It’s official: Inan unprecedented decision,Prince HarryandMeghan Marklearestepping back as senior members of the Royal Family, and making plans to split their time between the U.K. and North America.
But where exactly do they plan to go once they step away from theircurrent home baseof Frogmore Cottage in Windsor (which they plan to keep as a residence for the foreseeable future)? While it’s too soon to tell, royal experts have a number of hypotheses about where they may land with 8-month-old Archie in tow — both stateside and in the Commonwealth country of Canada.
PEOPLE’s four best guesses, in no particular order? The Canadian cities of Toronto and Vancouver Island, and Los Angeles and New York City in the United States.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/POOL/AFP via Getty
Toronto
It’s no secret that Meghan, 38, and Harry, 35, have history with the North American country of Canada, in which Toronto is its largest city (though not the capital — that’s Ottawa!). Canada is part of the Commonwealth, a group of nations with close ties to the Crown.
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After spending plenty of time there while dating, Meghan and Harry have many close friends in the area,such as Jessica Mulroney, a stylist married to Canadian television host Ben Mulroney, who is former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney’s oldest son.
In addition to feeling like a home away from home with a support system in place, Toronto is also a major entertainment hub, so if Meghan ever decided to go back into the film industry, she would be in the right place.
LosAngeles
Meghan grew up in sunny California — born, raised and educated in L.A. — so there’s no doubt the city feels like a home to her. Beyond that, Meghan’s mother, Doria Ragland, isa social worker and yoga instructor in L.A., and the mother-daughter duo are said to have a very close relationship.
It would therefore be unsurprising if Meghan wanted to move to L.A. out of a desire to be closer to her mother and allow her son Archie to grow up closer to his maternal grandmother — if only for part of the year.
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It may also be the only way for the family to be geographically close to Ragland, as a neighbortold PEOPLE in May 2018that Ragland had shared with someone else in the area “that Meghan wanted to move her.”
However, her neighbor said at the time, “Doria didn’t want to hear about it. She likes her neighborhood and plans to stay for now at least.”
L.A. is also the epicenter of the film and entertainment industry, so, again, if Meghan ever decided to go back into acting, she would be in the right city to do it.
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Vancouver Island
The couple gushed about their stay on the idyllic island (which is located on the Pacific Ocean in the Canadian province of British Columbia) upon their return, visitingCanada House, the home of the High Commission of Canada to the U.K., to show their appreciation for what the couple’s office said was “the warm Canadian hospitality and support they received during their recent stay.”
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP via Getty
Meghan revealed that Archie was in awe of the natural beauty of Canada, and the family enjoyed their ability to fly under the radar in such a peaceful, relaxing area of the world (with a gorgeous, temperate climate to boot), where they could jog, hike, eat and do more activities without being harassed.
It would only make sense that the Duke and Duchess may want to enjoy more of both the nature and privacy Vancouver Island has to offer and may consider finding their own space there as a North American home base.
Beyond the beauty and luxury of anonymity on the island, Vancouver proper is also very close to Vancouver Island (nope, surprisingly Vancouver is not actually located on Vancouver island), and it too is one of the biggest cities in Canada. The royals would therefore have access to all things metropolitan, including a major airport, a blossoming film industry, a thriving arts scene and more.
New York City
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The royal mom wrote about her love for the city in a June 2014 post on her now-defunct lifestyle blog,The Tig.
Meghan has also been known to catch a Broadway show — she shared a touristy pic holding aHamiltonPlaybill in front of a yellow cab with palPriyanka Chopraon her now-deleted Instagram — and get sporty. She toldCitiphilethat she’ll fit in a run along the West Side Highway and she’s been known to catch a New York Rangers hockey game at Madison Square Garden.
Priyanka Chopra and Meghan Markle.Meghan Markle/Instagram
Meghan Markle watches a Rangers hockey game in 2013.James Devaney/WireImage
New York is also home to the headquarters of theUnited Nations, an organization that Meghan has dedicated her time to in the past.
It is also the closest geographically to the U.K. of all the potential cities listed so far.
source: people.com
