Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton have reportedly vowed to cut the cost of their royal tours, and make their first official overseas visit to the US and Canada a budget trip.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will criss-cross five time zones in Canada and the US on an 11-day tour of nine cities between June 30 and July 10 and hope to herald a new cost-cutting drive in Royal Family, ‘Daily Express’ reported.
Their cut-price approach to royal tours follows rows in Canada over £1.46 million cost to Canadian taxpayers of Prince Charles and Camilla’s visit to the country in 2009 and £2.07 million bill for Queen’s tour last year.
William, 28, and Kate, 29, will be flown to and around Canada on Royal Canadian Air Force flight paid for by Canadian taxpayers as they are members of the Commonwealth.
British taxpayers will foot the bill for the US leg of the trip because the Foreign Office has asked them to go to California, where they will stay in Los Angeles for three days, the newspaper said.
They will fly to LA on the Canadian plane but return home on a scheduled airline rather than the sort of private charter jet favoured by some members of the Royal Family.
“They will use scheduled airlines wherever security and their itinerary allow it,” a St James’s Palace source was quoted as saying.
The couple will be in Ottawa from June 30 to July 2 and then Montreal before travelling to Quebec on July 3 and then to Prince Edward Island. They will fly to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories from July 4 to July 6, finishing their tour in Alberta. www.facebook.com/emmanuelsamuko
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