Kate Middleton Isn't Joining Prince William on His Upcoming Trip to Africa—And Here's Why

Prince William will travel to Africa next week, in part, to promote an upcoming wildlife conference in London. Kate Middleton, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, will skip the trip.

Clothing, Fashion, Gesture, Interaction, Summer, Fashion model, Dress, Sleeve, Shorts, Event,
(Image credit: Scott Barbour)
By
published
in News

If you follow the British royal family (which is damn near impossible if you use the internet or buy groceries these days), then you know that the royals are big into charity. They are also big into travel and they're really big into any chance to combine the two.

RELATED STORY

Event, Suit, Ceremony, White-collar worker, Conversation, Formal wear, Wedding,

(Image credit: Sean Gallup)

Prince William Says He and Kate Are Naughty

Next week, Prince William will take a little working holiday to Africa to do double duty. Will's first order of business in Africa is to visit troops for the Irish Guards, but he's also taking time to promote a conference about illegal wildlife trade, something Will has been personally fighting against for years.

Tusk Trust Project

(Image credit: Chris Jackson)

"The Duke of Cambridge will visit Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya from Monday 24th to Sunday 30th September," Kensington Palace tweeted about the trip earlier this week. "The private working trip is being made as @United4Wildlife President and @Tusk_org Patron ahead of the 2018 Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference in London #EndWildlifeCrime."

Before you get your royal-obsessive hopes up, know that there won't be pictures of Prince George and Princess Charlotte petting a giraffe or even of Kate Middleton cheering Will on at his appearance. Will is making this trip solo and there's a pretty good reason for it.

"Typically William has always worked solo in his fight against illegal wildlife trade, which is why we wouldn’t see Kate join him on a trip like this or him joining Kate on her own personal projects, such as promoting the importance of perinatal, maternal and children's mental health," OK!’s royal expert Christina Reeves explained. "William’s visit to Africa is in the same vein as his 2016 solo trip to Vietnam, where his goal was to urge people to stop buying rhino horn and elephant ivory."

The Duke Of Cambridge Visits Vietnam - Day 2

(Image credit: Chris Jackson)

Of course, there's another good reason Kate won't be joining Will on this trip—even if she usually would. The Duchess of Cambridge is still officially on maternity leave until later this fall and she's still staying very scaled back when it comes to her royal engagements. And going to Africa definitely does not qualify as "scaled back."

Kayleigh Roberts
Contributing Editor at Marie Claire

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with over 10 years of professional experience covering entertainment of all genres, from new movie and TV releases to nostalgia, and celebrity news. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.