The Kensington Palace has recently released six pictures of Prince William and Duchess Kate Middleton enjoying a secret skiing holiday with kids, two-year-old Prince George and ten-month-old Princess Charlotte. The ski break, which took place last week in French Alps, marks their first trip as a family of four.
The vacation photos of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge with their children were released on Monday through the palace's Twitter account. "This was their first holiday as a family of four and the first time either of the children has played in the snow," the palace said in an accompanying statement.
The pictures, which include snaps of the royal couple laughing and throwing fistfuls of snow at each other, were taken by John Stillwell, the royal photographer for Britain's Press Association. Stillwell is the only photographer invited to take a small number of photos in the brief trip at the Alpine village of Courchevel.
"It was very special and fun short holiday for the family, and they are grateful that John Stillwell was able to capture the moment so well. The Duke and Duchess hope people enjoy the photos," a palace spokesperson said in a statement carried by the London Evening Standard, as reported by USA Today.
According to the Daily Mail, contrary to the traditional royal ski holidays wherein a group of photographers was invited to document the royal getaway, the Cambridges have decided leave the country without notifying the media. Only six carefully selected photographs were released on Monday after the family had returned from the tightly-guarded secret vacation.
The royal couple have been complaining in the past over the media invading their privacy. In the recent years, they have made efforts to keep their children out of the public eye by controlling information and image access concerning their family.
The four-day holiday trip of the royal family came after Prince William was scrutinized for not fulfilling his duties as an air ambulance pilot and as a senior member of the royal family. He has been accused of not meeting his required number of helicopter shifts and for having only three public engagements this year.
