A pregnancy announcement has kicked off Prince Harry and wife Meghan's first royal tour, with a tweet revealing the news hours after the couple landed in Sydney.
A beaming Meghan Markle clasped a number of burgundy folders, sparking speculation she was hiding a baby bump, as she and Prince Harry walked out of the airport on Monday.
Holding hands and casually dressed, the couple went through the back entrance and out to a waiting car.
Meghan, wearing skinny black pants and a black, burgundy trimmed coat, was smiling and clutching folders, while Harry gave a thumbs up to bystanders.
Days after watching Harry's cousin Princess Eugenie tie the knot in a lavish ceremony in Windsor, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex touched down in Sydney after 7am on an overcast Monday morning.
On Monday evening, Kensington Palace tweeted: "Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Sussex is expecting a baby in the spring of 2019."
The palace said the couple had "appreciated all of the support they have received from people around the world since their wedding in May and are delighted to be able to share this happy news with the public."
Upon landing, a police motorcade whisked them away to Admiralty House where dozens of locals were waiting to greet them.
The happy couple arrive in Sydney for their first tour of Australia. Source: SBS News
The royal couple waved as they drove through the gates of the governor-general's residence in Kirribilli, just after 8am.
They spent the day recovering from the flight and preparing for their first full day of engagements.
The royal duo have 76 engagements across 16 days in Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand, which will include Sydney, Dubbo, Melbourne and Queensland's Fraser Island.
Tuesday will be the first opportunity for the public to interact with the couple.
They will be officially welcomed by Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove before visiting Taronga Zoo and the Opera House.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the royal visit would have flow-on benefits for the state.
"I hope the weather holds up because it will be a wonderful experience for everybody and what better place to be able to welcome them and hopefully we'll give them Sydney sunshine, not Melbourne rain," Ms Berejiklian told Channel Nine on Monday.
However, the Bureau of Meteorology has forecast Sydney's weather for Tuesday as drizzly and cool, with showers continuing for most of the week.
The motorcade makes its way through peak hour traffic on the Eastern Distributor in Sydney. Source: AAP
The royal tour coincides with the Invictus Games in Sydney, which kicks off on Saturday and runs for a week.
The sporting event founded by Prince Harry in 2014 gives sick and injured service personnel and war veterans the opportunity to compete in sports such as wheelchair basketball and sitting volleyball.
The couple will attend the Games' launch and closing ceremony.
The tour is considered significant for the royal couple, who have spoken of their desire to promote humanitarian causes across the Commonwealth.
The visit comes six months after Prince Charles made his 16th official visit to Australia and opened the 21st Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
The royal baby in numbers
- 2 - Baby Cambridge has two homes - Kensington Palace's 20-room Apartment 1A in London and 10-bedroom country residence Anmer Hall in Norfolk.
- 3 - The new royal baby will be the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's third child - a younger sibling to Prince George and Princess Charlotte.
- 5 - William and Kate's baby will be born fifth in line to the throne. The baby is also a 5 x great-grandchild of Queen Victoria.
- 6 - The baby is the Queen's sixth great-grandchild. The baby will bump Prince Harry down to sixth in line.
- 7 - The Cambridges celebrate their seventh wedding anniversary on April 29.
- 9 - Weeks of age Princess Charlotte was when she was christened. George was 13 weeks old at his christening.
- 15 - Years William and Kate have been together.
- 35 - Number of months between Charlotte and the new baby. Kate and William will have three children aged four and under.
- 36 - Kate is 36. William turns 36 in June this year.
- 41 - Royal births are celebrated with a 41-gun salute.
- GBP7,500 ($A13,700) - Cost of a one night stay and delivery package at the private Lindo Wing including a suite of two rooms, but excluding consultants' fees.
- GBP9,450 ($A17,300) - Cost per year for Willcocks Nursery School, which Charlotte attends.
- 1.2 million - Followers of the Cambridges' official Twitter account @KensingtonRoyal.
- GBP4.5 million ($A8.2 million) - Cost to the taxpayer of refurbishing William and Kate's Kensington Palace apartment in 2012.
- GPB42.8 million ($A78.4 billion) - The amount the Queen received from the taxpayer via the Sovereign Grant in 2016-2017 - 65 pence for each person in the country.
