You Can Book Uber’s Horse-Drawn Carriage Ahead of Charles III’s Coronation
One driver—and a team of four white horses—will be available in the days leading up to the ceremony
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Planning a trip to London for Charles III’s coronation this weekend? Travelers who venture across the pond for the eagerly anticipated event can catch a ride in a horse-drawn carriage, courtesy of Uber.
The ride-share company unveiled its new Coronation Carriage last week. London residents and visitors will be able to book the ride from May 3-5, ahead of the coronation at Westminster Abbey on May 6.
A team of four regal white horses and a dapper, red coat-wearing driver will whisk passengers around Dulwich Park, the 76-acre green space located in southwest London. Appropriately, the main car-free thoroughfare that runs through the park is called Carriage Drive.
With a plush red interior, gold wheels, statuettes and other ornate decorations, the carriage is meant to resemble the one Charles will ride in. It has been “lovingly created using designs from previous royal carriages, giving riders the chance to ride in the kind of luxury only normally afforded to the highest ranks of the U.K. monarchy,” writes Uber in the announcement.
While the Uber carriage is sure to be popular, the company says it will offer a limited number of rides each day. Interested customers should head to the park and look for the special carriage concierge to book a trip.
“Just don’t get too excited and forget any of your personal belongings in this special Uber when you return to civilian life,” writes Travel + Leisure’s Michael Cappetta.
Uber created the carriage ride to highlight its growing catalog of transportation options, which now includes boats, trains, passenger vans, buses and rental cars, in addition to standard passenger vehicles.
As part of the promotion, the company will also donate money to Spana, a charity that aims to improve the lives and conditions of working animals worldwide.
Charles automatically became the king of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth when his mother, Elizabeth II, died on September 8. Taking place eight months later, his coronation is a celebratory ceremony that represents the “symbolic coming together of the monarchy, church and state for a religious ritual during which the monarch makes vows to both God and country,” as Lauren Said-Moorhouse and Max Foster write for CNN.
The festivities kick off with the “King’s Procession” from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey, during which Charles and his wife, Camilla, the queen consort, will travel in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach carriage, reports Time magazine’s Armani Syed.
The coronation ceremony itself will last roughly an hour. Despite the short duration, it will be packed with symbolism, tradition and pageantry. During that time, Charles will sit in the Coronation Chair and hold the Sovereign’s Scepter and the Sovereign’s Orb. The so-called Stone of Scone, or Stone of Destiny, will also be present.
After promising to govern “with law and justice,” he’ll be anointed with holy oil and crowned with St. Edward’s Crown, which will later be swapped for the Imperial State Crown. Charles and Camilla will then slowly make their way back to Buckingham Palace in the Gold State Coach, flanked by expected crowds of adoring fans.
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