Pedro Sánchez will not accompany Felipe VI and Letizia in Ceuta and Melilla. The minister of the day will join the monarchs during their visits on 13 and 14 October 2026.
The Government and Casa Real have agreed on the royal visit to Ceuta and Melilla. Ceuta is set for 13 October 2026. Melilla follows on 14 October.
Pedro Sánchez will not travel with Felipe VI and Letizia. A minister from the Government will accompany the monarchs on both days. The visit remains in place.
This will be Felipe VI’s first official visit to both Ceuta and Melilla since he became king in 2014.
The issue is the level of government representation beside the King and Queen. It is not a change to the royal programme.
According to sources from the Executive cited by EFE, the minister of the day will be present during the route in both cities. The Government says this follows normal Spanish protocol. The president does not perform that role. The minister assigned to the day does.
The dates had been awaiting final confirmation. That is now settled. Ceuta is scheduled for 13 October and Melilla for 14 October 2026. No other change to the itinerary has been reported.
The detailed agenda has not yet been published by the Casa Real and the Government. The visit is nevertheless being framed as a significant symbolic event, coming against the background of the migration crisis and the mass entry of people into Ceuta from Morocco two and a half months earlier.
The institutional format is now clear. The monarchs will make the trip, and the Government will send the designated minister instead of Sánchez. Readers following the royal schedule can compare this clarification with the earlier royal itinerary.
For Ceuta and Melilla, the immediate fact is the King and Queen's arrival on consecutive days. Moncloa and Spanish media including RTVE report the same explanation from the Government: the minister of the day is the proper representative for the royal route.
The statement does not report a dispute between the institutions. It does not report a cancellation either. Officials describe the arrangement as a protocol decision. Sánchez will not accompany the monarchs, but the visits remain scheduled for 13 and 14 October 2026.
The clearest reading is simple. The royal programme will go ahead with ministerial representation and without the prime minister.
