Trump Stay at Windsor Castle Highlights Historic Suites and Royal Tradition

Donald and Melania Trump spent the night at Windsor Castle as part of a state visit to Britain, signaling the close of a day that included formal engagements and a look at one of the royal residence’s most storied guest accommodations. A grand Windsor Castle guest suite described in multiple accounts as offering spectacular views was the focal point of their overnight stay, with observers noting that the setup likely includes a double bedroom and a spare single room. The arrangement is commonly linked to a long-standing tradition intended to minimize disturbance when a husband and wife share sleeping spaces. Buckingham Palace has not publicly disclosed the exact room used, but multiple outlets have indicated it was among the castle’s principal suites along the front-facing alignment that overlooks The Long Walk and the Berkshire countryside.

Emily Maitlis, whose 2019 interview with Prince Andrew helped catalyze his decision to step back from royal duties, told the BBC that sources had informed her the Trumps were placed in “the most spectacular room in Windsor Castle with the most spectacular views.” The Times, citing a palace source, characterized Maitlis’s claim as “more likely a good guess,” noting that many rooms offer expansive views. The Trumps’ party is understood to have stayed in one of the castle’s grand guest suites, with doors opening onto the broad grounds and gardens that define Windsor’s historic exterior.

Royal observers say the suite or suite cluster most likely occupied by the President and First Lady is among those facing the front of the castle, offering sweeping vistas across the Long Walk and the surrounding Berkshire landscape. Alastair Bruce, a royal expert who has often provided commentary on royal accommodations, described Windsor’s guest rooms as comprising a set of suites with one double bedroom and a spare single room. “If the gentleman comes to bed slightly later than his wife, he can always sleep in a separate place without disturbing her,” he explained in discussing the traditional layout that some suites maintain. Bruce added that a dedicated room would exist to accommodate the President’s executive responsibilities during the visit, underscoring how the castle’s accommodations are designed to balance privacy, ceremony and official duties.

Officials and aides tied to President Trump’s schedule were also reported to have traveled with the First Family. In addition to the Trumps, U.S. officials said to be staying in Windsor’s principal rooms included at least one member of the President’s staff and a senior adviser, with the context that the state visit requires a discreet but secure space for planning and communications.

The Lancaster Tower, a prominent feature of Windsor Castle’s silhouette, has long been cited by observers as a possible candidate for where the Trumps stayed. The site’s prominence is heightened by its association with other U.S. presidential visits; Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan stayed in Lancaster Tower during a 1982 state visit, and the couple’s stay has become a reference point for discussions of Windsor’s most prestigious suites. The tower’s history stretches into the mid-20th century and beyond: Queen Elizabeth II herself lived in Lancaster Tower during World War II when she was Princess Elizabeth, sharing the residence with her sister Princess Margaret and their governess, in a period spanning 1940 to 1945.

Inside the tower, what remains publicly visible is largely exterior. Details about the interior rooms are scarce, and there are few public photographs of the suite interiors. Historical accounts from the Reagan era describe a seven-room arrangement in the Lancaster Tower, including two bedrooms, two dressing rooms, two bathrooms, and a main sitting room with portraits of the Royal Family’s ancestors. Contemporary sources recount that the Trump stay would have required a space that could accommodate both private rest and the President’s executive communications needs, but official confirmation of the exact configuration has not been provided by the palace.

The long-standing fascination with Windsor’s interiors is reinforced by Israel’s and Britain’s shared histories of hosting U.S. leaders. In 1982, the Reagan visit to Windsor included a stay in Lancaster Tower and was documented by U.S. outlets at the time as featuring a master bedroom described as yellow, with a ladies’ dressing room painted in blue and white, and a sitting room in creams, browns and pinks. Reports from James Rosebush, then deputy assistant to President Reagan, depicted the Lancaster Tower apartment as impressive yet not ostentatious, and noted the presence of a White House telephone inside. A Washington Post account cited portraits of royal ancestors in the main sitting room, and it described the suite as offering a sweeping view of the Long Walk. These historical notes illustrate how Windsor’s suites have long blended ceremonial grandeur with practical needs for White House guests.

The current state visit scenario also weaves in elements of ongoing royal hospitality. The Trumps were reported to have spent Tuesday night at Winfield House, the U.S. ambassador’s residence in Regent’s Park, London, during a 2019 visit. Winfield House is a 35-room mansion built in 1825 with a substantial private garden, and it remains a symbol of the long-standing relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom. The estate was transferred to the U.S. Government in 1946 by Barbara Hutton, the Woolworths heiress, and has since hosted a range of American officials and visiting dignitaries.

The Windsor stay sits within a broader itinerary that includes future engagements with U.K. leaders. On the morning after their overnight in Windsor, the Trumps were expected to have breakfast before President Trump travels to Chequers, the Prime Minister’s country estate, for a meeting with Sir Keir Starmer. Melania Trump was slated to remain at Windsor for a tour of the Royal Library and Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, guided by Queen Camilla. The planned sequence reflects the mix of formal diplomacy and ceremonial hospitality that characterizes state visits, drawing on royal residences for ceremony and security alike.

The Trump family’s prior state visits to the United Kingdom—most recently in 2019—have included overnight stays at Winfield House and, in some cases, other royal or government properties. The 2019 visit and the longstanding pattern of using premier residences for such engagements underscore Windsor Castle’s continuing role as a symbolic hub for U.S.-British diplomacy, even as details of room-by-room accommodations remain closely held by the palace and are subject to public speculation.

As the visit unfolds, observers will be watching for additional confirmations about which suites were allocated and how the space was used to support both private rest and public duties. The Windsor fixtures—Lancaster Tower and the broader front-facing suites—will likely remain at the center of discussion for those analyzing royal hospitality, how it is exercised for international guests, and how it reflects centuries of tradition alongside contemporary security and protocol mandates.