Harry and Meghan Plan Christmas in California Amid Royal Tensions

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle plan to spend Thanksgiving and Christmas in the United States with Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, rather than attend the Royal Family's traditional holiday gathering at Sandringham. Heat World reported on October 19, 2026, that Meghan opposed waiting for a possible invitation, while Harry had hoped to celebrate with his father, King Charles III.

According to Heat World, the couple's children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, will join them in the United States. People magazine reported that the family's holiday location would depend on Ragland's preference. Thanksgiving falls on November 27 this year.

The decision follows renewed uncertainty about the Sussexes' relationship with the Royal Family. The couple visited the United Kingdom in August, but questions about a possible invitation to the family's Christmas celebrations emerged soon after their arrival.

A source cited by Heat World described Harry as disappointed with the plans and said he had considered alternative arrangements that might have allowed him to see his father. The source also suggested that Meghan did not want to risk being excluded from the family's celebrations.

“He's very disappointed, because in his mind they could have brought Doria to the Cotswolds and perhaps still scored an invite to see his father or the Spencers as a back-up option, but Meghan wasn't having any of it,” the source told Heat World.

The publication said Harry had tried to persuade Meghan to remain in Britain for Christmas. According to the same source, he ultimately accepted the decision despite his preference for a family reunion with Charles.

“Harry did his best to persuade Meghan to stay and have a British Christmas, but Meghan wasn't prepared to sit around being humiliated by the royals, waiting to see if they'd extend an invite. It gave her the perfect excuse to book a flight back to Montecito, and Harry ultimately didn't have much of a choice,” the source said.

Relations between Harry and other senior royals remain strained. Heat World reported that Prince William had stopped openly complaining about the Sussexes and was instead distancing himself from them.

“He's stopped complaining about Harry and Meghan and is now acting like they don't even exist instead,” the source said.

The report also described the royal household as facing a difficult decision over whether to invite the Sussexes. According to the publication's source, palace officials were concerned that either extending or withholding an invitation could create further tension.

“It doesn't seem to dawn on Harry that the royals are actually relieved they don't have to officially turn him and Meghan down now,” the source said.

The same source described the prospect of a shared Christmas meal involving the Sussexes, William and Princess Kate as an uncomfortable situation for the family.

“This is something that is being welcomed by the King, by Queen Camilla and most of all by William. They are all breathing much easier knowing they won't have to sit around a table with Harry and Meghan; it would have been such an awkward mess,” the source told Heat World.

Another concern involved the pressure on the Royal Family to offer an invitation despite unresolved disagreements. The source said palace officials feared that excluding Harry and Meghan could prompt further public criticism.

“They have enough on their plates without having to navigate a load of tension with the Sussexes over Christmas. And truth be told, they were feeling a lot of pressure to extend some sort of invite to them. Lord knows if they didn't, the odds of Harry calling them out over the snub are very high; that was a big talking point among the courtiers,” the source said.

The holiday decision comes after Harry and Meghan visited King Charles III and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House in July. Royal observers interpreted that meeting as a possible step toward reconciliation, although the couple's subsequent activities have not resolved uncertainty over their relationship with the family.

Harry also recently stayed with his uncle, Charles, the Earl Spencer, at Althorp House, the ancestral home of Princess Diana. Heat World reported that the visit was followed by the publication of Spencer's memoir, which included claims about Charles and Queen Camilla and the circumstances surrounding Diana's marriage.

The Sussexes left the Royal Family in 2020 and subsequently settled in California, where they have publicly discussed their grievances with the institution. Heat World also reported that Harry and Meghan were scheduled to make a joint appearance in Nottingham on Thursday.