Prince William and Kate Middleton started their year hitting the ground running with a series of completed royal engagements in the U.K. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's calendar will get a lot more hectic as Kensington Palace confirmed their upcoming overseas trips.
From March 3 to 5, Prince William and Kate will travel to Emerald Isle, as well as visit Dublin and Cork in Ireland. According to reports, the Cambridge couple's presence was requested by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and this will be the first time for them to visit the Republic of Ireland together.
Prince William and Kate are reportedly eager to see the English Market in Cork, which Queen Elizabeth graced last 2011. Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, have been to the island five times with their last visit in 2015. Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, had a two-day visit to the country last July 2018.
Meanwhile, the Cambridge royals may soon be making a longer trip as well as the government of Australia will reportedly invite them back to visit the bushfire-affected areas of New South Wales and Victoria. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Prince William and Kate have been in discussions with Prime Minister Scott Morrison for weeks now but their itinerary and schedule are yet to be finalized.
Apparently, Prince William and Kate wanted to return to Australia earlier but they were careful not to take too much attention and resources as bushfire relief operations were underway. The wildfire season Down Under is almost over but there are still a lot of rebuilding to follow with thousands of acres of land burned and countless of lives lost, including animals and wildlife.
Prince William and Kate last visited Australia in 2014. They brought their son, Prince George, on that trip but it's not certain if the Cambridge children will be tagging along again on this upcoming journey.
Meanwhile, this week, Kate was in Northern Ireland and Scotland as part of her "5 Big Questions on the Under Fives" initiative. The duchess went solo for this 300-mile trip to learn more about the challenges that families face with their young children.
She was also in Wales to conduct her family survey and was able to obtain 200,000 respondents. According to People this was the largest survey of its kind to be done in the United Kingdom.
