King Charles to make first official visit to Canada as monarch later this month
The last time Charles visited Canada was in May 2022, as Prince of Wales
Buckingham Palace has confirmed a major royal return to the global stage: King Charles and Queen Camilla will travel to Canada later this month, marking the monarch’s first official trip to the country since becoming King.
The two-day visit, set for May 26–27, will see Their Majesties attend the State Opening of Parliament in Ottawa, making this Charles’s 20th visit to Canada, but the first in his role as reigning monarch. For Queen Camilla, it will be her fifth.
The announcement marks a milestone moment in King Charles’s royal calendar as he slowly resumes long-haul royal duties while still undergoing cancer treatment.
Though no political power is held by the King, his constitutional responsibilities as Canada’s Head of State include ceremonial functions such as the opening of Parliament.
His return follows a private audience with newly-elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in London back in March, after Justin Trudeau stepped down following nine years in power.
This will be King Charles’s first overseas visit since his March trip to Italy, and a major step in his plan to return to full royal duties after his shock cancer diagnosis earlier this year.
“The King is determined to keep serving,” a palace insider previously said, “but he is listening more closely to medical advice and spacing out his schedule.”
The last time Charles visited Canada was in May 2022, when he toured Newfoundland, Ottawa, and the Northwest Territories as Prince of Wales.
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