When is King Charles Visiting the US in 2026? Buckingham Palace Confirms Monarch's First US State Visit

King Charles and Queen Camilla will make a state visit to the United States in late April 2026, Buckingham Palace has confirmed, in what will be the monarch's first US state visit since his accession to the throne and his 20th official trip to the country overall.

After the Washington leg, King Charles is due to travel alone to Bermuda, with palace officials declining to publish exact dates or the length of the tour, citing security concerns.

The visit has been in the works for some time as a centrepiece of commemorations marking the 250th anniversary of American Independence, intended to underscore the long and occasionally fraught relationship between Britain and its most powerful ally. That plan now brushes up against a much more charged backdrop: the ongoing war in Iran, being prosecuted by the US and Israel, and the sharp transatlantic arguments it has triggered.

Into this mix has stepped US President Donald Trump, who has not been shy about venting his displeasure at Sir Keir Starmer's response to the military operation. Trump has derided the British prime minister as 'no Winston Churchill,' dismissed the UK's aircraft carriers as 'toys' and bluntly told London 'don't bother' sending Royal Navy assistance, adding, 'we don't need it.'

Yet Trump's attitude towards the monarchy has always been markedly warmer than his approach to Downing Street. He is known to hold the Royal Family in something close to reverence, and advisers on both sides of the Atlantic appear to be banking on that sentiment surviving the current rancour.

The palace has framed the coming tour as a celebration of historic ties and the modern bilateral relationship, rather than as a foray into live foreign policy debates.

King Charles Visit to US Set Against Awkward Political Backdrop

Buckingham Palace has not released a day‑by‑day programme, but officials privately acknowledge that the usual trappings of a state visit to Washington DC are expected. That would mean a White House welcome with Guards of Honour, a formal state banquet and carefully balanced toasts from the King and the President, each word weighed for diplomatic undercurrents.

One striking invitation already on the table is for King Charles to address both houses of the US Congress. If it goes ahead, it would be the first time in more than three decades that a British monarch has spoken in that chamber. The last to do so was Queen Elizabeth II in 1991, during a 12‑day visit as the guest of President George HW Bush, a trip that symbolised the closing chapter of the Cold War era.

The palace has also been considering a stop in New York, although that has yet to be confirmed. If it is included, it would give King Charles a stage outside the federal capital, traditionally used by British royals to lean into themes such as climate change, finance or cultural ties. Whether current tensions over Iran will narrow the scope of that agenda remains to be seen.

What is confirmed is that this will be King Charles's first US state visit as monarch but hardly his first time on American soil. As Prince of Wales, he travelled to the United States 19 times, including a tour with the then‑Duchess of Cornwall in 2005 shortly after their wedding. Those earlier trips were more personal and thematic; this one is unmistakeably constitutional, with all the constraints that implies.

King Charles in US, Then Alone to Bermuda

The most unusual part of the itinerary may come after the formalities in Washington are over. From the US, King Charles will go on alone to Bermuda, a British Overseas Territory he has not visited since 1970. Palace officials say it will be the first visit to the island by a reigning king, a detail that will not be lost on Bermudian politicians who watch London's approach to the territories with a wary eye.

Queen Camilla will not accompany him on that leg. Instead, she is expected to return directly to the UK, leaving the King to undertake what looks more like a working visit than a ceremonial tour. That decision underlines how tightly calibrated royal travel now is, particularly when it brushes up against sensitive constitutional issues in the overseas territories.

Last week, the US ambassador to the UK, Warren Stephens, used a London business conference to send a pointed public message to ministers flirting with the idea of postponement.

Asked about calls to cancel King Charles's US state visit in protest at Trump's war in Iran, Stephens replied that doing so would be 'a very big mistake.' Pressed again on whether the trip was still on, he stopped short of confirmation, saying only, 'I think he will go and I think it will be a very meaningful trip for him.'

Until specific dates and engagements are nailed down, the schedule remains, in effect, provisional, and should be treated as such. Nothing is confirmed beyond the palace's outline announcement.