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Meghan Markle is set to be the star attraction at an exclusive ‘girls’ weekend’ in Australia, with tickets priced at £1,400. The Duchess of Sussex will deliver a keynote speech and participate in photo sessions with VIP attendees at a lavish wellness retreat.
The event, which will take place in Sydney next month, is expected to host 300 guests. It coincides with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s Australian tour.
Attendees can look forward to a range of activities including morning yoga, a ‘sound healing’ session, and a meditation and manifestation workshop. The highlight for many will be the in-person conversation with Meghan herself.
Meghan, who became involved with the event after reaching out to the team behind the Her Best Life podcast, will make her much-anticipated appearance during a gala dinner.
For those opting for the VIP experience, which costs £1,700, perks include prime seating and a group photo opportunity with Meghan.
An advert for the event reads: ‘A girls’ weekend like no other! An unforgettable weekend for women ready to reconnect, recharge and have some serious fun.
‘Join us for an intimate luxury weekend by the ocean designed to bring women together for powerful conversations, relaxation, laughter and unforgettable experiences.’
Gemma O’Neill, founder and presenter of Her Best Life, announced the news to her listeners on the podcast on Wednesday.
An advert for the weekend promises a ‘girls’ weekend like no other’
Meghan Markle, pictured here at a fundraising gala last month, will headline a ‘girls’ weekend like no other’ in Australia
VIP experience tickets cost £1,700 per person, and will get you a group table photo with the Duchess
She said: ‘I have admired [Meghan] and what she has endured… and how she has demonstrated how a woman can be pushed down and she can still rise.’
O’Neill described the three-day event at a beachside hotel as ‘the ultimate girls weekend’ and said Meghan had contacted her after being put in touch by a mutual friend.
‘She’s doing it because she really loves what our community is about, which is women trying to grow, try to be their best selves and trying to help other women,’ O’Neill added.
The presenter revealed she almost turned down Meghan’s offer amid initial reservations, but eventually concluded her podcast audience ‘deserved it’.
She said: ‘It’s a very small event for 300 women… it’s going to be a fireside chat with Meghan and I.’
The extravagant retreat is being hosted at the five-star luxury hotel InterContinental Sydney Coogee Beach on Sydney’s coast.
Guests will be put up in two rooms, with two breakfasts, a lunch, and two dinners included.
Meghan is the star attraction for the first evening, while the second will bring a ‘dinner and disco celebration’ – with all alcohol included on both nights.
As well as a prime view of the Duchess in action, VIP guests will take home an exclusive goodie bag, and enjoy an ocean-view bedroom.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are returning to Australia seven years after their first visit in 2018, when they were still senior members of the Royal Family.
Kensington Palace had announced Meghan was pregnant hours before the 16-day tour in October of that year – the couple’s first major trip overseas.
It is understood that their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, will not be joining them on the trip next month.
A spokesman for the couple said: ‘Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, will visit Australia to take part in a number of private, business and philanthropic engagements.
‘Further details will be shared in due course.’
The news of Meghan’s headline appearance in Sydney comes days after the severing of the partnership between her lifestyle brand, As Ever, and Netflix.
A Los Angeles insider claimed that the Duchess’s jam and flower sprinkles business just ‘didn’t fit’, and there was ‘no appetite’ for it among the streaming giant’s customers.
The Netflix source told the Daily Mail that there has been some consternation at their HQ in Sunset Boulevard over claims Meghan felt they had been ‘too cautious’ with her As Ever brand – and had held her back.
It came as another expert claimed that the end of the As Ever-Netflix partnership is the ‘kiss of death’ for her future brand deals with big business.
‘Netflix were not happy’, the Daily Mail’s insider said yesterday.