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Buckingham Palace to open front gates to public
A new, in-depth tour offers views of the 'finest' items in the royal collection
Buckingham Palace is to allow tourists to enter through its famed front gates for the first time, following the success of the east wing's opening in the summer.
"Paying visitors" will be able to walk into the palace "the same way as guests at garden parties and royal receptions", said The Telegraph.
The palace is typically closed during the winter months, but this year tours will continue from January to May as part of King Charles' initiative to give the public greater access to the monarchy's headquarters throughout the year.
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The working palace is the King's official residence in London, though he and the Queen do not currently stay overnight there. The royal residence is in the midst of a £369 million refurbishment, updating its electric cabling, plumbing and heating system over the course of the next 10 years.
This summer, the historic east wing of Buckingham Palace was opened to the public for the first time since it was built 175 years ago, drawing a record-breaking number of visitors. Continuing on the success, the Royal Collection Trust is now offering a 90-minute guided tour for £90, which will include views of the central balcony and Victoria Memorial and provide an in-depth history of the wing's rooms.
The tours will wind through the 240ft-long principal corridor, through the yellow drawing room and the centre room. "Highlights" of the centre room include a glass chandelier resembling a lotus flower and two Chinese 18th-century imperial silk wall hangings, said the Daily Mail.
The palace's east wing was built between 1847 and 1849 and features "some of the finest ceramics and furniture in the Royal collection", which were brought to the palace from George IV's "opulent, oriental-style" palace in Brighton.
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The trust also announced new £1 tickets to Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse for 2025, a move to further improve the inclusivity of the royal residences. The reduced entrance fee will be available between January and April to people receiving Universal Credit.
