Prince William makes sweet admission about Kate Middleton as he greets cheering crowds

On his final day in Cape Town, Prince William was greeted by huge crowds at Kalk Bay and during an impromptu walkabout joked that he had such an amazing time that he didn't want to go home

Prince William has admitted "I don't want to go home" to locals in Cape Town and revealed how his children would love to visit South Africa after the success of his Earthshot Prize awards in Africa.

The Prince of Wales was greeted by huge, cheering crowds as he arrived in Kalk Bay this morning, many waving South African flags. As he took off in an impromptu walkabout, he shook dozens of hands and told locals he'd had "the most amazing" few days and did not want to leave.

He was given some beaded key rings to take home for his family. Kate Wardle, 46, from Kalk Bay revealed she had had them especially made - handing him two in the shape of a W and a C and three in animal shapes for the children. "Thank you very much, they’ll love those. Never go home empty-handed, that’s important," he said.

The Prince told the crowd: "I love Cape Town, I’ve had the most amazing week here, I’ve really enjoyed it. I don’t want to go!" He added: "My children would love to be here, so would Catherine." As he took to the seas with a lifeboat crew in Cape Town he admitted that he "missed this life". The Prince kicked off his final day in South Africa with a visit to Simon’s Town Harbour, home to the country’s largest naval base.

He met volunteers working for the National Seas Rescue Institute (NSRI) to hear about their lifesaving work and asking what inspired them to get involved. Before donning a life jacket and heading out with the crew, he asked how choppy the water was and joked that he should possibly be wearing more kit so he did not get wet.

He also revealed that he was trying to teach his three children about rip tides and admitted he wished his family was with him on the trip. Asked by one member of the crew if he had ever done search and rescue work, he replied: "I miss this life. Any chance to get back, I’ll take."

The Prince trained as a search and rescue helicopter pilot at RAF Valley in Anglesey, North Wales before working as a pilot with the East Anglian Air Ambulance from March 2015 until July 2017.

He was greeted on arrival by Mike Vonk, CEO of NSRI, and was given a short tour of the base before chatting with members of the team about mental health support for first responders, an issue about which he feels particularly strongly. "Nice windy day today," he joked. "How are the seas today? It’s quite choppy!"

In the operations room, the Prince was shown the various pieces of equipment and technology that they use to monitor the waters. He appeared impressed, saying he had never seen such kit before, and joked that he would have to download the app at home so he could track them.

"We are trying to teach the children to understand currents," he said. "The problem with rips is that you don’t know where they are going to appear."

The Prince asked if riptides occurred on every beach in Cape Town. "Driving down the road here, if you look out you can see so much silt being taken out," he said. "It’s good to use those apps to inform your work." Captain Andrew Dekock told him: "It’s changed our lives" to which William replied: "I bet it has."

He asked about the gaps between each lifeboat station and how many miles each crew covered. He also asked if it was predominantly tourists who got into trouble as locals were more informed of the dangers. Capt Dekock asked him about his efforts to promote access to swimming lessons through his Royal Foundation.

"Bearing in mind the UK is an island, we should all know how to swim," the Prince said. "It’s a life skill that might save your life one day." The Prince then donned a red waterproof coat and life jacket before the boat slowly made its way out of the base headed for Kalk Bay.