The Queen's private residence in Scotland, Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire comes to life during August and September when the Queen gathers her family for a late summer holiday.
The castle is situated on a large estate and employs fifty full-time staff and twice as many part-time workers thus being a major contributor to the local economy.
The estate is partly farmed and is home to the Queen's stock of Highland Cattle. Due to the nature of the landscape, much of the area is woodland offering shelter for red deer that are stalked during the hunting season. Grouse shoots and salmon fishing also provide employment on the estate. The estate also renders indirect employment for the 4,000 people who are engaged in the tourist industry as Balmoral is one of the major attractions of the area.
Following a holiday in the Scottish Highlands, Queen Victoria and her consort, Prince Albert, decided to buy a private home in the area to use during holidays. Drawn by the beauty of the surrounding mountains, Prince Albert purchased an old fifteenth century castle in 1852 but being small and dark, a new castle was erected about 100 yards from the original building and stood ready for the couple to enjoy about five years later.
Royal descendants of Victoria and Albert have made a variety of improvements to both the buildings and the grounds with the latest addition being a water garden designed by The Duke of Edinburgh.
The estate gardens and the Castle Ballroom are open to visitors between April and July with about 85,000 people visiting annually.