llessur

As someone who attended university in the UK and has worked in an Australian uni for the last decade I'd 100% take the UK university experience over an Australian one. Whilst I'm sure the level of education is comparable, the fact that in the UK pretty much everyone leaves home to go to uni makes the experience many times richer, more character-building and more fun than simply commuting to your local uni in Oz whilst living with your parents and not really changing your life in any other way. I guess if they go back to Oz alone then they'll be more likely to go to a uni that isn't in their home city but, even then, it's just not the same as in the UK as all of their classmates will just disappear after lectures and go home. Plus, with a significant proportion of teaching still being done online these days, they might not have much of a university experience at all. Even if they're not big party people, the experience of living in halls with hundreds of other people in the same boat is pretty special. Campus life in Australia is just tumbleweeds compared to in countries where people typically leave home for uni.

I live on the Adelaide Plains (i.e. the bit that's not the hills) and haven't touched the scarves, gloves or woolly hats I brought over from the UK a decade ago with the exception of once where we stayed up in the hills in the middle of winter (even then I only put them on when we were outside in the evening and I probably could have got away without them). Definitely bring jumpers and coats as it does get chilly here over winter, but I use lighter jackets more than winter coats. You'll probably need a winter coat occasionally but I wouldn't bring loads of them. Rain coats and wet weather gear are always useful, but how much of it you'll need depends on your lifestyle. I'm not that fussed about just avoiding the rain as it doesn't really happen that often or as heavily as in the UK and I'm not particularly outdoorsy. If you're the type to be out and about in all weathers, walking and cycling etc then bring whatever you've got. Endless rainy days are pretty rare here on the plains - I haven't been trapped in the house anywhere near as much as I was in the UK. Generally if it rains it'll do it for an hour or two but then let up and everything dries out again. A lot of the rain falls overnight too. All in all I think the weather's great here. The summers are generally hot and dry so we get that real Aussie summer experience but it's nice to have the seasons for balance. Winters here are nothing like the UK with the endless cold and drizzle (I do miss the crisp frost though) but it's definitely not shorts and thongs all year round. Back to the original question, my vote would be to bring a selection of jumpers, a couple of lighter coats, a light rain coat, one winter coat and a scarf for the odd occasion.

It's worth bearing in mind that La Niña has made things surprisingly cool and wet in Adelaide for the last few years - by all accounts that's coming to an end now so things should warm up again in future years. I've also read that we're probably likely heading for El Niño in 2023 so that means hot, dry weather. I came here in 2012 and the first 5-6 years I was here the summers were noticeably longer and hotter, with week-long 40+ degree heatwaves being a fairly regular occurrence so I wouldn't take the last couple of years as a sign of what typical Adelaide weather is like. Personally, I've quite enjoyed the last few cool summers as it makes daily life a bit more bearable - especially when dragging a couple of young kids around. I agree it's not been great for the beach though. As mentioned above, it's warmer year-round the further north in Australia you go, but with that also comes increased humidity and UV levels. In Adelaide, we only really need sunscreen for around 6 months of the year as outside of those months the max UV drops below 4. You don't have to go very far north before the minimum UV level is above 4 which means ideally sunscreen should be worn outside at all times of year. Up in Queensland the minimum UV levels are very high all year round, making it an absolute necessity. I personally love the 6 months of the year where the whole family doesn't have to butter up with factor 50 every time we leave the house for any significant length of time. It's also worth keeping things in perspective - I have a couple of outdoor hobbies and remember vividly the weeks and weeks of endless drizzle and heavy rain which was absolutely guaranteed during UK winters (and springs, and autumns). Even in winter, daytime rain lasting any longer than an hour or two is relatively rare in Adelaide and once it stops the low humidity means everything dries up pretty quickly. Up north you'll need to contend with the wet season which means you might be rained in more than you think. If it's the weather that's the primary reason behind you considering moving elsewhere then I'd give it a few more years to really experience what is usual for Adelaide. If your husband is in defence then Adelaide's probably going to be a good place to be over the next few decades. Once he's got his citizenship many more opportunities should open up for him on that front

How did you find Adelaide @benj1980? I hope you had a great time!

