Why Did The Love Boat’s Jill Whelan Leave L.A.? Actress Reveals Reason She Moved Out of Hollywood

The Love Boat actress Jill Whelan decided to start a new chapter of her life away from Los Angeles. The TV star revealed why she decided to leave L.A. and where she is living now.

Why Did Jill Whelan Leave L.A.?

Jill left L.A. because her son decided to go to college in another state and she moved to be closer to him and the rest of their family.

Where Does Jill Whelan Live?

Jill and her husband, Jeff Knapple, packed their things and moved to Arizona, where her son goes to school.

“My sister and her husband also decided to move to Arizona, so they stayed with us and they’re just about to move out into their place,” she told People in May 2025. “My son is in school in Tucson, and so that’s pretty magical. We got my mom settled in Arizona, so it’s been a convergence by the Whelans.”

The California native also revealed that her Arizona home had undergone some renovations. At the time of the interview, the renovations were completed and she said that the residence was “starting to feel like home.”

“It’s been awesome,” Jill added. “We are really happy here. It’s a beautiful place.”

Jill said that one of her favorite things to do in Arizona was go to the gym, which has a steam room, sauna and cold plunge. She admitted she was initially hesitant about doing cold plunges, saying ,”Oh, hell no,” after doing it for the first time.

“But then I said, ‘You can’t be such a baby. You need to get back in there. You got to be in there for one minute,’” the Fantasy Island alum said. “So I went back in, dunked in and for about two seconds and was like, ‘Nope, not ready yet.’ But I have to say, it was actually really awesome and I do plan on getting to that one-minute goal in the cold plunge at some point.”

In addition to going to the gym, Jill said that she and her family enjoy going out to eat and trying new restaurants in Arizona.

She previously gushed over her marriage and spending time with her husband and family in a February 2025 interview with People.

“We really get along so well and enjoy each other’s company so much and respect each other so much. And we make each other laugh, so we’re really, really lucky,” Jill told the outlet. “This is not the first marriage for either one of us. It took us a minute to find the right person, but we did eventually. We could spend every moment together and not see another person and be totally fine.”

Prior to her marriage to Jeff, Jill was married to her first husband, Brad St. John, from 1993 to 2001, and to her second husband, Michael Chaykowsky, from 2004 to 2014. She shares a son named Harrison with her first husband and a son named Grant with her second husband.

“When we started dating after both of our divorces, we both went, ‘You know what? I’m just going to be myself and if they don’t like this self, then that’s fine,” she reflected. “No harm, no foul, but that’s not going to be the person for me. It’s either take me at my face value or don’t take me at all. Because at some point the chickens are going to come to roost, and it is going to get sticky and ugly and complicated. It’s a lot easier [to be yourself].”