---
node: spot_london_buckingham_palace
type: spot
slug: buckingham_palace
destination: dest_london
title: "Buckingham Palace"
lead: "Buckingham Palace is the monarch's official London residence, and for ten weeks each summer the State Rooms open to visitors while the court is away. The rest of the year you see the facade and the guard."
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
image_file: spot_london_buckingham_palace.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Buckingham_Palace,_view_from_the_North_City_of_Westminster_1239087_20230821_0051.jpg"
image_author: "Tilman2007"
image_license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

## Overview

The nineteenth-century front everyone photographs is the newest part, refaced in 1913; behind it is a much-altered house that George III bought as a family home. The nineteen State Rooms on the summer route are the working rooms of the monarchy — the Throne Room, the Picture Gallery hung with Rembrandt and Canaletto, the Ballroom where investitures are held. They are furnished as they are used, which is the difference between this and a palace museum.

## Highlights

The summer opening sells out; book the moment dates are announced. Changing of the Guard happens on set mornings and the forecourt fills an hour ahead, so stand at the Victoria Memorial for the better view. If the Royal Standard is flying, the monarch is in.