Buckingham Palace confirmed that King Charles and Queen Camilla will head to Oceania in October, but will now visit Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Samoa, Hello reported.

The King and Queen will visit Australia at the invitation of the Australian government, with royal events scheduled in the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales.

A Palace spokesperson said of the visit, which will be Prince Charles' first overseas visit since announcing his cancer diagnosis in February, “Their Majesties‘ doctors have advised us that further extension of Their Majesties’ trip should be avoided at this time in order to give priority to His Majesty the King's recovery. As with Their Majesties' recent engagements, their programs in both countries will be modified as necessary for health reasons, in accordance with the advice of their doctors."

According to a report in Hello, this will be the first visit to Australia by a sitting monarch since Queen Elizabeth's last visit in 2011. Charles and Camilla last visited Australia in 2018, when they represented His late Majesty at the Commonwealth Games.

Including travel time, the King and Queen will be away for 10 days - originally planned to be nearly three weeks, The Daily Beast reported.

“There was much debate in the palace about how much Prince Charles should do. 'There are many who think it would be unwise for him to tour abroad for an extended period of time when he has cancer.' But in the end it is up to the head of state to decide, and the problem is that he knows that if he doesn't travel to Australia now as king, it will probably never happen."

The trip is very important to the relationship between the royal family and Australia because Australia is “a very important country for him,” the friend said. Because “Australia is a very important country for him. But it is clear that he will not go unless he is on the mend and the doctors think he is OK. That's a very encouraging sign.”

When asked if cutting the New Zealand leg of the royal tour was a sign that the king was still struggling with his health, the friend replied, “I think that's a coy interpretation. The King has publicly stated that he has cancer. It is obvious that he is really well. It's very sad about New Zealand, but I think it's realistic for him to try to work while he's being treated for cancer.