Late Queen's private rooms at Scottish palace to open to visitors

The private rooms that Queen Elizabeth II used at her official Scottish residence are to be opened to the public for the first time to mark the centenary of her birth.

Visitors will be able to tour the rooms at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh for a short period from 21 May, with small groups guided through the late Queen's "personal, lived‑in" apartments.

During their stays at the palace, the Queen and her husband Philip would occupy a suite of private rooms, which date from the 17th century, on the palace's east side, which offered views of the gardens and Holyrood Park.

The apartments on the tour include the Queen's Dressing Room, where she prepared for engagements, and the Sitting Room where the Queen - a lifelong racing enthusiast - would watch the sport during her downtime.

Tours will run from 21 May to 10 September, with Royal Collection Trust email subscribers able to book early at a special offer price from Monday 9 March.

Remaining tickets will go on general sale on Thursday 12 March at a cost of £75.

The tours must be booked in addition to the standard admission ticket to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, costing £22 in advance and £26 on the day.

The tour of the private rooms will be led by expert guides who will describe how they were used by successive monarchs from Queen Victoria onwards, including the Queen and Prince Philip, the late Duke of Edinburgh.

Tours will take visitors through spaces such as the Royal Breakfast Room, where the Queen and Prince Philip dined privately while in residence.

The room is decorated with striking Flemish tapestries from about 1650, which were installed in the 1920s at the request of King George V and Queen Mary.

Holyrood Palace hosted many key moments during the late Queen's reign.

In the Dressing Room, visitors will see outfits worn by the Queen at significant events in Edinburgh.

One ensemble includes a purple silk-wool coat, a green dress and a Isle of Skye tartan shawl worn at the opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, inspired by the Scottish landscape and designed by Sandra Murray.

Also on display is a beaded silk evening gown by John Anderson worn at the Commonwealth Heads of Government reception in 1997.

The Queen traditionally stayed at the palace each summer during "Holyrood Week", carrying out engagements celebrating Scottish culture and hosting a Garden Party for about 8,000 guests.

Palace curator Emma Stead said: "Queen Elizabeth II's well-known love for Scotland will be given fresh context through this unique and special access to the private apartments, where visitors will enjoy a new perspective into both the formal and more informal use of Edinburgh's royal palace."

The late Queen, the nation's longest serving monarch, died at Balmoral in Aberdeenshire in September 2022 after reigning for 70 years. The centenary of her birth is on 21 April this year.