Queen Elizabeth II will be in Australian to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth in late October.

Her 10-day trip, the first in almost six years, will include visits to Brisbane and Melbourne. She will be accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip.

The monarch will arrive on Oct. 19 and then travel to Perth the next day. The day trips to Brisbane will be on Oct. 24 and to Melbourne on Oct. 26. During their trip, the Queen and Prince Philip will visit hospitals and charities.

It will be the 85-year-old monarch's 16th visit to Australia and her first in Queensland since 2002, which would surely be welcomed by residents, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh said because the royal couple will come while the Australian state is still recovering from natural disasters which hit it in summer.

"I'm sure there are many people who've had a tough 2011 and having a visit from the reigning monarch will mean a lot to a lot of Queenslanders," Ms Bligh said in a statement.

"I know Prince William's visit really gave people a shot in the arm after the terrible disasters that we had and I'm sure that people will feel the same when they see Queen Elizabeth here in late October," she added.

Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard likewise expressed delight on the forthcoming royal visit.

"Visits by the Queen are etched into the collective memory of the Australian people.... Many Australians can recall her majesty's previous visits as landmarks in their own lives," Ms Gillard told The Sydney Morning Herald.

The royal couple last came to Australia in 2006 to open the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.