Haha, I've never had any problems with flannel shirts or dress codes. Pretty sure you'll be fine wherever you end up going, especially family places. The oval dress code is pretty lax, maybe have a check on the website but unless you're in the members area then anything goes apart from nudity, swimwear and maybe thongs? Members (western stand) is slightly stricter but it's still pretty casual - no ripped jeans is one rule I remember. Hope you enjoy Adelaide and that the weather stays fine, I was at the Oval last night for the Crows game and the atmosphere was great. The game day village thing on Elder Park looks good for the kids, maybe see if you can get a booking for the zip wire over the River Torrens!

Well that year passed pretty quickly - thought it was time for an update. The new student building at 269 North terrace is nearly complete - externally at least: The 5 star Sofitel Adelaide opened at the end of 2021: The nicely glazed 89m office tower at 73-85 Pirie Street is starting to rise above its neighbours: The new fin-covered 119m 'The Switch' student building on North terrace is also nearing external completion: There has also been a new tallest building proposed for Adelaide - a 180m mixed use (hotel and residential) tower at 207 Pulteney Street. This will be a whopping 42m taller than the 138m existing tallest 'Frome Central Tower One' - completed last year. No renders have been released yet but here's a mock-up of its height and location: The Freemasons (yep, apparently that's still a thing) have also proposed a 160m tower to be built above their existing Masonic Lodge building on North Terrace: Both of the above two proposed buildings are fairly important for Adelaide as they mark the first time that Airservices Australia have agreed to modify their operating procedures to allow for taller buildings in the CBD - a process that required significant consultation with the airlines that operate into the airport. Until this change the existing tallest buildings (around the 130-140m range) have marked the approximate upper limit for building heights in the CBD.

Whilst there are some dodgy suburbs to the north of Adelaide writing off anything north of the city is a bit drastic. Prospect has some great heritage houses and is rapidly becoming gentrified - it's a heritage suburb within spitting distance of the CBD so it's only going in one direction. Neighbouring Medindie is pretty much up there with North Adelaide for posh houses and tweed-wearing gentry levels. I probably wouldn't look north of Regency Road at this stage but city fringe suburbs are definitely worth a look and would likely be a sound investment.

Probably worth bearing in mind that Lavers' commute is against the bulk of the traffic flow - most people will be moving from the southern suburbs towards the city whereas Lavers does the opposite. Commuting north from Hallett Cove might take longer.

That's a point - Prospect and much of Mile End are in the sought-after Adelaide High/Botanic High zones... https://www.education.sa.gov.au/parents-and-families/enrol-school-or-preschool/find-school-zone-or-preschool-catchment-area?school_code=1919&year=2020 Like the UK, public (state) schools can vary but even the less sought-after ones are nothing like some of the inner city schools in the UK. All will provide a good education in a safe environment. If you want a private education then be aware that there's likely to be a religious (either Catholic or Anglican) slant to it - there are some fairly affordable Catholic private schools but after reading their various mission statements and hearing from other parents who have gone down that route for their kids I decided that some of the 'educational' content doesn't sit well with my non-religious background (the teaching of sex education as part of religious studies as opposed to human biology for example). It's worth doing some reading up on the school system over here and also visiting a few when you come over.

Have a look at Croydon/West Croydon - https://www.pomsinadelaide.com/topic/44226-croydon-and-west-croydon/. A stone's throw from either Prospect or Seaton - maybe a 10 minute drive. I live there so I'm biased btw. It's in high demand at the moment so prices can head towards the top or just over of your budget depending on the house but there are still some bargains to be had if you look for them. https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-with-3-bedrooms-in-west+croydon,+sa+5008%3b+croydon,+sa+5008/list-1?source=refinement For me it ticks a load of boxes - great public transport (two stops from the CBD via train), good cycling infrastructure (it's a 20 minutes cycle into the city without having to use a single road once you reach the shared path at Croydon) and heritage houses on large blocks. There are great cafes and parks as well as easy access to supermarkets and other services. It feels a little more like Europe than some of the outer suburbs do and doesn't make you dependent on your car for absolutely everything. Neighbouring suburbs along the rail line are also worth a look - Woodville, Kilkenny, Cheltenham etc and also Beverley and Allenby Gardens etc which are just to the south. All have lovely heritage houses on good sized blocks. Mile End and Prospect can be nice and are also just as close to the CBD. The inner west is still (fairly rapidly) gentrifying so there are some less attractive spots but in general the market seems to be catching up with the fact that there are heritage suburbs right next to the CBD which have been undervalued for years. The defence work at Port Adelaide and the expanding biomedical precinct at the north west of the CBD (and likely soon to extend along Port Road at Thebarton) are likely to accelerate this. The posher Eastern Suburbs like Unley, Parkside, Norwood etc are probably out of your budget for a family home. Campbelltown, Magill etc might be worth a look and wouldn't be a bad commute to Prospect or Trinity Gardens. Seaton would be a bit further to travel but not too bad. I know less about the east though...

