You’d Be Surprised Which Royal Family Member Spends the Most on Travel
The royal family travels often. The royals are some of the most important people in the world, and with so many engagements on their agendas, it makes sense that they spend plenty of time on the road and in the air.
The family has come under fire for their use of private aircraft through the years. But which family member actually spends the most on travel? You might be surprised.
The family flies private for security and convenience purposes
The royal family is unlike most families. They dedicate their lives to serving the public, and that means they often travel to different events and royal engagements. Sometimes, the royals do fly commercial; they often drive to destinations that are close, too. But they tend to fly private for two big reasons: Security and scheduling.
It is of utmost importance to keep the family safe. And traveling through a busy airport and on a commercial flight undoubtedly poses more security risks than flying private. Plus, since the royals have various engagements to get to at any given time, they sometimes fly private for convenience purposes, such as avoiding traffic or avoiding planning around commercial flight times.
Various family members have come under fire for their flights’ effects on the environment
The royal family has always expressed a deep love for the environment. Harry and Meghan have focused greatly on environmental initiatives, including launching Travalyst to help create sustainable ways to keep up with travel demand. Yet still, Harry and Meghan fly private frequently, as do other royal family members.
The royals have defended their decisions to fly private, citing that it’s often for security and scheduling purposes. But the royals have also noted that they’ve made many strides in environmental protection, which “offset” their use of private aircraft.
Prince Charles spends the most on travel
Out of anyone in the family, Prince Charles spends the most money on travel — and it’s not even close. Between March 2018 and March 2019, Charles spent more than 1.13 million pounds on travel, or nearly $1.5 million, according to BBC (it’s important to note that calculations were based on trips costing 15,000 pounds or more).
Flights are often gifted to royals, too, which do not count toward their travel spending. Last year, Elton John gifted the use of his private jet to Harry and Meghan so they could fly to his French estate as privately as possible. Private jets are used less frequently than helicopters; BBC reported that 207 helicopter trips were made but only 56 by airplane.
The other royal family members spent substantially less than Charles
Charles had the rest of the royal family beat by a longshot when it came to travel spending. The second costliest travelers were Harry and Meghan, who spent about $173,000 on travel in the same timeframe. The queen’s travel totaled to about $153,000, and William and Kate’s costs came to about $152,000.
Sometimes, it’s an all-around better option for the royals to simply fly private. But they do tend to fly commercial when they can — at least some of them.
