Destination Diana – as one of her favourite hotels reopens, we look back at some of the princess’s top holiday spots – in good times and bad
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One of Diana’s favourite holiday spots, the Byblos hotel in the Andalusian countryside, has just reopened.
Following a £35 million restoration, it has been renamed La Zambra – and, according to those who have been there, now boasts a peacefulness very different from its hedonistic past.
Diana was known for her colourful trips abroad, particularly following the disintegration of her marriage to Prince Charles.
Here, in happy times and sad, we recall some of her favourite destinations.
La Zambra in Andalusia, formerly known as the Byblos Hotel – which was reportedly one of the late Princess Diana’s favourite holiday spots
Gibraltar
After their 1981 ‘wedding of the century’ at St Paul’s Cathedral, Charles and Diana boarded the Royal Yacht Britannia and set off for Gibraltar and the Mediterranean.
They spent 14 days cruising, taking in the Greek islands on the way.
But even then, there were tensions according to the Daily Mail’s Richard Kay:
‘We discovered that Diana found being cooped up on the royal yacht rather frustrating especially because Prince Charles wanted to spend his day reading books about philosophy and she wants to have a bit more fun.’
Princess Diana and Prince Charles in Gibraltar before leaving on the Royal Yacht Britannia for their honeymoon cruise in July 1981
Photos show the royal pair as they arrived in Gibraltar looking happy and loved-up
The newlyweds embarked on a 14-day cruise around the Mediterranean on the royal yacht Britannia
Their three month honeymoon, however, was believed to be riddled with complications
Balmoral
The 50,000-acre Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire was purchased by and Prince Albert in 1852 and has been a favourite of the Royal Family ever since.
Diana and Charles ended their honeymoon there.
While Diana was reportedly not a great fan of the castle, the couple went there every year, taking William and Harry to joint the rest of the Royal Family on its annual retreat.
Diana and Charles also stayed at Balmoral in Aberdeenshire, Scotland during their honeymoon
The 50,000-acre Balmoral estate in Aberdeenshire was purchased by the royals in 1852
Tresco, Isles of Scilly
Nicknamed the Cornish Caribbean, the Isles of Scilly, 28 miles off the Cornish coastline, boast some of Britain’s most beautiful beaches.
The island of Tresco is the most famous of the islands, where the blue of the sea is always in sight and children can be seen crabbing on its idyllic beaches.
Part of the Duchy of Cornwall, the island was a favourite of Diana and her two sons, William and Harry.
In 1989 and the family were snapped heading for a bike ride.
Diana had many happy holiday memories with her husband and children in Tresco, in the Isles of Scilly (pictured, with Prince Charles, Prince William and Prince Harry in 1989)
Necker Island
Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group, is the owner of Necker Island in the Caribbean.
One of the first famous faces spotted on Necker was the late Princess of Wales in 1990 with Princes William and Harry, her mother Frances Shand Kydd, and her two older sisters and their children.
Photos showed the Princess and her sons playing in the sand with buckets and spades.
Princess Diana visited Necker Island with her family for a well-deserved break in 1990
The Princess happily lay in the sand as her sons and nephews covered her with sand using bright red shovels
Diana used the getaway to spend some quality time with her two sons away from the public eye
Richard Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group, is the owner of the private Necker Island
St Tropez
Weeks before her death in Paris, Princess Diana holidayed in Saint-Tropez with her sons William and Harry as guests of Mohamed Al Fayed on his yacht in the summer of 1997.
‘Everything about that trip to St. Tropez was heaven,’ Prince Harry said in his memoir, Spare.
Following the trip in July, Princess Diana and Dodi Al Fayed returned to the yacht in August 1997 before travelling to Paris, where they both died in a car crash.
In July 1997, Diana was seen on holiday in St. Tropez in the South of France with Dodi Al-Fayed and also her sons, William and Harry, who joined the Princess during part of the trip
Diana appeared to be having the time of her life in the South of France as she dived from the docks into the sea
Princess Diana waved to her bodyguard, Trevor Reese, ashore in Saint-Tropez
Diana had some great swimwear moments on this vacation, including this neon set
Bahamas
In 1983, Charles and Diana arrived for a holiday in the Bahamas. The young royal looked radiant as she basked in the sun in a trendy pink bikini alongside her husband.
Photos showed the pair exploring the beach and also lounging on a sailing boat on the crystal-blue sea in the harbour.
Diana and Charles visited the sunny Bahamas for their second honeymoon back in 1983
Photos showed the royal pair lounging alongside each other on a sailing boat in the harbour
Cannes, South of France
Historically there have been many links between France and the British Royal family, and the beautiful country remains a popular holiday destination for royals.
In 1996, Princess Diana and various other members of the royal family arrived at Cannes Airport ready for some time off in the South of France.
In 1996, Princess Diana and various other members of the royal family arrived in Cannes
Majorca
In 1986, the Prince and Princess of Wales and their sons joined King Juan Carlos, Queen Sofia, and their son, the then Prince of Asturias (now King Felipe) on their annual Holiday at the Marivent Palace, the Spanish Royal Family’s residence in Palma de Mallorca.
This became the first of their many holidays with the Spanish Royal Family through the 1980s and 1990s.
The family made the most of what Mallorca had to offer: accompanying Sofía and Juan Carlos aboard their yacht, ‘Fortuna’, visiting nearby islands, and sunbathing at the beach.
The family have returned many times.
