These days, it’s rare to see all four members of the Spanish royal family in the same room. Thursday evening hosted a special reunion, with King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía photographed in Oviedo, smiling and happy to be together as they celebrated the start of the 2026 Princess of Asturias Awards.
© Getty ImagesThose family nights have become harder to come by. Since 2021, when Leonor left Spain to study in Wales, the four have seldom appeared together in full, so every engagement that brings them side by side carries a little extra excitement.
Their most recent joint appearance took them to Madrid’s Royal Palace and the Plaza de Cánovas del Castillo, where the family’s easy rapport was on full display. In Oviedo, that same warmth was there, picking up right where it left off.
The city made sure they felt it. Crowds turned out in the streets to greet the royals with applause and cheers, a tradition the people of Oviedo keep up year after year. Locals know the family’s annual visit is a major boost for the city, and they never miss the chance to show their affection.
© Getty ImagesThis year's Princess of Asturias Awards
The occasion was the 34th Princess of Asturias Awards Concert, the traditional curtain-raiser for the awards week, organized by the Princess of Asturias Foundation in collaboration with the Fundación Cajastur.
This year’s program paid tribute to Felix Mendelssohn and was performed by the Principality of Asturias Symphony Orchestra and the Foundation Choir, under the direction of conductor Nuno Coelho. Sopranos Sylvia Schwartz and Pilar Alva-Martín and tenor Santiago Ballerini lent their voices to the evening.
© Formula 1 via Getty ImagesThe centerpiece was Mendelssohn’s Hymn of Praise, a work composed to mark the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s printing press. As its soaring chords filled the auditorium, it made a fitting soundtrack for a family reunion set in Queen Letizia’s Asturian roots.
For Leonor, the night held its own significance. This year marks her eighth Princess of Asturias Awards. She made her debut in 2019, days before turning 14, and the change since then is impossible to miss. Year after year, she has stepped into the responsibilities that come with the throne with growing confidence. That poise was evident again in Oviedo.
With the music behind them, the King and Queen and their daughters wrapped up an unforgettable start to their days in the city. The stage is now set for the awards ceremony itself.
© Getty Images
