back to the UK from Hurghada International Airport.

16. Zambia

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited Zambia on a 1979 royal tour that also saw them visit Tanzania and Malawi. It was during another African trip that included Kenya, in 1952, that she found out her father King George VI had suddenly passed away and that she would be acceding to the throne.

17. St. Tropez, France

In the weeks before her 1997 death, Princess Diana holidayed off the coast of St Tropez in the south of France - part of the time with her sons. At one point, she was pictured riding on a jet ski with Prince Harry. Her trip, which saw her stay on businessman Mohamed Al Fayed's yacht with his son Dodi, came around a month before the pair would tragically die in a Paris car crash.

18. Perth, Australia

King Charles has visited Australia well over a dozen times - and Perth is one of his favourite spots. He has reminisced about his early morning swims at Cottesloe Beach during his 1983 visit - where he was famously kissed on the cheek by model Jane Priest in front of cameras - and he celebrated his 67th birthday there with wife Queen Camilla with a barbecue in 2015.

19. Costa Smeralda, Sardinia

While Princess Margaret had a special place in her heart for the Caribbean, the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth also holidayed closer to home. The Countess of Snowdon visited the Costa Smeralda on the Italian island of Sardinia in 1967, where she was seen swimming in the sea. 

20. Gold Coast, Australia

Princess Anne's daughter Zara Phillips famously met her husband Mike Tindall in Sydney during the Rugby World Cup in 2003. In recent years, the couple have departed the UK after Christmas at Sandringham to soak up the sunshine on the nearby Gold Coast with their children.

21. Florida, US

Growing up, Prince William and Prince Harry were fans of theme parks, including Thorpe Park and Alton Towers. In 1993, a year after her separation from their father, Princess Diana took them on their first-ever trip to the United States. They travelled down to Florida, where they went to Disney World and were seen enjoying the Splash Mountain ride.

22. Deauville, France

There are some who love to lounge around on holiday, while others can't sit still. Prince Charles seemed to fall into the latter camp while vacationing and particularly liked to try his hand at watersports. The future king was seen windsurfing during a 1978 trip to Deauville, a French seaside town off the coast of  Normandy.

23. Whistler, Canada

The royals often try to squeeze in some downtime between duties on official trips. Prince Charles took time out for some skiing with his teenage sons in Whistler, British Colombia during a visit to Canada in 1998. The family time was even more important given it was less than a year since their mother Princess Diana had died.

24. Petra, Jordan

Ahead of their appearance at Sandringham in 2021, the Cambridges had surprised fans with a portrait of the family in the ancient city of Petra, Jordan on their official Christmas card. The duchess may have been keen to show her children where she spent three years growing up in the 1980s, with her father Michael Middleton's British Airways job taking them to Amman.  

25. Verbier, Switzerland

Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York loved skiing in Verbier, Switzerland so much with their daughters - Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie - that they owned a chalet there for a time. The skiing destination is also where the latter first met her future husband Jack Brooksbank. 

26. Cyprus

Many royals have visited Cyprus on official visits over the years, including the Prince and Princess of Wales in 2018 and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2022. However, the island was also host to Mike and Zara Tindall's 2011 honeymoon, with the couple staying at the Columbia Beach Resort near Limassol.

27. Comporta, Portugal

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are believed to have visited his cousin Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank at their Portugal home near the upmarket beach area of Comporta. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were spotted in Melides, on the Alentejo coastline.

28. Seychelles

After their 2011 royal wedding, Prince William and Kate Middleton jetted to the Seychelles for a ten-day honeymoon. They stayed on the private North Island at the Desroches Island Lodge - a resort which only has 11 luxury villas, which are reported to cost £5,000 a night.

29. Costa Rica

In one of their first big family holidays, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle travelled with their children to Costa Rica in 2023. They are believed to have visited Zapotal, Nandayure and Guanacaste during their vacation to the tropical destination. 

30. Italy

Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited Italy together on a number of occasions - including a royal tour in 1985 and a yacht holiday with their sons in 1991. The country has also been favoured by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who stayed with friends George and Amal Clooney at their Villa Oleandra in Lake Como in 2018 shortly after their wedding.

31. South Africa

It was in South Africa that Prince Harry met his ex-girlfriend Chelsy Davy, who grew up on a game reserve in the country but boarded at Cheltenham College. They crossed paths in Cape Town during his gap year, before he started at Sandhurst. Many years later, in 2019, the Duke of Sussex would visit with his wife Meghan Markle and son Archie on a royal tour. 

32. French Riviera

The French Riviera has long been a go-to place to vacation for the royals. Following his abdication, King Edward VIII and his wife Wallis Simpson would leave Paris to unwind in their holiday home, Villa La Croe, in the Cap D'Antibes in Cannes. Decades later, in 2019, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stayed with Elton John and his husband David Furnish at their villa in Nice.