Royal visit to U.S. ends with America 250 celebration in Front Royal, Virginia

The final leg of King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s royal visit to the United States will take place in Northern Virginia, in a small town with a very fitting name.

Front Royal, Virginia, is where NoVA starts to turn into the Shenandoah Valley. The town is home to about 16,000 people. And on Thursday, its main street will become part of the king and queen’s parade route.

It’s the type of moment that transforms a quiet place into the center of attention.

“Everybody tends to liken us to a Hallmark movie, small towns in Hallmark movies,” said Lauren Wood, general manager of Front Royal Wines. “So I’m hoping that people will come in and see that.”

“It’s a wonderful opportunity for people to come here and realize we have an incredible amount to offer,” said Melissa Ichiuji, another Front Royal business owner.

Thursday is also when Front Royal is hosting a community block party to commemorate America 250, the 250th year since the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

That block party will include the royal couple’s parade through Front Royal’s town square.

“I do think it’s kind of odd that this is the 250th anniversary of separating ourselves from England and we’re celebrating with the king and queen,” Wood said.

Clearly, there are no hard feelings hundreds of years later.

“We’re very excited!” Wood said.

The town is telling spectators to plan ahead, and to be prepared to walk: There will be road closures and heightened security measures in place to protect the royal couple.

Even schools will be closed for a day that is stopping the town in its tracks.

It’s more limelight than the town is used to, but everyone News4 spoke with is all for the moment.

“I think the town has been waiting for something like this to happen for years,” said Doug Ichiuji, a business owner. “I think the last big event was Bing Crosby coming here to do a movie opening down in the local theater down here,” back in 1950.

But, in a way, the residents of the town are no strangers to their audience: Their term for a Front Royal resident is Front Royalty.

After the king stops in Front Royal, he and the queen will continue on to Shenadoah National Park, where he will focus on conservation and environmentalism.