Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took a break from their royal tour at a $5,000-a-night private island Fiji retreat

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex slipped away from the vast crowds of well-wishers for a brief stopover on a $5,000-a-night Pacific paradise.

They ended the third day of their visit to Fiji with a quiet stay on the private island resort of Vatuvara about an hour east of capital Suva.

The newlyweds, who are expecting their first child in April, spent one night alone on the “no kids” resort, in one of its three secluded seaside villas.

The escape from their frenzied itinerary came after pregnant Meghan was whisked away from a walkabout in a Suva market yesterday because of “crowd control” worries. The couple are into the second half of a 16-day trip to Australia, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand, including 76 scheduled engagements.

Though there are no prices on its website, a stay at Vatuvara, owned by Oakley sunglasses billionaire Jim Jannard, costs about $5,000 (£3,900) a night. The two-mile-wide atoll, on an extinct volcano, has crystal-clear waters, 800 acres to explore and a four-hole golf course. It is only accessible by private aircraft.

Fiji’s tourism minister Faiyaz Koya said: “We are proud to host them. It is tremendous for us. They are a couple with global appeal.” The pair returned to mainland Fiji to unveil a statue commemorating Sergeant Talaiasi Labalaba, a British-Fijian soldier who died in a 1972 battle in Oman.

They then boarded a plane to Tonga. On arrival at Fua’amotu Airport they were welcomed by a traditional ceremony and Princess Angelika Latufuipeka, daughter of King Tupou VI — as well as a huge red sign saying “Welcome Harry & Meghan”.

The duchess suffered a rare wardrobe malfunction: she changed out of a green Jason Wu outfit into a red dress by Self Portrait during the flight. But she left the label hanging, showing the £345 price tag as she walked down the red carpet on arrival.

For the evening reception hosted by King Tupou and Queen Nanasipau’u, she changed again into a full-length white evening gown by Theia Couture. One guest, a doctor, Miriam Cato, chatted with Meghan about her pregnancy and later said: “I asked, ‘How does she feel?’ She responded, ‘Very well, thank you.’ I said, ‘No visible signs yet!’” The duchess laughed in agreement.

Mrs Cato, 41, added: “As a doctor I was a bit concerned about her taking all these long trips. I asked her to take care of herself. She promised to do so.”