Royal postcards from Canada: A coast-to-coast-to-coast tour of royals enjoying Canada’s scenic vistas and cultural traditions

Happy Canada Day! We here in the true north, strong and free love our <strong><a href="/tags/0/british-royals">Royal Family</a></strong>, and they love us right back! <p>The family has carried a deep affection for Canada since the days of <strong><a href="/tags/0/george-vi">King George VI</a></strong>, all the way down to <strong><a href="/tags/0/queen-elizabeth-ii">the Queen</a></strong> and her heirs, Charles and William and their families. <p>From the mountains and harbours of beautiful British Columbia, all the way out to the tip of Newfoundland and way up north to the Northwest Territories, the Yukon and Nunavut, our royals have seen and indulged in the best Canada has to offer. <p><strong>Click through the gallery to see them having a blast from sea to shining sea to shining sea!</strong> <p>Photos: &copy; Getty Images
<h2>BRITISH COLUMBIA</h2> <p><strong><a href="/tags/0/prince-william">Prince William</a></strong>, <strong><a href="/tags/0/prince-charles">Prince Charles</a></strong> and <strong><a href="/tags/0/prince-harry">Prince Harry</a></strong> are avid skiers, and love hitting the slopes. The Prince of Wales and his late first wife, <strong><a href="/tags/0/princess-diana">Princess Diana</a></strong>, regularly took their sons on skiing holidays to Switzerland. <p>The family happens to love Canada, too, and lucky for them, we have plenty of amazing ski hills and mountains here! Charles brought William and Harry to British Columbia’s scenic Whistler Blackcomb resort in 1998 for just such a ski run. <p>Photo: &copy; Tim Graham/Getty Images
Beautiful British Columbia has much more to do than just skiing and winter sports! When warmer weather hits, sailors love to take to the waters of the Pacific, and boaters and kayakers are quite fond of tackling the waves in Vancouver’s False Creek, too! <p>Victoria also has incredible sailing opportunities, and William and <strong><A href="/tags/0/kate-middleton">Duchess Kate</a></strong> took full advantage of them while visiting Canada for their second time together in 2016! <p>Here’s avid sailor Kate holding the ship’s wheel of the <i>Pacific Grace</i> in Victoria Harbour during their visit, while William smiles in support. <p>Photo: &copy; Andrew Chin/Getty Images
<h2>ALBERTA</h2> <p>It’s almost Stampede time again! <p>On their first trip to Canada together in 1951, <strong><a href="/tags/0/prince-philip">Prince Philip</a></strong> and <strong><a href="/tags/0/queen-elizabeth-ii">the Queen</a></strong> (who was still Princess Elizabeth at the time) went on a coast-to-coast tour, and stopped in to Calgary. They were a bit too late for the annual Stampede, since they passed through the city in October. A special Stampede event was held for them at Calgary’s exhibition grounds, and the royal couple had to brave a snowstorm! That’s certainly no easy feat in Alberta, but they were more than good sports about it. Philip looked like he loved getting a cowboy hat and Hudson’s Bay blanket on. <p>Photo: &copy; Fox Photos/Getty Images
Lake Louise has been featured on many a postcard for decades, and Philip and the Queen got the chance to visit and take in its majestic views of the Rocky Mountains when they were in Canada in 1959. <p>Photo: &copy; Library and Archives Canada
Howdy, brother! <p>Prince Charles and <strong><a href="/tags/0/prince-andrew">Prince Andrew</a></strong> looked like they were very into the spirit of the Calgary Stampede when they both visited the city on a Canadian tour in 1977. Not only had they got their Stetsons on, but they both looked dapper in blazers and bolo ties! <p>Photo: &copy; Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
Always fashionable, Diana looked as thrilled as those around her when she came dressed for the part at a Klondike evening barbeque while at Fort Edmonton in July 1983. Her Edwardian fashions made her stand out, even when there were plenty of people dressed for the era among her! <p>Photo: &copy; David Levenson/Getty Images
Kate looked like she was having a total blast while she watched a rodeo demonstration at the Calgary Stampede in July 2011, just a few months after her wedding to Prince William! <p>Photo: &copy; David Rose /Getty Images
<h2>MANITOBA</h2> <p>On their first visit to Canada together in 1951, then-Princess Elizabeth was thrilled to watch this youngster at a performance at the Winnipeg Ballet. They must have been impressed because two years later the ballet was granted a Royal Title and became the Royal Winnipeg Ballet! <p>Photo: &copy; Fox Photos/Getty Images
This bear isn’t named Winnie, but it looks like he and Charles enjoyed each other! The Prince of Wales looked thrilled as he got the opportunity to feed a polar bear named <strong>Hudson</strong> at the Assiniboine Park Zoo in Winnipeg in 2014. <p>Photo: &copy; Chris Jackson/Getty Images
