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It’s really no surprise to fans that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will not be spending Christmas at Sandringham with the rest of the royal family.

King Charles and Queen Camilla will be hosting 45 people for the holiday in Norfolk, England, but the Sussexes aren’t on that guest list. The last time the couple spent Christmas with Harry’s relatives was in 2018.

Instead, sources confirmed that the duke and duchess will spend the festive period at their home in Montecito and the town’s newspaper just did a write-up about that urging Meghan and Harry to do what others have complained they haven’t done.

Neighbors in Montecito say the Sussexes aren’t seen out in the community

Oprah Winfrey sitting across from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as she interviews them for CBS special
Oprah Winfrey sitting across from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as she interviews them for CBS special | Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese via Getty Images

Some of the prince and former Suits star‘s neighbors in Montecito have said they never see Harry and Meghan out in their community even though they’ve seen other high-profile people like Oprah Winfrey.

Mary Sheldon who owns a bookstore about a mile from where the Sussexes live told Express: “Oprah’s a regular customer. She does her own shopping. She doesn’t send her people to do it. I don’t think [Meghan and Harry] do their own shopping. I’ve never seen them.”

Another neighbor, Richard Mineads, revealed in the documentary Harry: The Lost Prince that even though the duchess speaks about the importance of community she is not at all involved in the one she’s lived in for the last four years.

“I personally don’t think that Meghan is an asset to our community,” he said. “She doesn’t really go out or get involved with the community. Harry has to a certain extent, because he’s quite jolly … but Meghan doesn’t seem to get seen anywhere … And you don’t see him either.”

Local paper mocks Prince Harry and Meghan’s Christmas plans with children in Montecito

Mineards is not only a local Montecito resident, he’s also a writer for the Montecito Journal.

View of the Montecito Village sign, in Montecito, California
View of the Montecito Village sign in Montecito, California | VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images

In his tongue-in-cheek piece titled “Local Couple Likes Living Here” Mineards noted that during the annual New York Times DealBook Summit in Manhattan, Prince Harry told the audience: “I really enjoy living here [U.S.] and bringing up my kids here.”

Mineards then called on the couple to prove how much they enjoy it by getting out into their local community this holiday season writing: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are set to spend Yuletide in our rarefied enclave with their children, Archie and Lilibet, having not been invited yet again to the royal family’s Christmas festivities in Sandringham House in Norfolk, the sprawling 20,000-acre estate built by Queen Victoria for her son King Edward VII … But at least they won’t be short of activities given all our Eden by the Beach has to offer.

“I’m sure the youngsters would love to make their first visit to the Granada to see the State Street Ballet’s enchanting Nutcracker and welcome in 2025 with the Santa Barbara Symphony’s New Year’s Eve Pops concert, also at the same splendid auditorium … The community awaits. “