King Charles Has Big, Romantic Plans For Balmoral Castle

We've all dreamed of being royalty. Attending parties in Victorian palaces and strolling through extensive gardens sounds like a dream. Balmoral Castle, the holiday resort of the royal family in Scotland and one of King Charles' U.K. homes, is one such fairytale place. And now, our dream of strolling through its gardens and hosting parties as a member of the royal family is very close to being fulfilled if we take into account the big, romantic plans that Charles has for Balmoral Castle.

According to The Times, the royal family has submitted a license application to Aberdeenshire Council that requests changes to the layout, increased capacity — from 250 to 277 people inside and from 40 to 144 outside — and the use of the outdoor patio. Also, in the same report, The Times mentioned that the application says that the location "can be used for weddings, dinners, meetings, and associated events ... These events may include live performances and dances where alcohol can be sold until 12:30 a.m."

However, the noise regulations of the Aberdeenshire Council clash with Charles' intentions, as they ensure that loud music cannot disturb the rest of the surrounding neighbors. It will be the Council that approves or denies the request. However, the BBC reported that the king's Balmoral estate has assured that there are no plans to host commercial weddings at the Castle, so the dream of getting married in a royal residence seems to have to wait.

Balmoral Castle has been linked to the royal family since Prince Albert bought the estate as a gift for his wife, Queen Victoria, in 1852, so the residence is not part of the Crown Estate. Since then, it has been passed down through the generations of the royal family.

The late Queen Elizabeth II had a special fondness for Balmoral due to the many memories shared at the estate with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, so it is no surprise that the property was an integral part of King Charles' childhood growing up. However, once his mother died, Charles must have thought about what he planned to do with the estate.

Although Balmoral had been opened to the public before Queen Elizabeth died, tourists were barely allowed to wander around the grounds and the Grand Ballroom or book guest cottages, so it was a very restrictive opening. Charles eventually decided to go one step further and change the plans for the estate radically, which is not too surprising considering that he broke a century-long tradition of summer holiday plans in Balmoral. It's unclear what exactly the king has planned for the castle, but the world might be able to see a bit more of it in the future.