The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have carried Prince George off the plane at the start of their three-week tour of New Zealand and Australia.
It is the first official tour for eight-month-old Prince George, who was awake as the royals disembarked in Wellington to be met by waiting dignitaries.
The royal party was greeted by strong winds and rain, the AFP news agency reported.
The tour ends in Canberra on 25 April.One of the welcoming party was New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key, who tweeted: “The Royals have landed in Wellington. Let’s make them very welcome, New Zealand.”
The couple were then taken to Government House, the official residence of the governor general, where they received a traditional Maori welcome.
They were greeted with a nose-press, called a hongi, and met Maori warriors.
The duchess’s fashion choices are expected to be closely scrutinised during the tour and she arrived in New Zealand wearing a red coat with gold buttons – from British designer Catherine Walker, who was a firm favourite of Diana, Princess of Wales.
She teamed her outfit with a red pillbox hat designed by Gina Foster and a silver fern-shaped brooch, a symbol of New Zealand.
She had been lent the diamond and platinum piece by the Queen, who had herself received it as a gift during a visit to Auckland 60 years ago.
Prince George was seen to be wearing a cream cardigan and matching shoes.
He will be taken to a few specific engagements throughout the trip, and the programme stops on most days in the late afternoon to allow his parents to get back to him.
The royals flew on a scheduled Qantas flight from Heathrow Airport, via Dubai, to Sydney where they transferred to a military plane.
Their engagements in New Zealand will see them take in a yacht race and visit a Maori tribe, a rugby stadium and a vineyard.
In Australia, their destinations include Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Queensland, Adelaide and Canberra.
Helping oversee the care of Prince George will be his newly-appointed nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo who stayed in the background as the royals received their official welcome to New Zealand. – BBC News
