Tasmania

[Guest lycralizard]

Haven't been on for a while as still in UK. Still unsure about where to go in Australia (aus husband is teacher so can go anywhere). Forums on Tas seem more positive than others - perhaps because so few brits go there, so not so many opinions/experiences. It looks a beautiful place, and climate manageable. I have read that things are more expensive, wages lower, and you can feel trapped. The house prices are certainly cheaper. I am also very interested in The Friends School in Hobart (have heard such good reports of these schools in the UK). We have 2 children, aged 12 and 14. I do have a real concern about my daughter starting Y10 in Australia. She is all set to start GCSEs in Britain in September. Any thoughts on Tasmania would be most welcome. Why do the 'mainlanders' bash Tas so much?

[BearRules]

Tassie is a great place to live. I see all the negative comments about Oz being too expensive, and Tassie salaries being too low. Our overall salary income is broadly the same as the UK, I earn less than I used to because I opted for a job where I had limited experience but it was what I wanted to do. My wife earns more than she did in the UK so it evens out. There are items more expensive here, and things that are cheaper too. We haven't changed our lifestyle, and it honestly doesn't feel any more or less expensive overall than the UK was.

 

I think Tassie vs mainlanders would compare with England vs Wales. Everyone needs someone else they can bash for jokes, in Tassie they target New Zealand!

 

 

If you want a big city lifestyle, then Tassie isn't for you. If you enjoy a place with a large town feel, where its never too crowded, you can always find somewhere to park in the city for shopping, you can spend the morning on top of a mountain and the afternoon on a deserted beach, then Tassie might be what you are looking for.

 

 

 

Whatever you decide, best of luck for the future.

 

 

C.

[Skani]

Forums on Tas seem more positive than others - perhaps because so few brits go there, so not so many opinions/experiences. It looks a beautiful place, and climate manageable. I have read that things are more expensive, wages lower, and you can feel trapped. The house prices are certainly cheaper. I am also very interested in The Friends School in Hobart (have heard such good reports of these schools in the UK). We have 2 children, aged 12 and 14. I do have a real concern about my daughter starting Y10 in Australia. She is all set to start GCSEs in Britain in September. Any thoughts on Tasmania would be most welcome. Why do the 'mainlanders' bash Tas so much?

 

I wouldn't say "so few brits" come here. Speaking from memory, I think there are about 25,000 UK born residents here. (About 11% of the Tasmanian population is overseas born and, of those, slightly less than half are from the UK). You certainly hear the accents everywhere! :biggrin:

 

I think the Tasmanian forum is more positive than others because it is the most "British" of the Australian states and UK migrants settle more easily. I arrived here in childhood because my English born mother hated northern New South Wales where she originally settled, came here to visit family in Tasmania, and loved it. And she loved it for the rest of her life. Even my (Australian) father found the climate much more comfortable than NSW after spending several years in the UK.

 

The Friends School in Hobart has always had a very good reputation - academically, in sport and in community service.

 

Average wages are lower here. With the cost of things, I think it is very much a "swings and roundabouts" situation. As you say, house prices, which are a major expenditure for most people, are cheaper. Petrol is a bit more expensive than mainland states. On the other hand, most people would commute smaller distances, parking is cheaper (the first one and a half hours free in council car parks in Hobart, all shopping centres have free parking, free parking also at all beaches, unlike some of the larger cities). Supermarket food tends to be more expensive than other states, but there is easy access here to growers' and farmers' markets and the smaller stores tend to sell cheaper, fresher and more local produce anyway.

 

Tasmania wouldn't be the place for someone whose idea of recreation is retail therapy in big shopping malls, a different nightclub every night or a regular big production theatre show (although smaller theatre is remarkably active for the size of the population). However, if you want to get involved in activities there are all sorts available here and everything is very accessible. I heard recently that Tasmania has the highest proportion of artists and scientists per capita of all the Australian states - which is a neat descriptor IMO.

