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Prince William and Princess Kate's surprising swaps for private life in Windsor

Prince William and Princess Kate relocated from their former home inside Kensington Palace to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor for a quieter life and originally to be close to Queen Elizabeth II, who sadly passed away in September 2022.

The Waleses' surprising move meant them downsizing from a huge 20-room property to a four-bedroom cottage, but as well as compromising on space, here are the other elements that the royals left behind.

WATCH: Prince William and Princess Kate give rare look inside Kensington Palace 

Underground tunnels from Kensington Palace

It has been widely reported that Prince William and Prince Harry often used a secret entrance to the palace while growing up – supposedly sneaking out to McDonald's with their mother Princess Diana, for example. It seems likely that the Waleses would have taken advantage of this incognito access during their time there.

kensington palace exterior
kensington palace exterior

Kensington Palace has secret underground links to public streets 

Staff living quarters

Relocating to a four-bedroom home means that there is no room for William and Kate to have live-in staff. This would have been a big adjustment for the family who have been used to having a nanny for the children on site. It is very likely that the couple will still have some external help with childcare due to their busy and sporadic schedules according to royal engagements.

Day and night nursery

Along with childcare staff, their London home came with separate day and night nurseries for the three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. It is unknown if the family have any sort of playroom inside their now more modest property.

ROYAL NEWS: King Charles brings in the diggers as late Queen's home gets makeover

windsor great park
windsor great park

The family now live in Windsor 

Panic room

Global Citizen reports that "Kate and William’s royal apartment at Kensington Palace includes a panic room with an air filtration system, guarding against biological warfare, and an escape tunnel." It is unlikely that their new Windsor abode would be equipped with such a thing. However, they will still have very strict security measures to keep the family safe.

The family may have compromised on these elements but being submerged in country living close to Princess Kate's parents and siblings has radically changed their life for the better.

REVEALED: Prince William and Princess Kate's new bedroom set-up at Adelaide Cottage

LISTEN: Why Kate Middleton is unlikely to wear a tiara at Charles' coronation

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