Wow, I didn't realise UV levels stayed so high all year round for much of the country. That must be annoying Yes, summer you do have to be careful in Adelaide but I've been here nearly a decade now and haven't been burnt once. I just take sensible precautions so I wouldn't say it's a particular burden or involves massive lifestyle changes. My bit of advice is to spend the money on really good sunscreen that doesn't feel greasy when it's on, makes it much less annoying to wear. plus I'm not afraid to flout my 'middle aged dad' credentials by wearing a sensible wide-brimmed hat on sunny days...

We have two little kids here in Adelaide and I'm 100% certain the opportunities for them to be outdoors and active all year round are far more extensive than they would be back in the UK. Yes, the UV levels are high in summer and precautions need to be taken to limit exposure - suncream, hats, rashies for swimming and in general avoidance of the peak UV periods but it certainly doesn't restrict kids to indoor activities only. I can't comment for the rest of the country but here in Adelaide the UV levels are generally below 3 (the limit for requiring sun protection) for all of winter, whilst for much of spring and autumn they only really get significant for a few hours in the middle of the day. Even in winter it's still quite pleasant to be outdoors most days and it's far less miserable than trudging about trying to entertain kids in the endless drizzle back in the UK. Even on the rare really rainy days it's normally quite mild temperature-wise so it's still possible to grab some outdoor time in between showers. The kids see heavy rain so rarely that it's actually a bit of a treat to put on the wellies and raincoats for a splash in the puddles. Plus, sport is huuuge here - even from a really young age. From the experience I had growing up it's far more common for kids to be involved in (usually multiple) sports-related activities than it is back in the UK. Our eldest is only four and she's already doing stuff on the weekends. On weekends it seems like every second or third kid is wearing a sports uniform of some sort. The parks are generally fantastic here in Adelaide - we must have a list of 10-15 that we visit on a regular basis. The play equipment is always well looked after and most have shade and BBQ facilities too. There's no comparison to most of the parks I've come across back in the motherland. Even when they are refurbished they tend to get shabby pretty quickly. So, from a kids perspective I can almost guarantee you'll find yourself much better off here than in the UK. I wouldn't worry about that part of it at all. The family side of things is the difficult bit and will depend on a number of factors. I was lucky that I didn't have kids when I moved here so I didn't have to worry about taking them away from their grandparents - although I still have the guilts about them not being a big part of each other's lives. I'm also lucky that I'm not an only child so my parents do have other grand kids in the UK as well as good support from my sister. It's still really hard being so far away from them but it does get easier as the years go by and means the time we do spend together either here or in the UK is very special. Anxiety about such a big move is only natural but as per the tourism adverts you'll never never know if you never never go - or something to that effect. When we moved out here we had a goal of giving it two years at which point we'd review the situation. Even though we knew the move might be a long-term one that did makes things easier to handle as it kept our options open and at the time we left it wasn't guaranteed to be permanently. I think it's important to give it at least that long as the homesickness does kick in - but then subsides again. Making a decision to move home again during peak homesickness might not be the right one in the long term. After two years we had settled in nicely and built a life for ourselves here so it allowed us to compare our options more objectively. If you skip on the option to move and try for something new will you always regret it? On the other hand, if you're happy with your lot back home then that's also a pretty good situation to be in...

