About 45 Royal Family members gathered at King Charles’s annual Christmas event at Sandringham in Norfolk this year, but staying on the estate may not be as glamorous as people might think.
The estate reportedly sleeps around 16 to 18 people – but this means that some guests have to make do with shared rooms and “fish finger” style beds, claims a royal expert.
A solution when the Royal Family run out of beds is to turn the staff quarters into guest rooms, according to the expert.
Rebecca English told MailOnline: “In previous years I’ve been told that they’ve actually had to kick staff out of their quarters. And Edward and Sophie were put in some of the staff quarters because they had nowhere else to stay.”
The expert also explained that the royals are able to fit so many beds into one room by using old-fashioned “fish finger beds” that come with “creaky bedsprings.”
The royal expert added: “It sounds more glamorous than it is.”
It is not known how many bedrooms Sandringham house boasts as it is a private residence. Set amongst 20,000 acres of carefully maintained land, Sandringham was bought by Queen Victoria in 1862.
The £48.5million property has had various additions and renovations and original parts of the house date back to Elizabethan times – the late 16th century.
It was also one of the first houses in England to feature gaslights, flushing toilets and working showers in the 1870s, and today retains its Edwardian interiors.
The estate also houses Amner Hall which is the country home of the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children.
Earlier this month, Prince William revealed that he was “no way” ready for Christmas this year, but expressed his excitement for long dog walks with his family over the festive period. He said he was also looking forward to spending time with his family members “all in one room”.
On December 25, King Charles led the Royal Family to church for their traditional Christmas Day service with Queen Camilla by his side.
Also in the walking party was Princess Anne, Prince Edward and Sophie, Mike and Zara Tindall and their children, as well as a pregnant Princess Beatrice, her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and his son ‘Wolfie’.
William, Kate and their three children’s appearance on Christmas comes after they skipped the royals’ annual pre-Christmas lunch at Buckingham Palace last week.
The festive party is held for all members of the Royal Family and usually takes place around a week before Christmas, with around 70 of the King’s relatives invited to the event.
