Queen Elizabeth II’s favourite castle opens to public for the first time

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The British Royal family are now opening up more of their private lives to the public. Unfortunately for some, that doesn’t mean a livestream of Charles’ prostate exam, nor a behind-the-scenes photoshop tutorial from his daughter-in-law.

Instead, the public can now get a tour inside Balmoral Castle. Yay.

Fans of the British royals will know that Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland was the favourite residence of the dearly departed Queen Elizabeth II.

From 1 July to 4 August, the castle interior will be open to the public. It’s not cheap though. Priced at £100 (€117) for the day visit – with an extra £50 (€58) charge lumped on if you fancy a bit of afternoon tea.

Luckily for those uncomfortable with the thought of children running amok in of the most prized royal residences, this is an adult-only experience. So while you sip on a lovely cuppa and enjoy some overpriced scones, the brats will have to remain entertained by the extensive grounds and gardens that are accessible to children under five for free.

As usual, the exterior grounds, gardens and exhibitions of the castle will also be open to the public from 4 May to 11 August. These are much more reasonably priced.

However, the real draw is the opportunity to walk around the rooms actual royals enjoy, including the current King and Queen.

The interior tours are guided by the castle’s experienced staff and includes the Ballroom where there is a display of King Charles’ watercolour collection that depicts scenes of Balmoral, Highgrove and Sandringham.

There are also collections of outfits worn by King Charles and Queen Camilla, Queen Elizabeth II and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

This is the first time the castle will be open to the public since it was first purchased by the Crown in 1848 by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. The Victorian pair loved the house for its surrounding landscape, though found it too small and a new house was completed in 1855.

It’s a similar offering (and price) to the guided tours of Buckingham Palace, the royal residence in the centre of London, although Balmoral occupies a special place in the British royal canon as both Elizabeth II’s favourite residence and the one she died in.

Not content to use just their own enormous wealth for the upkeep of the castle, the royals rely on visitors to pay for around half the £3 million (€3.5 million) annual running costs.