King Charles and his family usually spend the festive season at Sandringham, but big plans have been announced for his official residences of Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh
Jennifer Newton Royal Features Writer
20:16, 07 Oct 2025
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The festive plans for King Charles’ Royal residences have been unveiled, including a historic first.
Traditionally, the monarch and his family spend Christmas at Sandringham, but this year there are grand plans for Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
For the first time ever, the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace will transform into a Christmas pop-up shop from 14 November, offering products from the Royal Collection Trust.
At Windsor Castle, visitors can marvel at a 20-foot-high Nordmann fir tree, grown in Windsor Great Park, adorned with thousands of lights and ornaments in St George’s Hall.
A 16-foot tree will also grace the Crimson Drawing Room, which is only open during the winter months. Special miniature decorations, repurposed from vintage necklaces, will be added to Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, which Queen Camilla showed to First Lady Melania Trump during the US state visit, reports the Mirror.
Up north at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, two 12-foot high Christmas trees will decorate the Throne Room, while a 15-foot-high Nordmann fir tree will take centre stage in the Great Gallery.
Additional decorations will feature garlands, berries and winter foliage adorning the Great Stair, whilst the Royal Dining Room, originally used by Queen Victoria, will be embellished with silver service, sugared fruits and seasonal greenery.
Whilst the royals typically spend Christmas at Sandringham, the King’s precise plans for the festive period remain unconfirmed.
Last year saw him welcome his largest Royal gathering in years, including the Prince and Princess of Wales alongside their three children George, Charlotte and Louis.
Looking ahead to this year, Prince Andrew and his former wife Fergie are reportedly set to miss the festivities once more.
This follows Charles signalling the couple would not be welcome at the traditional Christmas gathering.
Insiders close to Charles revealed he wished to maintain distance from them following recent reports that the duchess had continued contact with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein after publicly condemning him in 2011.
Andrew was absent from last Christmas after his connections to an alleged Chinese spy, Yang Tengbo, came to light.
The source informed the Sunday Times: “You can’t sack someone from being your brother. But this year, if the duke and duchess were both to be as honourable [as last year], it would be very much for the best.”
The Prince of Wales is understood to back this decision, reportedly feeling frustrated and worried about the Yorks’ conduct posing a long-term reputational threat to the Royal family. The King has also expressed his preference for an “out of sight, out of mind” approach to any future family events that the Yorks attend.