King Charles has enjoyed one particular family tradition for years, but after becoming King and following his cancer diagnosis, he revealed those days are ‘behind him’
King Charles revealed this year he has been forced to give up a much-loved hobby which has been a huge part of the royal family’s life for generations. During his ill-fated marriage to Princess Diana, the couple spent many an annual winter holiday skiing with Princes William and Harry, and the tradition has now been passed down to the brothers’ own children.
But during an official royal visit to a factory in Middlesbrough earlier this year, 77-year-old Charles told a group of employees he thought his “skiiing days are behind me”. It’s believed his annual ski trips were first cancelled in 2023 due to the possible risk of injury prior to the coronation taking place in May that year. The following year, the King revealed his cancer diagnosis in early February so was understandably not able to undertake any activity-filled holidays.
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When William and Harry, now 43 and 41, were youngsters, the family spent many a winter trip in Klosters in the Swiss Alps, and were joined on a few of the trips by cousins Princess Eugenie in Princess Beatrice.
Their trip in March 2005 became more renowned than most, however, when a photocall with Charles, William and Harry made headlines due to an unfortunate microphone issue. Just over a week before he was due to marry Camilla, Charles’ mic picked him up discussing the BBC’s royal correspondent at the time, Nicholas Witchell, saying, “Bloody people. I can’t bear that man. I mean, he is so awful, he really is.”
On another occasion in 1998, a year after they lost their mother, William and Harry jetted to the Canadian resort of Whistler with Charles. Before Diana’s death, she liked taking the boys to Lech in Austria. One year, she famously confronted photographers who had been sent to cover their visit to Lech, saying, “As a parent, could I ask you to respect my children’s space?”
Nowadays, the Prince and Princess of Wales love taking their three children, George, Charlotte and Louis on ski holidays, and royal reporter Richard Palmer says, “I’m sure William and Kate will be planning another winter ski break with the kids, because it’s something they love doing together.
“The Prince and Princess are very competitive when it comes to sport, and George, Charlotte and Louis will probably be very accomplished skiers too, as they’ve had the opportunity to go several times.” In fact, it was first revealed that William and Kate were dating when they were spotted skiiing together in Klosters in 2004.
They were holidaying with a group of friends. Two years later, they were photographed kissing in the same resort, with the images taking the world by storm and showing it was serious between them.
The pair have returned to Klosters several times since, and they have often skied with members of the Middleton family, too. In 2012, William whisked Kate to Verbier, also in the Swiss Alps, to make up for missing Valentine’s Day after six weeks away with the RAF.
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