Harry and Meghan won't be allowed to pat koalas on their Aussie tour

ON THEIR first major tour since the royal wedding, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have revealed details of their action-packed tour around Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand.

The mammoth 16-day publicly funded voyage — which includes 76 engagements such as gumboot throwing in New Zealand and beach yoga — begins on October 16 when they touch down in Sydney.

Once they are welcomed by Governor-General Peter Cosgrove and his wife Lynne, Harry and Meghan will have a chance to meet some true blue icons — koalas.

They will be allowed to pat them. However, they will not be allowed to cuddle them due to strict anti-koala-cuddling rules in NSW.

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“You can cuddle in Queensland and pet in New South Wales,” Harry and Meghan’s private secretary Sam Cohen explained.

The happy couple will then jet off to Melbourne, Dubbo in NSW and Queensland’s Fraser Island.

Announcing the tour, Prince Harry and the Duchess Meghan, said they want to meet as many Australians as possible.

They will also fly over to Fiji and Tonga between October 23 and 26 and spend four days in New Zealand after leaving Sydney on October 28.

The newlyweds, who are on their first Commonwealth tour and first major tour since their wedding in May, want to meet as many locals as possible on their trip, which has scheduled four public walkabouts.

“There is a long history of the friendship between the royal family and Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand and their links with the UK extensive,” Ms Cohen said.

“The Duke and Duchess are very much looking forward to experiencing the unique customs and cultures of these four Commonwealth countries and have asked that this tour allows them to meet as many Australians, Fijians, Tongans and New Zealanders as possible.”

“Together they look forward to building an enduring relationship with the people of the region.”

WHAT WILL THEY BE DOING?

Harry’s primary motivation to visit Australia is to patronise the Sydney 2018 Invictus Games, an Olympic-style event for disabled and ill service people.

To officially welcome the games to the city, Prince Harry, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and athletes will scale the Sydney Harbour Bridge to plant the Invictus flag.

The Duke and Duchess will also attend the games’ opening and closing ceremonies, the cycling time trials in the Royal Botanic Gardens, the basketball final and the sailing at Farm Cove.

“The Duke and Duchess are excited to see Sydney fully embrace the Invictus spirit and support the competitors across a range of sports at some of the city’s most iconic venues,” Ms Cohen said.

“This year’s games will emphasise the integral role played by servicemen and women and their families and friends and the royal highnesses will spend time with a number of the competitors’ supporters as they cheer them on from the sidelines.”

The royal couple will also fly to Dubbo for a day trip where they will visit the Royal Flying Doctor Service and learn about the drought from a farming family at their property before attending a community barbecue.

In Melbourne, they will take a short ride on an iconic tram to South Melbourne Beach, where they will take part in a beach clean-up with school students.

The Duke and Duchess fly to Fraser Island for the day, where they will learn about conservation from traditional elders and rangers and do another public walkabout at Kingfisher Bay.

In Sydney they will meet koalas and conservationists at Taronga Zoo, visit a youth mental health group at Bondi Beach and see a rehearsal of the Bangarra Dance Company.

After the Invictus Games closing ceremony, the royal couple will fly out of Sydney Airport bound for New Zealand.

Much of the tour outside the Invictus Games will focus on youth groups working to deal with the social, economic and environmental challenges facing Australia and the region.

“The duke is particularly keen to highlight these youth-led initiatives in his new role as Commonwealth Youth Ambassador and to shine a light on the work and aspirations of young people,” the spokeswoman said.

DAY-BY-DAY BREAKDOWN

Tuesday October 16: Sydney, Australia

Wednesday October 17: Dubbo, Australia

Thursday October 18: Melbourne, Australia

Friday October 19: Sydney, Australia

Saturday October 20: Sydney, Australia

Sunday October 21: Sydney, Australia

Monday October 22: Fraser Island, Australia

Tuesday October 23: Suva, Fiji

Wednesday October 24: Suva, Fiji

Thursday October 25: Nadi, Fiji and Nuku’alofa, Tonga

Friday October 26: Nuku’alofa, Tonga and Sydney, Australia