In 1986, Prince and Princess of Wales and their sons joined King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia on their annual Holiday at the Marivent Palace
Princess Diana looked radiant in yellow as she sat down for a short break with her two boys
The family made the most of what Mallorca had to offer, accompanying Sofía and Juan Carlos on their royal yacht
The Prince and Princess of Wales look every bit relaxed as they relaxed in the sun
Their initial trip became the first of their many holidays with the Spanish Royal Family
Nevis
The Caribbean island of Nevis is said to have been one of Diana’s favourite destinations.
The silver-sand beaches might lack the grandeur of those on other Caribbean islands, but they are full of local charm and more peaceful.
In 1993, William and Harry headed to the tropical island with their mother, her friends, and their children for New Year after spending Christmas with their father.
The group would pile into pick-up trucks and head to one of the beaches with a picnic lunch and go body-boarding.
The family reportedly stayed at Montpelier Plantation & Beach, which had access to a mosaic pool and private beach and a range of activities like scuba diving, biking trails and hiking.
Nevis is said to have been one of Diana’s favourite islands. She is pictured here in 1993
Barbuda
The Princess enjoyed her vacation to Barbuda – which is one of the two major islands that make up the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda.
During a family trip in 1996, William and Harry tried their luck on water skis as their mother watched on from the shore.
They stayed at the exclusive ‘K Club’ where Princess Diana previously spent New Year’s Eve.
Formerly known as Access Beach and Coco Point Beach, a part of the Island, covered in white sand, has since been renamed Princess Diana Beach after the royal who loved holidaying in the area.
The Princess enjoyed her vacation to Barbuda in the West Indies in 1996
They stayed at the exclusive ‘K Club’ where Princess Diana previously spent New Year’s Eve
St Barts
The French speaking island of St Barts is frequented by a celebrity elite.
During her own visits to the island in 1995, Diana spent time on the hilltop estate of the late photographer Patrick Demarchelier, which offered her protection from the press and onlookers.
During her visits to the island in 1995, Diana spent much of the week on the hilltop estate of photographer Patrick Demarchelier
St Barts has become famous as a private and high-end vacation spot after making its mark as a go-to destination for the Princess
Florida
Diana whisked William and Harry to Florida’s Walt Disney World in 1993.
They stayed at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, renting the entire fifth floor, before heading out to Magic Kingdom where a private guidehelped them navigate the theme park’s best rides and secretly whisk them through underground tunnels.
Sitting on the front row of a log flume on Splash Mountain, the young boys looked thrilled as they awaited the big drop into the splash zone – their mother, on the other hand, was sitting in the back row and made sure to duck to keep her hair dry.
The family also tried the Country Bear Jamboree, the Jungle Cruise and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
Diana took William and Harry away to Walt Disney World in Florida, where the family of three enjoyed themselves on the best rides the park had to offer
Princess Diana with friends Kate Menzies and Catherine Soames enjoying the Indiana stunt show at the MGM Studios in Florida
Lech, Austria
Skiing is one of the most popular activities enjoyed by the royals, so it’s no surprise that Diana would often take the boys on childhood trips to one of Austria’s top ski resorts.
Located in the Bludenz district of Austria’s westernmost state Vorarlberg, Lech am Arlberg is a traditional mountain village that’s known for its wealthy clientele.
Sadly, the last ski trip to Lech that William and Harry ever had with both of their parents was cut short when Diana’s father suddenly died of a heart attack in 1992.
While Diana and Charles rushed home, the boys continued their vacation with the rest of the party, including Diana’s friends, their nanny and protection officers.
However, even after her separation from Charles, the newly-single Diana took her boys back to Lech in 1993, and as always they stayed in the Arlberg Hotel.
Lech am Arlberg is an Austrian resort known for its wealthy clientele, including the Princess of Wales
Even after her separation from Charles, Diana took her boys back to Lech for skiing in 1993
The Greek Islands
In 1992, Diana and Charles sailed the Britannia around the Greek islands as the couple spent one of their final trips together before their separation that December.
William and Harry accompanied their parents on the trip around the sunny Isles.
In 1992, Diana and Charles sailed the Britannia along the Greek islands
The Amalfi Coast
To mark their tenth wedding anniversary in 1991, Charles and Diana enjoyed a private boat trip around Italy, which the press dubbed their ‘second honeymoon’.
In August, Charles and Diana boarded a yacht and began to set sail along the Italian coast, visiting areas such as Naples and Capri along the way.
But while the trip was assumed to be a romantic getaway, the royal couple were joined by their two children, Charles’s cousin Norton Knatchbull, his wife Penelope and their children along with several other guests.
Diana was pictured boarding the Alexander Yacht in Naples wearing a white top layered underneath a bright pink floral skirt suit while Charles wore a cream suit.
Diana and Charles pictured ready to board the yacht where they would spend their ‘second honeymoon’ sailing around Italy in 1991
Charles and Diana taking a swim while cruising off Sardinia
Diana was pictured boarding the Alexander Yacht in Naples wearing a white top layered underneath a bright pink floral skirt suit, while Charles wore a cream suit
Klosters
While Charles’ favourite ski resort was Klosters in Switzerland, Diana refused to go back after their friend and former equerry to the Queen Major Hugh Lindsay was killed in an avalanche there in 1988.
The Princess of Wales had been back at the chalet with Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York when the accident occurred.
Afterwards, Diana and the boys would instead go to Lech, although Charles has since returned to Klosters, most recently in 2022.
Sarah, Duchess of York, with Princess Diana during a trip to Klosters in 1988
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