 

It is possible to get cheap flights direct to Sydney, Melbourne etc. - well, MUCH cheaper than they used to be - so I don't really understand this concept of being trapped. There are some (well paid) residents who live here and commute to those cities for part of the week for employment.

 

Mainlanders bash Tasmania for the same reason Britons bash the Irish, the Canadians bash Newfoundlanders and Australians bash New Zealanders: the "small" people on the periphery are always the butt of jokes.

[Guest lycralizard]

Thanks, everyone, for replies. Which suburbs (within 30 mins driving time of Hobart) would offer a decent-sized house on an acre or so, semi-rural feel and pleasant to live in? Are there any on the coast?

[Skani]

There would be plenty.

West of Hobart (near the mountain) - Ridgeway, Fern Tree, Neika, Longley

South - Kingston, Margate, Tinderbox, Howden, Snug (these are all by the coast), Leslie Vale, Allens Rivulet

East - Acton, Mt. Rumney, Sandford, Cambridge, Richmond

 

The next day: I should add that there are semi rural areas north of Hobart, too, within 30 minutes of the city but I am not a fan - just a personal thing. The one I do like is Collinsvale, but apart from that there is Granton, and further north towards New Norfolk on the left bank of the river, and Pontville, Brighton etc. on the other side. They do get colder and (river) foggier in winter and hotter (and sometimes parched) in summer. Collinsvale is higher up so there can be problems with snow and ice on the road in winter and bushfires in summer.

[runslikeafish]

This is almost certainly because we moved from Cornwall (also the butt of jokes) but we have found that our financial standard of living here is significantly better than in the UK. I suspect that had we moved from London or similar that wouldn't have been quite so much the case but we are nowhere close to being bothered by low salaries and high costs - quite the opposite. I've also found a very high level of skills/knowledge in the workplace which one wouldn't necessarily expect in a small city.

 

I fully agree with everyone's comments about what it is (beautiful) and isn't (shoppers heaven - unless you like shopping for outdoor equipment!). For us, everything we want is here and if Mrs Fish wants some serious retail therapy we'll grab a cheap flight to Melbourne.

[Bound4Tassie]

My Aussie husband is also a teacher . He is desperate to go home to Tassie. He often bemoans the fact that he is only now earning as a deputy head of a lower school , what he earned as a newly qualified tas teacher! And when we are back the teachers he qualified with work less and have a better work-life balance than the uk. So your husband has little to worry about going to tas!

[mel40]

Don't forget the Launceston region, we don't seem to get mentioned much. Slightly more laid back and smaller than Hobart but has lovely scenery, rivers etc. Wouldn't move from Launceston for no one. We have been in Tassie for 10 months and have never looked back... good luck

[Bound4Tassie]

 

Don't forget the Launceston region, we don't seem to get mentioned much. Slightly more laid back and smaller than Hobart but has lovely scenery, rivers etc. Wouldn't move from Launceston for no one. We have been in Tassie for 10 months and have never looked back... good luck

Many a good night spent at Irish Murphys in Launie during my backpacker year! Also worked in launie for a while. Loved cataract gorge!

[Gethsemene]

Another vote for Tas for me, I have been here for approaching a month now and love it, although having moved down from NSW it is chilly!! The thing about Hobart is that pretty much everywhere has a beautiful view of either the Derwent or the Mountain, both are lovely, but any view of the mountain drops the temp by about 10 degrees!!!!

[annagilda]

Don't forget the Launceston region, we don't seem to get mentioned much. Slightly more laid back and smaller than Hobart but has lovely scenery, rivers etc. Wouldn't move from Launceston for no one. We have been in Tassie for 10 months and have never looked back... good luck

 

Iris Murphy's!!! The only place in Australia where they served a decent Guinness!!!

 

I adore Tassie. Can't wait to get back some day! I also love the Tamar region. Feel homesick for somewhere that has never been my home! Mad!