The Princess of Wales is set to travel overseas for her first international royal visit since her cancer diagnosis.
Kate, who announced she was in remission early last year, will travel to Italy next week on a solo working trip with The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood.
This marks a significant milestone for the future queen and is her first extended official foreign trip in almost three and a half years.
Aides to the princess disclosed that she was "very much looking forward" to resuming international travel and noted that the visit was a crucial moment in expanding the Centre for Early Childhood’s work on a global stage.
The last official overseas visit Kate undertook was in December 2022, when she traveled to Boston, USA, with the Prince of Wales for his Earthshot Prize award ceremony.
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She also took two short trips to Marseille, France, for the Rugby World Cup in autumn 2023, and attended the Crown Prince of Jordan’s wedding in Amman in June 2023. However, these were not considered official foreign tours by her royal household.
The princess will visit the city of Reggio Emilia in northern Italy for two days from May 13 to May 14, focusing on early childhood development.
During her stay in Europe, Kate will learn more about the Reggio Emilia Approach, an educational philosophy that emphasizes children’s potential for self-development.
She will also highlight the importance of nurturing environments and loving relationships for a child’s development.
A Kensington Palace spokesperson stated: "The princess is very much looking forward to visiting Italy next week and witnessing firsthand how the Reggio Emilia approach creates environments where nature and loving human relationships come together to support children’s development.
"As the Centre for Early Childhood continues to build its work internationally, this visit is an opportunity to connect the Shaping Us Framework with leading global approaches and to highlight a shared understanding that it is in these early years, through the natural world and the warmth of human connection, that we begin to lay the foundations for a resilient and healthy future."
The centre was established by Kate in 2021 to increase awareness of the importance of early childhood experiences in shaping long-term societal outcomes and to commission research.
The announcement coincides with a visit by Kate to the University of East London on Wednesday for the launch of the centre’s new resource for working with babies, young children, and their families.
The 109-page "Foundations for Life" social and emotional development guide is aimed at both practitioners and volunteers.
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Palace aides stated that both the publication and the trip signal a milestone moment for the princess and the centre’s work in early childhood, both in the UK and internationally.
In her foreword, Kate writes: "While our society often focuses on academic or physical milestones, research consistently shows that it is our earliest relationships, experiences, and environments that lay the foundations for our future health and happiness.
"The quality of our connections—with ourselves, with others, and with the world around us—shapes how safe we feel, how we relate, and how we process experiences throughout our lives."
She adds: "By age five, our brains have already grown to 90% of their adult size…making early childhood a critical window for developing the social and emotional skills that become the bedrock of lifelong wellbeing."
In the upcoming months, the centre will collaborate with early years leaders to integrate this understanding into entry-level training and ongoing professional development.
Its publication also aligns with new research from the centre, which reveals that many parents struggle to access clear, consistent, and personalized guidance, with "mixed messages" causing confusion when they most need reassurance.
The "First Five Years: A Parent Perspective" report states: "Many expressed a desire for more information to help them understand what their child is experiencing and how best to support them, while also navigating inconsistent advice and mixed messages.
"Parents are deeply committed and motivated, yet this lack of clarity can leave them feeling unsure and without the reassurance they need."
The Prince of Wales is expected to travel to the US for the FIFA World Cup in July, coinciding with celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of American independence.
It is not yet known whether the princess will join him, but her return to foreign tours raises hopes that a transatlantic trip might be on the cards for the Waleses, following the King’s high-profile state visit to the US to see Donald Trump last week.
Kate was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer early in 2024, for which she underwent chemotherapy. She announced she was in remission 16 months ago, in January 2025.
She has gradually resumed her royal duties, including supporting the King during state visits to the UK, and last month, she joined the royal family for the 100th anniversary of the late Queen Elizabeth II’s birth and made a solo appearance at the Cenotaph on Anzac Day.
The Waleses’ last major, lengthy tour together was their controversial trip to the Caribbean in March 2022 to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee, followed by three days in Boston in December 2022.
William had expressed hope in November 2024 that his wife would begin joining him again on overseas tours, stating: "I think hopefully Catherine will be doing a bit more next year, so we’ll have some more trips maybe lined up."
Money & Markets Editor
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