Beautiful Retro Shots of the Royal Family Holiday-ing in the Sun

Misc

Jul 9, 2018 4:22 pm·

By Mary Grace Garis

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You can't take a vacation from being part of the monarchy, but by God, you can try. In fact, even though we envision the royal family being bound to Buckingham Palace beneath perpetual grey skies, they manage to get plenty of sun on their own time. And as you would expect from the likes of Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth, they usually looked good doing it.

So how do they manage to visit exotic lands so much if they're supposed to, you know, looking over Britain? Well, part of the time it's just an extension of the job. See, even though part of being a royal involves being bound by suffocating protocol rules, the trade-off is you get to spread your wings and travel…a lot. In fact, about 70% of the job seems to involve going on "tours" of different countries. Which, ok, sounds like a work trip to us, but it would be grand to be greeted by thousands of delighted fans every time we stumbled off a plane completely jetlagged. And trust us, they manage to fit in the expected luxurious getaways on private boats, too.

Below, some vintage pictures of the Royal Family taking a royal breather while on holiday.

1 of 13

Princess Diana gazing upon the pyramids on a tour of Egypt.

After accepting an invite from First Lady Suzanne Mubarak, Diana made sure to see the "breathtaking" structures during her five-day stay. And of course, even when she made coordinated her outfit with the desert sands and limestone columns, she managed to stand out.

2 of 13

Princess Margaret and Tony Armstrong-Jones embarking on their honeymoon.

Following a champagne reception, Margaret and her new husband boarded the Royal Yacht Brittania, and in fact were the first royal couple to do so. Glam as it sounds, the boat has proven to be bad luck for newlyweds, and all the couples who used it following their wedding ended in divorce.

3 of 13

Prince Charles precariously sipping on coconut milk in India.

In one shot, Charles manages to be the least-relaxing person to drink from a coconut in recorded history.

4 of 13

Diana watching Harry and William play by the river.

The family was vacationing at Granny's summer home at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, where she resides from July to October.

5 of 13

Princess Diana and Prince Charles on their voyage to Thailand.

They made the trip in 1988 and upon their arrival, the duo was received by a "75-man honor guard under a blazing tropical sun." Oh, and they had just wrapped up a 10-day stay in Australia, because to be royal is to constantly jet set.

6 of 13

Princess Diana, Prince William, and Prince Harry bracing themselves at Niagra Falls.

As if the ponchos weren't a dead giveaway, the trio are enjoyed a 25 minute boatride on the aptly named Maid of the Mist during a 1991 visit.

7 of 13

Princess diana with spanish royal family

Diana and William hanging out with the Spanish royal family.

You know, just visiting their old friends who happen to also run an entire country. As one does.

8 of 13

Princess elizabeth prince phillip malta honeymoon

Newlyweds then-Princess Elizabeth and Prince Phillip on their honeymoon in Malta.

It was more than just a honeymoon, in fact. Phillip was stationed there while on active navy duty, so the pair ended up living in Villa Guardamangia in Valletta for two full years.

9 of 13

Princess Diana, Prince Charles, and Prince William yachting with plenty of their royal pals.

If you want to have a role call, this star-studded bunch included Princess Elena of Spain, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, former King Constantine of Greece, Princess Theodora of Greece, Queen Sophia of Spain, and King Juan Carlos of Spain. The regal clan was enjoying a holiday in the Balearic Islands at the time.

10 of 13

Queen Elizabeth, Sarah Fergusen, and Prince Andrew on a royal cruise.

It was clearly more peaceful times between Fergie and her now-ex-husband. Also, it looks like baby Beatrice is opting out of the royal wave.

11 of 13

The Queen showcasing some serious style on safari.

It's so strange seeing her out of a neon suit and wearing khakis, no less, but that shirt definitely makes up for it.

12 of 13

Queen Elizabeth inspecting the produce while out in the market in the Virgin Isles.

This colorful shot may seem a bit perplexing, but take note that Liz absolutely loves mangoes. Among her favorite, in fact, are Pakistani Bilawal House mangoes.

13 of 13

Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip looking perplexed while in the Soloman Islands.

We know what they're thinking, and yes, we would feel paranoid about a downpour if we lived in England, too.

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