A High-Profile Event Amid Security Concerns
The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan, is set to headline a women-only three-day retreat in Sydney later this month. Organized by the Her Best Life podcast, the event promises a mix of yoga, sound healing, meditation, and other wellness activities. Attendees will also have the chance to participate in a psychologist-led session, a disco evening, and a ‘fireside chat’ Q&A with Meghan. The event concludes with a gala dinner, which she will attend.
This retreat is described as a £1,400-per-person ‘girls weekend,’ making it an exclusive experience for those who can afford the ticket price. Guests are charged around £1,400 for a standard ticket or up to £2,000 for premium packages that offer more direct access to the Duchess. The event is being held at the Inter Continental Sydney Coogee Beach, where rooms typically cost between £250 and £450 per night. It is understood that the hotel portion of the fee is included in the ticket price, suggesting that the remaining cost benefits Meghan and the event organizers.
Approximately 300 guests are expected to attend the three-day event, and the website states that the ticket allocation has been ‘exhausted.’ However, there have been separate claims that not all tickets have been sold yet. Social media users have begun openly discussing their plans to attend, with some suggesting they hope to test security arrangements or gain entry under false pretences. One user wrote, “Just in case if Meghan Markle didn’t despise me enough she’s about to HATE ME even more. I hatched a plan with a friend who lives in Sydney to attend the best life weekend, they have been accepted & has a spot secured. Good luck figuring out who it is, Meghan.”
Hinting that they plan to ‘secretly record,’ the user added, “There are button cameras, meta glasses, we got all the bases covered. Now that they’ve been accepted. Let the games begin!!!” Another user predicted that Meghan would have to cancel the event or pull out of her appearance due to security concerns combined with poor ticket sales. Another warned that Australians will be hostile to former Royals coming into town, saying menacingly, “I know there will be people heckling her and protesting outside the event … us Aussies have lots of surprises for her.”
These claims, which have circulated widely on X, raise fresh questions about the safety of the Sussexes’ privately organized appearances, where attendee lists are not subject to the same scrutiny as official royal engagements. This issue comes at a particularly sensitive time for Prince Harry, who is currently attempting to have his UK police protection reinstated, arguing that his family faces ongoing security risks when traveling to the UK.
In recent days, he has faced criticism after sources close to him said he would be willing to spend time in the UK with his children, including a possible visit to Sandringham, if he was invited and if adequate security arrangements were put in place. Critics argue that Prince Harry’s children, Archie, six, and Lily, four, are being inadvertently drawn into an ongoing dispute over protection and leaving the King in a difficult position.
Royal protection arrangements for working members of the Royal Family are typically tightly controlled, with movements carefully managed and precise event locations rarely disclosed in advance of appearances. By contrast, Meghan’s upcoming Sydney visit has been openly promoted, with details of the location, timing, and ticketing widely available online as part of a commercial package.
The Sussexes’ Sydney tour has already faced criticism, with some Australians questioning whether such a high-profile visit would involve any taxpayer cost for security, especially given the commercial nature of the event. Many anti-monarchists in the country argue that taxpayers should not be expected to contribute when appearances are tied to private, profit-making ventures.
The online chatter about trolls and fans attempting to attend for ulterior motives has only added to concerns about how such events are managed. While there is no indication of any specific threat, the public nature of these online discussions highlights the risks posed by events that blur the line between celebrity access and controlled royal engagements.
When the late Queen was alive, she insisted that ‘half-in, half-out’ arrangements for Meghan and Harry would never work. The couple agreed to step down as working royals altogether but have since pursued a series of so-called ‘pseudo Royal tours,’ including a trip to Columbia and now the Australian tour. Harry has repeatedly argued that the loss of official protection has left him and Meghan vulnerable to security threats, particularly when traveling internationally or with their children. He cites security as the reason he hasn’t visited the UK with his children for years.
Appearances such as the Sydney retreat risk undermining that argument by placing the Duchess in an environment where exposure to strangers is not only unavoidable but actively encouraged. When Harry came to the UK in the summer, he was nearly accosted by a woman known to be his ‘stalker’—and it fell to his PR man to block her from getting close to him because there was no police protection present. It is not known whether taxpayer money is being used to fund the trip. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex insist it will be privately funded.
