• Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • GMA3: WYNTK
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Contact Us
  • © 2025 ABC News
  • Living

Royals unveil stunning Christmas decorations including epic 20-foot tree

2:08
New book from Queen Elizabeth’s dressmaker shares palace secrets
Alastair Grant/AP
ByKatie Kindelan
December 02, 2019, 6:03 PM

The halls are decked at one of Queen Elizabeth's residences as Britain's royal family gets into the holiday spirit.

Windsor Castle, where Queen Elizabeth spends many of her private weekends, is festively decorated with Christmas trees, wreaths and special gold china.

Related Articles

(MORE: Prince Harry, Meghan to skip Christmas with Prince William, Kate and royal family)

Editor’s Picks

Duchess Kate wears festive red dress for Christmas TV special

  • Dec 02, 2019

Duchess Kate stuns in Alexander McQueen gown

  • Nov 18, 2019

Prince Harry, Meghan to skip Christmas with Prince William, Kate and royal family

  • Nov 13, 2019

The highlight of the decorations are a 15-foot Christmas tree in the castle's Crimson Drawing Room and a 20-foot Nordmann Fir Christmas tree that was grown in Windsor Great Park and is now decorated with "hundreds of iridescent glass and mirrored ornaments," according to the website for the borough of Windsor, where the castle is located.

Staff adjust decorations on a Christmas tree in St George's Hall at Windsor castle during a media preview in Windsor, England, Nov. 29, 2019.
Alastair Grant/AP

The 20-foot tree sits at the end of St. George's Hall, which is where Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, introduced their son Archie to the world last May.

Harry and Meghan wed in 2018 at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle and held the first of their two wedding receptions at St. George's Hall. The couple's home Frogmore Cottage is located in Windsor, not far from Windsor Castle.

Related Articles

(MORE: Duchess Kate is fabulous in fuchsia during a visit to children's hospice)

As with any family, the holiday season kicks off for Britain's royal family when the decorations arrive. Windsor Castle is the first of the family's residences with decorations unveiled to the public.

A staff member adjusts part of the Grand Service bought by Queen Victoria in 1840 during a press preview at Windsor castle, Windsor, England, Nov. 29, 2019.
Alastair Grant/AP

Once the Christmas trees are decorated, the struggle is to keep the decorations on the trees, Queen Elizabeth revealed in a documentary last year.

"The problem is the children love knocking those [baubles] off,” she said at Buckingham Palace in "The Queen's Green Planet" on ITV. “My great-grandchildren do. Even the grandchildren still."

She added with a smile, "The great thing is to make them decorate it -- then they’re a bit more careful."

Staff adjust decorations on a Christmas tree in the Crimson Drawing room at Windsor castle during a media preview in Windsor, England, Nov. 29, 2019.
Alastair Grant/AP

Queen Elizabeth leads her family in a three-day-long celebration at her Sandringham estate that starts with family members gathering on Christmas Eve to exchange gifts, following the German tradition.

On Christmas Day, the family attends morning service at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham and then returns home for a traditional Christmas lunch. After lunch, the family sits down to watch the queen's annual televised Christmas message.

In the evening, the royal family gathers again for a Christmas buffet dinner with 15 to 20 different delicacies prepared by Queen Elizabeth’s chef. The day after Christmas, known as Boxing Day in the U.K., finds the royals partaking in the traditional Boxing Day pheasant shoot on the grounds of Sandringham.

The Garter Tower at Windsor Castle is lit up with festive projections for the holidays, Nov. 17, 2019.
Geoffrey Swaine/Rex/Shutterstock
A tree outside Windsor castle is decorated for Christmas, in Windsor, England, Nov. 17, 2019.
Geoffrey Swaine/Rex/Shutterstock

This year's Christmas celebrations will be held without Harry, Meghan and Archie, who are opting this year to spend the holiday with Meghan's mother Doria Ragland.

Harry's brother Prince William and his wife Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and their three children are expected to join the queen and the rest of the family at Sandringham.

William and Kate got people excited for Christmas already this weekend when they shared details of an upcoming TV special for which they partnered with British baking legend Mary Berry.

"A Berry Royal Christmas" will air on BBC One on Dec. 16 in the U.K. and will feature William and Kate helping Berry in the kitchen as they throw a party for supporters of charities that help people in need during the Christmas season.

Editor’s Picks

Duchess Kate wears festive red dress for Christmas TV special

  • Dec 02, 2019

Duchess Kate stuns in Alexander McQueen gown

  • Nov 18, 2019

Prince Harry, Meghan to skip Christmas with Prince William, Kate and royal family

  • Nov 13, 2019

Up Next in Living—

June's full strawberry moon: See photos and what it means for your zodiac

June 11, 2025

High school athlete somersaults to track and field championship win

June 10, 2025

Michaels buys Joann brand, plans to expand crafting supply to meet demand

June 6, 2025

Approximately 1.7 million air conditioners voluntarily recalled for potential mold exposure

June 6, 2025

Shop GMA Favorites

ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Sponsored Content by Taboola

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • Shop FAQs
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap

© 2025 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Do Not Sell My Info— 
  • Contact Us— 

© 2025 ABC News