The tour began on October 27 and took in the Bahamas and Guyana before Antigua and Barbuda. It is described as Charles's first Caribbean tour as monarch. At a youth rally in Nassau on the first night, with protesters outside, he referred to "the great suffering and injustices of the past." He later said it was "only right" to acknowledge historic wrongs. The Caribbean Reparations Commission wants a formal apology over the royal family's historic role in the trade, and Jamaica and the Bahamas are leading the demands. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has offered Commonwealth nations the chance to discuss a British apology.

The politics run deeper than the apology. Leaders in Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Antigua and Barbuda have said they intend to become republics, though a University of the West Indies survey found support for that varies widely and may not yet be strong enough to force constitutional change. Historian Anthony Seldon notes that royal tours were created to give the Commonwealth legitimacy as the empire declined, using informality and visibility to build loyalty, and says the King is adapting that approach. The last royal Caribbean tour, for the 2022 platinum jubilee, drew criticism after images of William and Kate in Jamaica were called "tone deaf."

Queen Camilla joined the King in Antigua and Barbuda on Sunday for CHOGM and the major events around it. Hello! royal editor Emily Nash said Camilla "doesn't love long-haul travel" and finds the heat draining. The couple attended a church service themed on unity and partnership, where Prime Minister Gaston Browne gave readings and Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Botchway delivered an Act of Affirmation. Charles wore a tie given to him by the widow of Barry Humphries and a pocket square cut from the madras fabric used for Independence Day.

Rain then arrived at the parade in St. John's marking 45 years of independence. Charles, 77, was standing on a cricket pitch with the country's leaders and military chiefs when it began. Camilla, 79, was taken under a canopy and given an umbrella, and the King gestured and asked "where's the umbrella" until the rain eased, then carried on with the parade. Accounts differ on his mood. One report had him visibly frustrated, another had him perplexed, and a third had the couple laughing it off. He joked that watercress was about to grow on his trousers, and one account has him telling Browne that grass would grow out of his suit. Camilla laughed about her damp dress and hair.

The day was due to close with the Commonwealth Cricket Celebration, a T5 exhibition match. Caribbean leaders, captained by Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali, played heads of government from the wider Commonwealth, led by Kenya's President William Ruto. Charles was to toss the coin.