<h2>SASKATCHEWAN</h2> <p>Before they set off from Fort Qu'Appelle in 1978, the Queen and Prince Philip were treated to a send off from some of the Indigenous peoples of Saskatchewan. <p>Photo: &copy; John Downing/Getty Images
<h2>ONTARIO</h2> <p>Niagara Falls is one of the must-see sights for tourists when they come to Canada, so Princess Diana made sure both of her sons went with her to check it out when they were here in 1991! <p>Photo: &copy; David Hartley/Shutterstock
On the same day, Diana took both William and Harry out on the Maid on the Mist, and they got to get up close and personal with the Falls! <p>Photo: &copy; Tim Graham/Getty Images
We stand on guard for thee, Canada, and on Parliament Hill, our guards do the same for the Queen! <p>Her Majesty perfectly coordinated her outfit with this honour guard that met her on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Canada Day in 2010. She looked just like our flag! <p>She even wore her Canadian Maple Leaf royal brooch, for the occasion! The piece of jewelry was a gift from her father, <strong><a href="/tags/0/george-vi">George VI</strong></a> to her mother, <strong><a href="/tags/0/queen-mother">Elizabeth</a></strong>, for their first trip to Canada together in 1939. <p>It has a bit of a storied history, too. In World War II, Elizabeth (who later became known as the Queen Mother) toured British cities with the brooch pinned to her hats, and she wore it frequently until she passed away in 2002, at which point it was passed down to the Queen. <p>Photo: &copy; John Stillwell/Getty Images
Prince Harry looked so pleased at the <strong><a href="/tags/0/invictus-games">Invictus Games</a></strong> in Toronto in 2017. He attended a sledge hockey game with the city’s mayor, <strong>John Tory</strong>, and Prime Minister <strong><a href="/tags/0/justin-trudeau">Justin Trudeau</a></strong>, who looked like they were really in awe of the play! <p>Photo: &copy; Chris Jackson/Getty Images
<h2>NUNAVUT</h2> <p>In 2017, while visiting Nunavut, Charles and Camilla were greeted by people preparing for a community feast in Iqaulit! <p>Photo: &copy; Chris Jackson/Getty Images
<h2>QUÉBEC</h2> <p>William and Kate were treated to a very beautiful, scenic view of the St. Lawrence River as they disembarked the <i>HMCS Montreal</i> while visiting the Vieux Port of Québec City in 2011. They would have been looking right up at the Château Frontenac, with the Plains of Abraham and Citadelle not far away! <p>Photo: &copy; Christinne Muschi/Getty Images
<h2>NOVA SCOTIA</h2> <p>On her 2010 visit to Canada, the Queen got the chance to check out a wigwam at a Miꞌkmaq event in Halifax. <p>Photo: &copy; Chris Jackson/Getty Images
<h2>NEW BRUNSWICK</h2> <p>What a nice way to arrive! Charles and Diana looked like they had a great time getting in to St. Andrew’s-by-the-Sea in 1983. <p>Photo: &copy; John Shelley Collection/Avalon/Getty Images
Prince Charles seems a bit confused by all these maple syrup products he and Camilla tried while in Saint John, New Brunswick in 2012, but Camilla seems absolutely thrilled by what she just tasted! <p>Photo: &copy; Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press
<H2>NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR</h2> <p>The Queen took in a bit of history when she stopped to chat with a member of <i>The Matthew</i> in 1997 in Bonavista. <p>The ship is a replica of the vessel <strong>John Cabot</strong> sailed more than 500 years ago when he arrived in Newfoundland, 500 years after Norse explorers arrived on the island. <p>Photo: &copy; Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press
In 2009, Charles and Camilla got a very scenic view of the rugged beauty of Brigus Harbour, Newfoundland during their trip to the province. <p>Photo: &copy; Chris Jackson/Getty Images
<h2>PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND</h2> <p>On her first trip to Canada with Prince William in 2011, Kate had the incredible opportunity to steer a dragon boat before a race across the Dalway Lake in Charlottetown. Prince William's team edged out the Duchess's by just a few metres. <p>Photo: &copy; John Stillwell/Getty Images
Luckily, the sting of the defeat was lessened when the Duchess, who is an Anne of Green Gables fan, met actress <strong>Tess Benger</strong>, who played the beloved character in a local stage production of the iconic tale by author <strong>Lucy Maud Montgomery</strong>. <p>Photo: &copy; George Pimentel/Getty Images
<h2>NORTHWEST TERRITORIES</h2> <p>Prince Andrew and his then-wife Sarah Ferguson went on a canoe trip in 1977, which began at the Thelon River in the Northwest Territories. The Prince has taken part in <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/prince-andrew-marks-5th-visit-to-n-w-t-1.998335">several canoe trips</a> in the NWT since. <p>Photo: &copy; Tim Graham/Getty Images
<h2>YUKON</h2> <p>While on their second trip to Canada together in 2016, William and Kate got the chance to see the incredible Montana Mountains near Carcross. <p>Photo: &copy; Shutterstock
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