I bought an EE sim on my trip back to the UK in 2018, used it for a few weeks and then brought it back to Oz with me. I went back again in January 2020 (lucky timing there) and the sim no longer worked so they definitely do expire/get reallocated after a while. I wonder if the best bet is to periodically (maybe just once every 6 months or so) put your EE sim into an Aussie mobile and generate some network activity with it - maybe sending a text. That's what I had planned to do with the new EE sim I bought in 2020 to see if I could keep it active, although I have all forgotten about it up until now. I'll sort that out this weekend if it still works... Not sure about e-sims. You might want to google the main networks (Telstra, Optus, Vodafone) and see what they say?

The Japanese stuff in particular definitely seems to be cheaper here. We bought a Mitsubishi Outlander for a great price - there are thousands of them here. Much cheaper than it would have been back in the UK with a premium pricetag attached and a smaller engine. Maybe the high-end stuff is worth considering for import but you can definitely pick up a bargain here if you're happy to drive whatever everyone else does.

From: https://glamadelaide.com.au/remys-deep-dish-pizza-bar-is-opening-in-the-cbd/

@MacGyver It looks like you had a nice trip! What time did you take those photos by the way? Everything looks a bit on the empty side I think you're right in your observations above. I loved Perth when we were there and almost moved to Freo after a month-long stay nearly became permanent somewhat by accident but have also found Adelaide a great mid-sized city to be living in - especially now we've got kids. There's lots to do and yet nothing's too far away. I'd much rather be 5 minutes outside of Adelaide than 40 minutes outside of Melbourne. We did lose a lot of great architecture back here in the 60s and 70s but a fairly prominent heritage protection movement grew in the 70s/80s so much has also been spared since then. I love wandering round the CBD looking at the buildings - there are some great hidden gems down laneways and side streets and I'm sure there are some guided history and architecture walks you can go on too. Saying that, we also seem to have had a mini boom of 100m+ buildings in the last 5 years or so, so things are also moving upwards. I feel Port Adelaide could eventually end up something like Freo - it has massive of heritage buildings still intact, mainly because it suffered economically in the 60s/70s/80s and so nothing was ripped down for new development. Now it's starting to be revived and has got great potential to be something special. The forthcoming frigate and submarine building is supposed to be a catalyst for that - and there have already been some new hotels, pubs and breweries popping up - so fingers crossed on that front...

Ignore me - I have just seen your other post

@MacGyver How was your trip?

Hey no worries, glad to help - let us know how you get on

Little Bang: https://www.littlebang.com.au/ Pirate Life: https://www.piratelife.com.au/

Just to add to the above - the tram is free within the CBD so if you're not venturing into the suburbs or heading to the beach at Glenelg etc then just jump on. If you head outside of the free zone then there will be an announcement to validate your pass/ticket. Also, it wasn't very widely advertised but tap and pay with a credit/debit card has been active on all trams since last September - I presume it will be rolled out to buses and trains soon too. As per NicF's post, North Terrace is good for a stroll with most of the museums, galleries etc located there as well as the Botanic Garden etc. However, Adelaide Fringe runs from 19 February - 21 March 2021 so you'll have a huge number of possibilities if you're coming next week - the city should be alive every day and you can head to the Garden of Unearthly Delights, Gluttony, outdoor dining on Rundle Street etc. Maybe check out the Fringe website and book tickets to a couple of shows! Other than that, the River is always nice for a stroll - especially between the Oval and the Zoo. The Zoo's fun too and if you find yourself on your own it might be a nice escape for a few hours. As for restaurants and bars etc, there's lots to explore - some info is on this thread I created a while back but I have neglected to maintain it lately. As for pubs, if you like craft beer etc I'd also highly recommend checking out the Wheaty in Thebarton - only a 5 or 10 minute tram ride from North Terrace (still in the free zone): http://wheatsheafhotel.com.au/. For a drink on the riverfront with views of the Oval you can't beat the Malt Shovel: https://maltshoveltaphouse.com.au/agegate/. Bar-wise, Hains & Co on Gilbert Place is nice: https://www.hainsco.com.au/ as is NOLA on Varden Ave: http://www.nolaadelaide.com/. If you like gin you should head to the Howling Owl: http://www.thehowlingowl.com.au/. For great rooftop views over the city there's 2KW on King William Street (https://2kwbar.com.au/) and also a new rooftop bar on the shiny new casino building behind the railway station (https://skycityadelaide.com.au/eat-and-drink/sol-bar-and-restaurant/). If you like craft breweries and you've got time to go slightly further afield then you can try the new Pirate Life brewery at Port Adelaide or out to Little Bang in Stepney. Both might be easier via an Uber though.

