Queen 'to stay at Windsor for Christmas instead of travelling to Sandringham'
20 December 2021, 18:16 | Updated: 20 December 2021, 20:54
The Queen will celebrate Christmas in Windsor instead of travelling to Sandringham, it is understood.
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The monarch is set to remain in Berkshire over the festive period, according to the PA news agency.
A royal source said the decision was a personal one, taken after careful consideration.
Family will visit Windsor over the next week, and will abide by precautions and guidance.
It follows the Queen's decision to cancel a pre-Christmas family lunch, another move that was described as “precautionary” in response to the Omicron variant’s spread.
Read more: The Queen cancels traditional pre-Christmas family lunch as a precaution
It was suggested that going ahead with the get-together would have risked jeopardising festive plans for too many people.
The same gathering last year was also dropped because of Covid.
It would usually be held for the Queen to see relatives who would not travel to Sandringham for Christmas, with relatives from the wider family usually invited.
This year marks the Queen's first Christmas since the Duke of Edinburgh died.
Last year, the two had also spent Christmas at Windsor together and without family as a reduced number of staff looked after them.
