The Duke and Duchess of Sussex enjoyed a three-day secret vacation in Portugal earlier this month.

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan reportedly jetted off to the coastal town of Melides, in the Alentejo region, when the Invictus Games in Dusseldorf, Germany, drew to a close, and are believed to have stayed with the prince's cousin, Princess Eugenie, and her husband Jack Brooksbank.

According to Portuguese magazine Nova Gente, the couple - who were without children Prince Archie, four, and two-year-old Princess Lilibet - headed to Portugal on 16 September in a "mega-secret operation" for a "romantic getaway".

The outlet added: “They arrived in Portugal without their children and as soon as they landed, they headed to Alentejo and more precisely to Melides.

“The choice of this location would have been related to a possible invitation from Harry’s cousin, Princess Eugenie who, since the start of last year, has been spending a lot of time in this part of the Alentejo because of her husband’s work.”

The pair then flew to London Heathrow on 20 September, and from there boarded an onward flight back to Los Angeles.

The publication continued: “That morning they left for London from Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport on a British Airways flight.

“Accompanied by two bodyguards, they were the last to board BA flight 501 at 11am bound for London Heathrow Airport.

“The couple reached the plane in a white van carrying just them and their bodyguards.”

A source told the outlet the couple were "smiling slightly" as they boarded the flight, but Meghan looked "tired" in an all-black outfit.

Jose Santos, head of the Alentejo Tourism Board, confirmed Harry and Meghan had enjoyed a “short stay” at the CostaTerra Golf and Ocean Club resort, where Jack - who has sons August, two, and Ernest, four months, with Eugenie - works in sales and marketing.

Jose added to the Daily Telegraph newspaper: “I imagine they really enjoyed it and given their family relationship with the place, I am sure they will return to enjoy the wonders that this region has to offer.

“We have no idea how many people linked to cinema, royalty, arts, design and fashion visit us, precisely because they value discreet travel, which is something they find in Alentejo like nowhere else in Europe.”