Prince William and Princess Kate Middleton are keeping their holiday plans to their immediate family this season, a source exclusively tells Us Weekly. The insider reports that: “William and Kate will be taking the kids to the walk at Sandringham [Estate] and mass at St Mary Magdalene” on Christmas Day, noting “Kate and William are looking forward to a break with the kids [since] this year has been fraught with tension.” William and Kate, both 41, share children Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5. “They really need a couple weeks to spend with their nuclear family,” the source adds.
The couple, who tied the knot in April 2011, will also be keeping up their tradition of giving back, according to the insider. They will be visiting a shelter for the unhoused. “After the holiday, the family will all take a vacation somewhere in the commonwealth,” the insider tells Us. “There will be a beach and relaxing for the whole family.”
While the Prince and Princess of Wales are gearing up for a family-filled few weeks, those plans don’t extend to William’s brother, Prince Harry, or his wife, Meghan Markle. “Kate and William do not plan on sending any gifts or cards to Harry and Meghan,” the source claims to Us. “There’s still no relationship there currently.”
Tension between William and Kate and Harry and Meghan, 42, began to bubble over in 2020 after Harry and Meghan announced they were stepping down as senior royals. After relocating to California, Harry revealed during a 2021 tell-all interview that his friction with his family in the U.K. had not gotten better.
Harry added fuel to the feud in January with the release of his memoir, Spare, in which he claimed William knocked him to the ground during a 2019 fight. William and Kate ignored questions about the allegations in Endgame last month while attending the Royal Variety Performance in London. However, William and Kate were all smiles as they stepped out with their kids for the Together at Christmas carol service at Westminster Abbey earlier this month.