Same here - it was a much easier process hiring a car in the UK on my Australian licence as only half the paperwork was required. Highly recommended

Likewise. The public health system here is excellent and in the last 10 years of being here neither my partner or I have regretted not taking out insurance. We have ambulance cover and put aside some savings in a health fund each month but other than that we're going it alone and are already thousands of dollars better off for it. The way I see it is that if need to go to hospital in an emergency you'll be in a public hospital anyway. Other than arguably silly things like being able to decide your surgeon/obstetrician etc (as if I know them well enough to choose...) the only benefit I can see from private cover is getting quicker access to elective surgeries like knee and hip ops which are more likely to be required with age. In the years in between that's one hell of a lot of money going to an insurance company for something you might never need - seems a much better idea to put it in the bank. I know lots of people who bang on about all the 'free' stuff they're getting from their extras cover like some money off of glasses, a bit of physio or remedial massage etc but seemingly forgetting they're paying a grand a year in extras premiums to start off with. I'd need to access one hell of a lot of physio *every single year for the rest of my life* to make that remotely worthwhile. Unless you're paying for a top tier policy to begin with, none of the expensive stuff like dental work appears to be covered for anything more than a token amount which would still leave you considerably out of pocket if you need a crown or something (plus, again, you've already been paying for the policy for the X years prior to needing it). We had our two babies in the public system - it was an excellent experience all round with private rooms, great medical staff and great follow-up for a couple of issues we had with one of them - and it didn't cost us a cent. We know various couples who have had their kids in the private system, had a similar experience (but maybe with some slightly nicer food and a choice of obstetrician - although I'm pretty sure that mid-labour my wife would have been happy with pretty much anyone in scrubs) and they still came out with a $2000 bill to pay at the end of it all despite paying thousands of dollars for coverage in the years prior. Plus, if the pregnancy is anything other than routine then you'll most likely be transferred to a public hospital anyway thus meaning all of your premiums to date for pregnancy cover will have been completely wasted. I've had the odd ultrasound and x-ray since being out here and for the infrequency of this type of thing being needed (maybe once every 3-4 years) being a couple of hundred dollars out of pocket for the gap at the time seems like a bargain. I'll continue to put money aside for knee ops and kid's braces in case they're needed in the future but if they're not then I'd be much happier passing that very substantial amount of money onto my kids than giving it to Bupa or similar.

We came out when we were in our late 20s/early 30s and didn't really have much to ship - we were living in a shared house until we left so didn't really have much furniture or anything of great value. We came out with a 30kg suitcase each and then shipped 3 tea chest style boxes of various bits with a moving company. When the boxes arrived a couple of months later I couldn't for the life of me fathom why we'd ended up packing three boxes of what was essentially junk and most of it has now long been op shopped. In hindsight I would have just packed the suitcases and left it at that. My parents recently sold up and moved from the family home in the UK and I had a very fortuitously timed visit to help them back in January 2020, just before COVID kicked off. I packed a few more sentimental bits like photos etc in my suitcase when I came home to Oz and spend some time selling off the rest of my stuff on Gumtree for some beer pounds to lubricate my visit. I also brought back an M&S Victoria sponge cake for the wife and a few packets of UK sweets for me the kids. That just about does it for me stuff wise.

If you're looking to get an inspection done then I'd highly recommend David Murray from Adelaide Pre-purchase Inspections (www.appi.com.au). He did a really thorough job when we used him, and he has done similar for a couple of friends too. We used another company for the house we actually ended up buying as David was fully booked and they didn't spend half as long inspecting as David did (and they missed a few things too).