Tastastic

Who can persuade us that we've made a bad judgement? Or perhaps anyone living in Tassie can confirm that we've indeed discovered a hidden gem. I can confirm that you have indeed discovered a hidden gem [emoji4] We were looking at moving to Australia (from the UK) a few years ago. We spent months researching the pros and cons of each of the main areas on the mainland (someone had told us that Tassie's climate was just the same as that of the U.K. so we crossed it off the list right away...[emoji21]). We did a reccie and visited Sydney, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Adelaide and Newcastle. There were good sides to all of them, but we were too aware of the downsides of living there (downsides for us - I can see why other people prefer living there). And we just didn't feel enough of a pull to warrant moving our family half-way around the world. So we were about to give up on the idea of moving to Australia. Then a friend just happened to be on holiday in Tassie and sent us a few photos...[emoji50] Thank goodness she did because after much research, we found that it ticked all our boxes (our list was v similar to yours!). We actually couldn't believe that we had found the place we had been looking for. I thought it didn't exist [emoji4] I'm rambling [emoji1] but yeah from what I've read so far I think you'll love it here. It's a very special place. The only downsides that I can think of (in addition to the ones already mentioned) would be the lack of the 'big'/corporate jobs, and the cooler temperatures (I love this climate but for those who like to go in the sea/pool all year round I can see it would be a problem). And by the way the climate is soooo much better than that of the UK. We've had a never-ending summer and apart from the last few weeks it's been a v dry and mild Autumn. It's almost winter and yesterday we were walking on the beach on a gorgeous sunny day and it was almost 20 degrees! OK so it's cold and raining today but I'll gloss over that [emoji1] I don't know Launceston very well but I can't recommend living in Hobart highly enough. It's beautiful, friendly, interesting, vibrant and easy to get around. Best place in the world if you ask me! Good luck with everything. I hope it all works out for you.

How exciting! Tassie's such a special place. We love it. It sounds like you're going to love living here too. I don't know Launceston too well but I would heartily recommend Hobart! It's such a liveable city. There are quite a few really nice suburbs. What kind of area would you like to live in? Hopefully everything will fall into place and the move with go smoothly. Good luck!

Wonderful! See you there! X

Just seen this. Sounds great! Is it a child-friendly kind of event? [emoji4]

Hi BearRules. Thanks for the post. We've been here a few months now and have settled (well, for now!) just south of Hobart. I loved the Bellerive area when I visited (and I notice every evening that you guys on the eastern shore get sunshine for longer [emoji30]). Like you I could live on other side but we found schools over here that suited our kids so perfectly that they made the whole move feel a little less of a risk. Who knows where we'll end up long-term though. Oh and I got stuck in the 'rush hour' once. I think it added an extra five minutes to my journey. Outrageous! [emoji1]

Hi. Yes we have - twice! It's wonderful isn't it? I'm trying to persuade everyone that we NEED to go again before it finishes [emoji1] I'm so pleased we arrived at this time of year; there's so much going on.

The weather really does like to keep you guessing doesn't it? I'm getting used to us all going out prepared for all types of weather now - fleeces, sunglasses, umbrellas, sun cream...all everyday essentials at the moment! The last couple of days have been amazing though. And tomorrow really does look set to be a scorcher! Hope you all have a great weekend.

Thanks for that everyone. I think ambulance cover is one thing I can cross off my to-do list! It's still as long as my arm though...[emoji30][emoji2]

Hello! So I have another question! We've been looking into ambulance cover and it seems that Tasmanian residents don't have to pay for any ambulance costs. After hearing of a few expensive bills in other states, I'm just trying to make sure we're doing the right thing with this. Do people in Tas tend to not bother with ambulance cover insurance? Or is it good to have for when we travel to other states? Or would our travel insurance cover any costs anyway? Thanks for any opinions on this.

Hi Sorry I can't help with your question but just wanted to say good luck. I hope you hear that there are lots of suitable jobs!

Hello! Sorry, I've only just seen this! This is my first time on Poms in Oz since the craziness of the move began! We are loving everything so far! Weather has been a bit unpredictable - hailstones, thunder storms, glorious sunny days and high winds all in just a couple of weeks [emoji15] but we have no regrets. Tasmania is a very special place [emoji4]. Thanks to everyone who responded to my seemingly never-ending questions/dilemmas! This site has been a huge help. I can't imagine how stressful the move would have been without it! Thanks again X

Good question! We fly out soon and I keep changing my mind about what items should go in the suitcases and what should just go in the container. We'll be going straight into an unfurnished rental, and there are so many things that we'll need from day one that I'm panicking a bit! Anyone got any advice please? [emoji4]

Hello all We have a dilemma where we can just about squeeze all our stuff into a 20ft container by leaving a few things behind, but 40ft is way too big for our needs. I'd estimate that we're about half way in between. If we were to take the 40ft option and also pack our car into there, I think this just might be about the right size. Is anyone able to clarify the RORO costs we'd save by taking the car in the container instead? The ocean freight costs are an obvious saving but is there also a saving we'd make with port or customs charges on the other side? Obviously any savings we can identify and tot up can go towards the difference between the 20ft and 40ft container options and will help us see whether this is worth it or not. Thanks in advance :-)

Thanks for that, Strick. Just as I think I've settled on an area, there's another place that pops up, with a whole other list of pros and cons! Honestly, how on earth do people decide on where to settle?? Obviously it can only be a good thing that there seems to be so many nice areas around Hobart, but it doesn't help with the decision-making process one bit! For some reason I haven't considered Lindisfarne. No idea why! It sounds lovely, and an extra hour of sunshine sounds wonderful. Time to do some more googling (for a change! [emoji1]) How on earth did people make the move before the t'internet? [emoji15]