Princess Charlotte of Cambridge throws herself down on the tarmac in Germany. Photo / Getty Images
Princess Charlotte of Cambridge throws herself down on the tarmac in Germany. Photo / Getty Images
By Unity Blott for MailOnline and Tom Kelly for The Daily Mail
This week's gruelling royal tour has seen the young royals being virtually dragged onto planes by their parents the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as the family were ferried between Germany and Poland.
But while Princess Charlotte erupted into a mini-tantrum, Prince George needed little encouragement when given the chance to see the inside of a helicopter at Hamburg airport.
Princess Charlotte has a royal mini-tantrum before boarding. Photo / Getty Images
The third in line to the throne, who turns four tomorrow, couldn't hide his excitement as he took a peek at the interior of two aircrafts before waving goodbye to the German city and heading home.
One of the helicopters George explored was the H145 - also known at the E145 - the same model as the one his father flies with the East Anglian Air Ambulance service.
Adorable Prince George looked ecstatic as the Cambridges bid farewell to Hamburg at the end of their five-day tour of Germany and Poland - but his little sister Charlotte was less happy, after taking a tumble on the tarmac.
Prince George of Cambridge was delighted with the helicopter tour. Photo / Getty Images
Earlier, the Duchess of Cambridge tried her hand at conducting a prestigious symphony orchestra when she and Prince William visited Hamburg's new concert hall.
On the last day of their royal tour of Germany, Kate, who comes from a musical family and played flute throughout her school days, took a conductor's baton and directed the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra for a few brief seconds as they played the first four notes of Beethoven's fifth symphony - 'da, da, da, daaa'.
She and William had joined 250 schoolchildren from all over the city taking part in a session designed to introduce them to musical instruments at the Elbphilharmonie, the city's new landmark venue.
They sat in an auditorium listening to a performance of the symphony especially adapted for young people and then went up on stage to learn more about how to play the instruments.
Kate, 35, leant forward and pointed the baton straight at the orchestra after watching children being coached how to do it and get the best out of the musicians. Earlier, she and William went around the stage accompanying six children trying out different instruments, including a violin, flute, timpani, and trombone.
Sadly, William, who told reggae star and former Aswad frontman Brinsley Forde "I'm a bit good on the bass guitar" when presenting him with an MBE two years ago, avoided having a go.
But Kate showed she was willing to try just about anything. Compere Juri Tetzslaff asked her if she played any instruments and she told him flute.
"How long did you play the flute?" he asked.
"Throughout my school years until the age of 18," the Duchess replied. William, 35, did at least join in with his wife and the children in shaking their raised fists in unison in time to another part of the symphony.
The royal couple were greeted by several thousand people who had turned out to see them as they arrived at the iconic new building in Hamburg's dockside quarter on Friday.
Opened in January this year, the 'Elphi' was built with the aim of creating a new city landmark. It is one of the biggest concert halls in the world and renowned for its advanced acoustics.
On a balcony, they gazed out over the River Elbe and its docklands as artistic director Christoph Lieben-Seutter told them about the concert hall and the city.
They went for an impromptu walkabout to meet hundreds fans inside the venue and then, as planned, met some of the estimated 3,000 people gathered outside.
Kate told one well-wisher, Linda Schroeder, 32: "It's a fantastic building."
Asked if she had enjoyed the tour of Poland and Germany, the Duchess replied: "I've really enjoyed the trip."
William told one group of young fans that Prince George, who will be four tomorrow, was gearing up for his birthday celebrations.
"George has got a big tummy. He'll probably end up eating all his cake by himself," William said.
The royal couple also enjoyed a tour of a traditional market where they were able to make some sugary treats for their children.
Asked how they had done, Melanie said: "Not too bad. It's always hard when you get it for the first time. You have to be quick.
Prince William and Kate make sweets as they tour a traditional German market. Photo / Getty Images
The royal couple walked around the market square in the centre of the university town of Heidelberg, where a special market had been set up to mark their visit and celebrate the close ties between the town and Cambridge in the UK.
William and Kate also tried their hand at making a tasty treat popular in Germany - pretzels. They were given a lesson by Heidelberg baker Andreas Gobes, who showed them how to roll out the pastry into long sausage shapes and then flick and cross them over in one movement to create the snack's classic shape.
Kate managed to get it right first time but William struggled to get the hang of the flick and crossover.
"Can you do that again?" he asked Mr Gobes,but after a further demonstration, the future King still seemed unsure.
"Just like that," he said, sarcastically. But after two or three more tries, he managed it.
Mr Gobes, part of a guild whose members put on the pastry display, said: "Catherine was a little bit more talented than William but they both did a great job.
The Duke and Duchess try their hand at making pretzels. Photo / Getty Images
"This type of pretzel is a speciality for the region so we wanted to show them that. In this region it has a special shape - thin arms and a thick body - with salt and it's a red brown colour."
Located on the riverside and overlooked by the ruins of its famous castle, the central market square boasts a traditional market serving local food and drink.
On their gastronomical tour, the couple tasted Heidelberg herbal lemonade, tried some local fruit, and ordered a hot dog to try over lunch in the town hall.
