Following the grand spectacle of their wedding in Westminster Cathedral, Prince William and Catherine Middleton spent their first night as Mr. and Mrs. in Buckingham Palace. The next morning, a spokesman announced, "The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have chosen not to depart for a honeymoon immediately. Instead, after spending the weekend privately in the United Kingdom, the Duke will return to work as a search and rescue pilot next week." The spokesman further added that the location of their weekend in the United Kingdom [most likely the Queen's Balmoral Estate in Scotland] as well as their future overseas honeymoon destination would be private.
2005: Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles
Where do you honeymoon if you're the next king of England and soon-to-be Duchess of Cornwall? Following the April 9 ceremony and champagne reception, to grandmother's house you go: Camilla Parker Bowles & Prince Charles caught the royal flight to Scotland to stay at the Queen Mother’s Birkhall home. It's a hunting lodge on Balmoral Estate and parts are open to the public.
1999: Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones
Royal newlyweds Prince Edward and Sophie Rhys-Jones flew to the family's Balmoral Castle in Scotland for the first leg of their honeymoon, according to The Times of London.
And where did they cozy up at the 7,500-acre estate, which includes its own Wildlife Reserve, and counts a staff of 160 full- and part-time helpers? The word is that their wedding night was spent at Birkhall Lodge, a weekend home on the Balmoral grounds formerly occupied by the princes' grandmother, the Queen Mum.
While The Times also suggested that the newly dubbed Earl and Countess of Wessex would nest in Scotland for a week before moving to an undisclosed location, The Tabloids clucked of the wonky twosome, "Instead of two weeks in the Caribbean, it's "brunch with the family, then four days at Balmoral, and back to work."
Whether or not the lovebirds fly south, you can still visit part of Balmoral Castle open to the public. And if you don''t receive a personal invitation to stay with the newlyweds, you can always bunk at the nearby Ardoe House in Aberdeen.
1981: Prince Charles and Diana Spenser
The honeymoon of the ill-fated marriage between Prince Charles and Princess Diana was spent cruising the Mediterranean Sea aboard the Royal Yacht Brittania.
