Seventy-six engagements were packed into the notorious 16-day trip to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga in 2018 by Prince Harry and the lightning rod formerly known as Meghan Markle.
The newlyweds had announced the Duchess of Sussex’s pregnancy just hours after landing in Sydney on a rainy October day. Their subsequent rock star reception at each event was a catalyst for their resignation as senior working royals.
“They were really welcoming [of Meghan]. But it really changed after the Australia tour. After our South Pacific tour,” the Duke of Sussex later claimed to Oprah Winfrey of the British royal family’s treatment of his wife.
“It was also the first time that the family got to see how incredible she is at the job. And that brought back memories.”
Winfrey confirmed he was alluding to the sore point of Diana, Princess of Wales’ popularity compared with then-Prince Charles when they toured Australia in 1983.
Their 2018 visit was the couple’s first – and last – overseas royal tour to Australia, a key Commonwealth realm, for the sake of the British monarchy.
But it’s not the final time Harry and Meghan would visit Australia. Almost eight years, two children and countless controversies later, they are gracing our boundless plains on behalf of Brand Sussex.
Here’s what we know about their trip so far.
When are Harry and Meghan coming to Australia?
A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan confirmed to ITV Royal Editor Chris Ship last month the couple will be in Australia in mid-April for a “number of private, business, and philanthropic engagements”. So far, two ticketed events have been announced.
Harry is scheduled to give a keynote address at the InterEdge Psychosocial Safety Summit, which runs from April 15 to April 16 in Melbourne.
Presented by Lifeline Narrm, the event aims to address rising psychological injury and mental health concerns in Australian workplaces. Speakers include social psychologist Dr Amy Cuddy, The Imperfects podcast host Hugh van Cuylenburg, and former professional tennis player Jelena Dokic, who is a mental health advocate.
Guests can pay $498 for the pleasure to attend sessions virtually, with the lowest-cost in-person ticket priced at $997. Sales support Lifeline Narrm services in Victoria, including community education programs, crisis support and suicide prevention initiatives.
Meghan, meanwhile, is headlining a “girls’ weekend like no other” in Sydney – Her Best Life’s luxury retreat at InterContinental Sydney Coogee Beach from April 17 to April 19.
Only 300 tickets were available at launch, starting from $2699 per person. That includes a seat at the Q&A between the duchess and Gemma O’Neill, who founded the podcast with best friend and former co-host Jackie ‘O’ Henderson, and the gala dinner Meghan is billed to attend.
For an extra $500, guests can secure a VIP package, and the Holy Grail: a “group table photo” with Meghan.
What is Harry and Meghan’s schedule in Australia?
Not much else has been confirmed ahead of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s imminent arrival.
We do know that IP Australia accepted Meghan’s application to trademark her As Ever lifestyle products in June, with London’s The Telegraph reporting private meetings with potential buyers, partners and marketing executives are on the itinerary.
We also know that Invictus Australia has announced it plans to bid to host the Invictus Games – the international multi-sport competition for wounded, injured and sick military service personnel and veterans founded by Harry in 2014 – in Australia in 2031.
The non-profit will work over the next 12 months to develop a comprehensive proposal to once again host the event, an expensive endeavour in itself (to which the Coalition pledged $1.5 million if Peter Dutton won the 2025 federal election).
Said proposal needs to demonstrate the event, if hosted in Australia, would have broad national support, including funding.
Invictus Australia is currently inviting government and corporate stakeholders to engage and demonstrate their backing of the initiative, which Harry may be able to assist with on his visit.
Harry and Meghan’s previous trip to Australia included attending the Invictus Games, which Sydney hosted in 2018.
This time, there won’t be a screaming horde watching them walk down the Opera House steps, and, while Governor-General Sam Mostyn will be in Melbourne with Harry in her capacity as a patron of Lifeline Australia, she won’t be hosting the couple at Sydney’s Admiralty House, as protocol dictates for royal visits.
After all, the Sussexes are now private citizens. That means Meghan, who reportedly could not believe she wasn’t getting paid for her efforts in Australia almost a decade ago, has her wish: their trip will largely occur behind a paywall.
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Bronte Gossling is a reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAtoday and Brisbane Times.Connect via email.