The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Plus Kids, Land In A Thrilled Canada For First Royal Family Trip

In Canada, the round-the-clock preparations were complete for the arrival Saturday in a Royal Canadian Air Force jet of Prince William, Kate Middleton and their two children, at Victoria, British Columbia's capital, and according to the thousands of global media covering the event the nation's excitement is palpable.

The family landed after 4 pm local time and were greeted by a group of dignitaries including Canadian prime minster Justin Trudeau, and his wife, Sophie.

Blue was the theme for this first appearance. Prince William in a blue suit, Kate wearing a blue Jenny Packham dress with a matching hat by Locke and Co, adorned with the maple leaf  brooch, loaned by the Queen, that she also had donned for her first visit to the country.

But most eyes were on the young prince George and princess Charlotte who are so rarely seen together in public. The toddler princess, in her mother’s arms, wore a pale blue dress for this first official foreign appearance while her brother, dressed on his now customary blue sweater, shorts and knee high socks, although looking tired from the long trip, waved at the media – that had been waiting on the tarmac for several hours.

The Government House, which will serve as the royal family's official base during their weeklong visit, has gone through exceptional renovations. The lawns where many activities are expected to occur have been transformed, all the door knobs are literally shining, every detail of kids' meals accounted for, a specially-designed nursery installed for Prince George and Princess Charlotte to play in while their parents are away from them—and stocked with all manner of treats.

Starting with the welcoming ceremony that took place in the newly-beautified greens of British Columbia's capitol building—featuring the laying of a wreath and a speech by Prince William - the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will participate in more than 30 different events and ceremonies, many of them outdoors.

The Saturday schedule also includes a meeting with senior Canadian leaders at Government House.

Their trip around Canada's east coast will highlight the natural wonders of the province and the Yukon territory, and include bear-, dolphin- and whale-watching, mountain biking, fishing, sightseeing and meeting First Nations communities. The Great Bear Rainforest, an Indian reserve and magical, secluded islands grace the itinerary.

They also will visit organizations and projects related to some of the social causes they favor at home and abroad such as children's mental health issues, the refugee fallout from the Syrian conflict and drug and alcohol addiction among mothers.

A statement from Kensington Palace explains that “the tour will see them take in everything from the bustling global city of Vancouver - population 2.5 million - to the remote and beautiful Bella Bella, home to less than 2,000 people.”

''Along the way they will meet as many Canadians as possible, and will help celebrate Canada's First Nations communities, its arts and culture, pristine and beautiful environment, and its compassionate and innovative charitable sector.''

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, his wife, Sophie Gregoire Trudeau, and their three children, Xavier (8), Ellan Grace (7) and Hadrien (2) will join the Cambridges for a number of events.

The Trudeaus also have reportedly arranged special meal plans for the little royals including a recipe for Prince George’s favorite, spaghetti Bolognese.

"A match made in paparazzi heaven, featuring Prince William, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and their equally telegenic families,'' is the way that the Globe and Mail described it.

The kids’ public appearances, though, will be very limited, according to the program. Apart from the arrival and departure ceremonies, there's a children’s party in Victoria with kids from military families.

One of the main questions making the global media rounds is how will Kate and William, who so zealously guard their kids from media and photographers in Britain, succeed in protecting them from the outburst of curiosity, love and excitement awaiting them in Canada?

The other big question, of course, is the family wardrobe - particularly Kate’s, since her clothing choices, during foreign trips, have triggered fashion furor and immediately affected the industry, not only in Britain but in the countries they visited.

After all, it’s not just as the wife of the future king that she was recently voted Britain's most influential female style icon.

It's well known that whatever she wears sells out in seconds. The famous 'Kate effect' has affected High Street sales more than any other celebrity and that Canadians are counting on contagion. “The fashion industry hopes that the Duchess of Cambridge will bring the ‘Kate effect’ to the country,” reads a recent headline in The Star.

“The public’s fascination with the Duchess extends not only from the fairytale story of marrying into the Royal Family, but also her appearance of being approachable and authentic,” the paper wrote.

As part of her impeccable sartorial diplomacy, Kate's expected to wear confections by Canadian designers as she did during their first trip to the country in 2011, when she and Prince William were newlyweds.

During that trip, she wore two dresses by U.K.-based, Montreal designer Erdem Moralioglu, and a navy blazer by Toronto’s Smythe which she has worn many times since.

For this trip, which is different than the others because they're traveling with children and will be participating in so many and varied outdoors activities, she's expected to keep a chic but comfortable style. The same can be expected for the rest of the family.

On her first official trip, sixteen-month-old Princess Charlotte already has been dubbed a “superstar” by the Canadian media and is expected to steal the spotlight as did her brother, now 3, when as a nine-month old he travelled to Australia and New Zealand with his parents in 2014.

Since her birth, Charlotte has only been exposed to the public on two occasions: the day of her christening and in June, during the Trooping of the color official ceremony.

The royal family is traveling with a 12-member entourage that includes three private secretaries, a communications team of four, tour secretary, operations manager, personal assistant, a hairdresser and the nanny for the kids.

Tomorrow, Sunday, the royal couple will travel to nearby Vancouver by sea plane where they will participate in a full day of engagements, including a visit to Sheway, a pregnancy outreach program for young mothers struggling with drug and alcohol issues.