This is a list of official overseas visits and Commonwealth tours made by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Prince William, as a child, first traveled with his parents on official visits and tours. Now he is one of the United Kingdom's most important ambassadors; sometimes the Duke travels overseas as a representative of the UK. His wife, Catherine Middleton, began undertaking official trips upon joining the British royal family in 2011, and has since accompanied him on visits and conducted her own overseas engagements on behalf of the UK. The Duke and Duchess also undertake tours of Commonwealth realms, of which William's paternal grandmother is queen, as her representatives or as members of the realm's royal family.