In February 1848, an arrangement was made for Prince Albert to acquire the remaining part of the lease on Balmoral, along with its furniture and staff, without having seen the property first.

The royal couple arrived for their first visit on 8 September 1848. Victoria found the house "small but pretty", and recorded in her diary that: "All seemed to breathe freedom and peace, and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils". The surrounding hilly landscape reminded them of Thuringia, Albert's homeland