Comments made by Their Royal Highnesses's Deputy Private Secretary, Jamie Bowden at the Australia and New Zealand tour briefing

Published 13 October 2015

The tour dates for this much anticipated tour to New Zealand and Australia will be 4th and 15th November. During the tour Their Royal Highnesses will be visiting a total of 12 cities and towns, 7 regions in New Zealand and three states and one territory in Australia. They will be arriving in and starting the tour in Wellington and whilst in New Zealand will be going to Dunedin, Nelson, Ngaruawahia, New Plymouth and Auckland. The Prince of Wales will also visit the town of Westport on the South Island. In Australia Their Royal Highnesses will be going to Adelaide, Tanunda in South Australia, Canberra, Sydney, Albany and Perth.

In New Zealand, the highlights of the tour will be Their Royal Highnesses arriving in Dunedin town, from the airport, by train at Dunedin station which is a very fine, historic building. When they go to Nelson Their Royal Highnesses will sample some of the very good local food and wine and in Turangawaewae they will go to a Marae. Turangawaewae is the home of the Kingitanga which is the Maori King Movement. While they're there Their Royal Highnesses will see an armada of waka, which are canoes, on the river which runs through Turangawaewae.

In Australia, Their Royal Highnesses will be marking the centenary of Gallipoli and will visit the National Anzac Centre in Albany, which is a very fine museum. The location is very significant because it sits on a hill above the sound from which the first convoy of Anzac troops sailed during the First World War. Their Royal Highnesses will visit the town of Tanunda in South Australia in the Barossa Valley, where they will get a flavour of rural South Australia. Of course 14th November is His Royal Highness's birthday which he will celebrate in Perth at a barbeque beside the famous Cottesloe beach.

Many of the engagements reflect the themes of the tour which are community, culture and conservation and The Duchess will also have a particular focus on literacy, on food and wine and on culture. Their Royal Highnesses are meeting people in both urban and rural areas in both countries and they will be seeing how different communities support each other. For example, in Auckland His Royal Highness will be visiting an organisation called Nga Rangatahi Toa, which means strong youth, which is an organisation that provides creative art mentoring for young people. The mentoring is done by established actors, musicians and others to help the young people get back into education and training.

Her Royal Highness will see an extraordinary example of community cohesion when she visits an organisation called Oz Harvest in Sydney. This is a charity that collects surplus food and redistributes it to charities that support vulnerable people. Also on the theme of culture, in New Zealand Her Royal Highness will attend a literary reception at Otago University, which is particularly appropriate as Dunedin is a UNESCO City of Literature. In Australia, His Royal Highness will visit the National Museum of Australia.

By happy coincidence it will be Conservation Week in New Zealand whilst Their Royal Highnesses are there and they will visit the Orokonui Eco-Sanctuary, which is a sanctuary for native New Zealand species. Also on the conservation theme, in Perth His Royal Highness will visit the Western Australian Seed Technology Centre to see what they're doing to preserve Western Australia's biodiversity.

The programme also reflects Their Royal Highnesses's very strong relationship with the military in both New Zealand and Australia. In Wellington, they will lay a wreath at the National War Memorial and His Royal Highness, when he travels to Westport on the South Island, will take part in a military exercise. Their Royal Highnesses will be in Canberra on the 11th November, Remembrance Day, and they will attend the National Remembrance Ceremony at the Australian War Memorial. Her Royal Highness is Colonel-in-Chief of The Royal Australian Corps of Military Police and she will visit their barracks in Sydney on the occasion of their 100th anniversary.

Finally, this is The Prince of Wales's 9th visit to New Zealand and his 15th to Australia. It is The Duchess's second visit to both countries. They last went in 2012 as part of The Queen's Diamond Jubilee tour.