The Princess of Wales will travel to Italy next week on a “fact finding” mission about early childhood learning in what will be her first official overseas trip since undergoing cancer treatment.

Kate’s last overseas royal trip was with Prince William to Boston in the US in  2022 – two years before she revealed she was undergoing chemotherapy for an unspecified form of cancer.

Kensington Palace said this week that Kate would undertake a two-day solo visit to Reggio Emilia, in northern Italy, which is recognised internationally for its approach to childhood development.

“The princess is very much ⁠looking forward to visiting Italy next week and seeing first-hand how the Reggio Emilia approach creates environments where nature and loving human relationships come together to support children’s development,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson said.

Early childhood development is the central theme of Kate’s public work. In 2021 she launched the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which seeks to increase awareness of how social challenges such as addiction, violence and homelessness “so often have their roots in the earliest years of life”.

The centre is this week publishing a new guide, Foundations for Life, for people working with children and families.

“As the Centre for Early Childhood continues to build its work internationally, this visit is an opportunity to connect the Shaping Us Framework with leading global approaches, and to highlight a shared understanding that it is in these early years, through the natural world and the warmth of human connection, that we begin to lay the foundations for a resilient and healthy future,” the palace statement said.

Although the princess has made several short private trips in recent years, the two-day official visit – from May 13-14 – is seen as making another stage in her full return to royal duties, according to the BBC.

The 44-year-old reduced her official workload after her illness, but revealed last ⁠year that she was now in remission.

Celebrating 15 years of marriage ❤️ pic.twitter.com/egvsuIh6xF

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) April 29, 2026

The announcement of the Italy trip comes after a week of celebration for the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children, Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 11, and Prince Louis, eight.

One the weekend they released a new photo and video of Princess Charlotte for her 11th birthday, both shot during the family’s Easter break in Cornwall. The video shows her arranging shells, playing cricket at the beach and patting the family’s dogs  Orla and Otto, the newest member of the family.

On April 29, William and Kate marked their 15th wedding anniversary with a carefree family photo and dropped into IntoUniversity, a charity helping young people to reach their potential.

–with Reuters