The tiny Caribbean island of Montserrat is preparing to welcome Their Royal Highnesses The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall for the first time as part of their Caribbean tour in March 2008.

The Royal visit will coincide with the start of Montserrat's St. Patrick's Day celebrations. Montserrat is the only country in the world outside Ireland where St Patrick's Day (17th March) is designated a national holiday and celebrated with a week of special events.

St Patrick's Week of Activities will run from 8th - 17th March 2008, attracting many overseas visitors. The celebrations are held in recognition of Montserrat's strong Irish heritage. In the seventeenth century, the island was a safe haven for persecuted Irish Catholics, who quickly became the majority in the British-run territory. The festival also commemorates a group of Afro-Montserratian freedom fighters who attempted to liberate themselves from slavery in Montserrat on 17th March 1768.

During the week, a slave village will be erected in Festival Villlage that will include individually decorated slave huts and a slave feast where indigenous foods such as goat water, stewed yard fowl and bush tea can be sampled. Local bars will inject a taste of Ireland by serving Guinness and displaying green shamrock decorations, but celebrations will also take on true Caribbean style as masquerade dancers parade in colourful costumes. Other activities during the week include an exhibition of local arts and crafts; a "Freedom Jam" party; a specially organised hike and fun run; musical performances; and a kite festival.

Known as 'The Emerald Isle of the Caribbean', the Irish influence in Montserrat is still very much in evidence today. Visitors receive a shamrock stamp in their passport upon arrival and the national flag bears a crest of the legendary Irish figure of Erin with a harp. The national dish, goat water, is supposedly based on a traditional Irish stew recipe, while Montserrat's green and orange national dress reflects the colours of the Irish flag.

Their Royal Highnesses will visit the Caribbean between 4th and 14th March 2008. The visit will aim to reinforce ties with the Commonwealth countries of Trinidad and Tobago, St Lucia and Jamaica and the UK Overseas Territory of Montserrat. It will advance key British Government priorities in the promotion of sustainable development, environmental protection and youth opportunity. .