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Thousands of people lined the seafront at Weymouth as the Queen and Prince Philip arrived at Weymouth beach.

The visit marks what is being described as Dorset's progress in developing innovation and sustainability in its communities.

The Queen at the WPNSA

Arriving on the Royal Sovereign train at 10am, Her Majesty and His Royal Highness went straight to the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy in Portland, the home of the Olympic 2012 sailing events.

There, they met hopefuls in training for sailing competitions, as well as local people learning to sail through the venue's Chesil Trust 'sail for a fiver' scheme, designed to attract young people to sailing minimum cost.

The Queen and Prince Philip then sailed to Weymouth Harbour on a specially chartered yacht.

A Windsor sandcastle

From Weymouth Harbour, the royal couple's car took them along the esplanade for a walk around the beach.

The Windsor Castle sandcastle

Here they took a 'walkabout' on the seafront, where traditional seaside activities were on display along with a sandcastle shaped like Windsor Castle.

Lead sand sculptor, Mark Anderson, said it took him and his team around 300 hours over five days to build the sandcastle - and that both the Queen and Prince Philip were very complimentary.

He explained: "Someone suggested that we might build Sandringham first of all, but I think Windsor Castle is the most popular royal residence, and the Queen congratulated me on our hard work.

"Prince Philip even pointed out which rooms were which."

Cheering for the royal couple

Cheers for the royals

The crowds at Weymouth beach cheered the royal couple as they met local people and school children, and as they left the beach it was clear they had left their mark.

"Whenever you see the Queen you're blown over my her lovely-ness," said one spectator.

"It makes us feel better to be truthful, with all that's been going on lately. It's a bit of an honour to see the Queen. And it was lovely for all the school children to meet her."

After Weymouth they went onto the Tank Museum at Bovington, and Goldy's Farm Shop and Energy Centre at Lytchett Matravers.

Making arrangements

Jeremy Pope, Vice-Chairman of the WPNSA, was involved in the Dorset planning of the visit.

Before the visit, he said: "The focus of the visit is very much about people rather than 'suits' if I can use that expression.

"The Palace is very anxious that the visit should be the Queen out meeting her subjects, as it were."

So how does a Royal visit come about?

Jeremy Pope

He says: "It's a long process but it started with the Chairman of the Trustees of the Tank Museum approaching the palace last year.

"He asked about the possibility of programming a visit into the Queen's diary for her to come and open the [refurbished and extended] museum.

"From there, the Lord Lieutenant's office [the Queen's personal office] and the palace start mapping out a draft programme, where it was decided to arrange four venues to visit.

"From that point on I became involved and I volunteered to try and co-ordinate it from the Dorset end.

"It's been months in the planning. But I think it's absolutely fantastic, it's a marvellous thing for the county."

King George III

This is the first visit to Weymouth Beach by a reigning monarch for over 300 years, but Weymouth's associations with English monarchs stretches back centuries.

Famously, the Queen's ancestor King George III was a regular visitor to Weymouth where he believed sea bathing in the salt water was beneficial to his health.

He even had a holiday home in the town, staying at what is now Gloucester Lodge on the seafront.

Regular visits by the King from 1789 put the town on the map, and sparked the beginnings of what is still Weymouth's biggest industry - tourism.