The Queen has headed to
her Balmoral residence in Scotland to begin her summer holiday.
She was spotted on Thursday
afternoon being driven from her Berkshire residence wearing a bright yellow and
purple floral dress. Her Majesty, 96, is likely to spend several months at
the estate, and she will no doubt be joined by other members of her family
during her time there.
The Queen usually travels to
Balmoral from mid to end of July and first stays at Craigowan Lodge – the
stone cottage which is located a mile from the main Balmoral Castle.
She will reside at the
seven-bedroom lodge until her main Scottish residence closes to the public on 2
August. The Queen tends to stay in Scotland until September/October time before
her royal duties resume.
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Her Majesty opted for a bright floral summer dress
Scotland is considered to be
one of the Queen’s favourite places on Earth; she and her late
husband Prince Philip even spent part of their honeymoon at Birkhall
hunting lodge, located on the estate, in 1947.
The Balmoral estate is where
the royal family can relax away from their usual royal duties and enjoy the
quieter life in the countryside.
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The monarch tends to spend the summer in Scotland
In the ITV documentary, Our
Queen at Ninety, Princess Eugenie spoke about the wonder of Balmoral.
“It’s the most beautiful place on earth,” she said, and it’s not only
her that is taken aback by the surroundings.
She went on to say: “I
think Granny is the happiest there, I think she really, really loves the
Highlands… Walks, picnics, dogs – a lot of dogs, there’s always dogs! And
people coming in and out all the time.
“Family-wise we’re all
there, so it’s a lovely base for Granny and Grandpa to be – for us to come and
see them up there, where you just have room to breathe and run.”