Prince Charles and Camilla Were the Royal Family's Biggest Spenders on Travel Over the Past Year
Once a year, the royal family offers the public a rare look at their finances. The annual royal report details everything from how much tax-payer money was allotted for the renovation of the Sussexes' new home Frogmore Cottage (£2.4 million or roughly $3 million) to the number of official engagements taken by members of the royal family both in the U.K, and overseas (more than 3,200).
But one of the more interesting portions of the disclosure centers around the royal family's travel spending, which totaled £4.6 million (or roughly $5.87 million) for the financial year. British taxpayers foot the bill for travel on official royal visits through the Sovereign Grant (a sum of money granted to the monarch annually for official duties), and the royal report breaks down the costs of individual journeys costing more than £15,000 (or roughly $18,000).
This year, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall took the priciest trip. Their royal tour of the Caribbean in March, which included more than 50 engagements on 10 different islands and a historic visit to Cuba, cost £416,576 (or roughly $530,000).
Charles and Camilla also took the second and third most expensive trips of this financial year (which in Britain is measured as the 12 months ending in March). Their royal tour of Gambia, Ghana, and Nigeria last fall cost £216,312 (or roughly $275,000); the royal couple's official visit to France and Greece last May cost £159,820 (or approximately $200,000).
Moving down the list, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex took the fourth-most expensive trip. Their whirlwind visit to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Tonga last October cost taxpayers £81,002 (or just over $100,000), but it should be noted that Australia and New Zealand paid for a significant portion of the expenses of that royal tour as they are Commonwealth realms.
Other expensive royal trips this past year included Prince William's visit to the Middle East and Charles and Camilla's expansive tour of Ireland and Northern Ireland last summer.
In total, the Sovereign Grant for the 2018-19 financial year was £82.2 million (just over $104 million) the rough equivalent of £1.24 ($1.58) per person in the U.K.
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