Inside Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's Christmas plans at new Montecito mansion

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will be celebrating this Christmas at their first independently-bought home at Santa Barbara in California, and they are reportedly pretty "excited" to decorate it for the holiday season.

According to a report in People magazine, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are "very happy" ahead of their first Christmas in their new Montecito home which they will celebrate with their 19-month-old son Archie. This will also be their second Christmas as a married couple, and the first one in their own home, as they had spent the last one with Meghan's mother, Doria Ragland, at her Canada house.

A source told the outlet: "They are very happy. Archie is thriving and growing quickly. As a family, they spend hours outside."

The family has already celebrated a few holidays in their £11.4million mansion, including Thanksgiving last week. The Duke and the Duchess of Sussex also took Archie trick-or-treating on Halloween last month. They might be joined by Doria Ragland as well for Christmas.

Meanwhile, the rest of the British royal family is heading for subdued Christmas celebrations amid the coronavirus pandemic. The traditional Christmas celebrations include an annual Christmas lunch at the Queen's official residence, Buckingham Palace in London, as well as a bunch of festivities at her Sandringham estate. The family members exchange gifts on Christmas Eve and attend morning church services on Christmas Day, after which they interact with the public for a while.

However, most of the Christmas plans have been cancelled due to the COVID-19 crisis. The British monarch is reportedly upset but "accepting of that."

Royal historian Robert Lacey said: "Christmas is something the Queen has always done with enormous, genuine family style and is facing not doing so, sadly. She is accepting of that."

Prior to their May 2018 wedding, Meghan and Harry had also spent two Christmases with the rest of the royal family at the Sandringham estate. The estate might stay empty this year, as the palace hasn't announced if even the queen will be travelling to the country house in Norfolk. The 94-year-old is currently carrying out her royal duties from her Windsor Castle.