For many, long-haul travelling is a bit of a chore, but for His Majesty King Charles III it appears to be the ultimate indulgence. Royal fans have pointed out that the monarch looked "chilled out" during a flight to the Caribbean, when the royal family shared an image inside his VIP plane on social media.
The 77-year-old was wearing a shirt and tie, with no jacket, and was seen reading a stack of papers, while sitting in a leather business class seat. The spacious booth offered plenty of armrests, a table and a control panel for things like lighting and call bells. In the background, another seat could be seen clearly with a tartan cushion for premium comfort.
Alongside the image of the King, the caption read: "Looking forward to joining the people of The Bahamas …
"When travelling, The King likes to spend time reading briefing papers, continuing with his Government red box duties, reading and writing correspondence, and discussing projects with his support team."
Royal fans adored seeing this behind-the-scenes look at how Charles travels, taking to the comments section to share their thoughts. "I love how chilled out His Majesty looks here," wrote one, and: "Love these sort of 'behind the scenes' updates, definitely a refreshed approach to social media!" added another. A third penned: "You must be enjoying the flight, Your Majesty."
© POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesWhen His Majesty travels long-haul he uses the Airbus A330 registered as ZZ336, which is the official UK Government VIP transport aircraft, widely known as Vespina.
The Telegraph reports that the cost to run the plane is £2,000 an hour, which would make the 9-hour flight in the region of £18,000.
The interior of the plane is fitted with 58 luxury business-class style lie-flat seats as well as 100 standard premium economy-style seats, which will be used for accompanying staff and media.
King Charles' difficult trip
© Getty ImagesCharles will be joined by his wife Queen Camilla later this week. Together, they are embarking on a Caribbean tour which will see them travel to three countries in nine days: the Bahamas, Guyana and finally Antigua and Barbuda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
While His Majesty has been greeted warmly on the first leg of the tour, there have been calls for Charles to apologise for the UK's role in the slave trade, which Charles has previously called an "appalling atrocity" that has left an "indelible stain" on history.
In his first speech after touching down, the monarch did address the issue, but fell short of an apology. He said: "Some of what is best in Bahamian culture today - the most joyful, the most hopeful, the most bright - was born out of darkness. It is only right that we should acknowledge the great suffering of the past," he said.
