Advice on Aus Visit

[Bran]

Hi all,

 

My partner and I will be visiting Brisbane and Melbourne over the next 3 weeks in order to validate our visas and have a look at the two cities we have chosen to potentially immigrate to. We have PR and are looking to move next July.

 

We have researched the job market already and been in contact with agencies on this end, so we do have some understanding on what the job prospects are like.

 

Area wise, we will be using Air BnB in residential areas that we think we may like to live in... use the local transport, train to CBD etc to get a feel for getting around.

 

I have a sister in Melbourne and jobs are more plentiful there, which is drawing us to the city, but Brisbane does appeal too.

 

Any advice anyone can give on what we could do whilst onshore to help with the decision making. Besides the usual visiting the sites and getting a feel for the city, we want to have as much info as possible to make an informed decision!

 

 

[Leighbee98]

Id love to know how you get on...

 

We are going for a holiday in Feb and if our visa application is successful we will probably do the same as you.

What do you do for a living? what type of jobs are you looking for?

 

Wish you all the best

[Guest The Pom Queen]

Hi @Bran how exciting, although you are coming in the middle of winter so please be gentle on us lol.

Its funny as when we say Melbourne or Brisbane we expect it to be a small radius when in reality it’s absolutely huge, even though we are an hour from Brisbane we still say we live in Brisbane when anyone asks from outside the area as it gives them a recognisable pointer. It was the same when we lived in Melbourne, we were classed as SE Melbourne but an hour from the city unless it was rush hour and then it could be 3 hours.

Having lived in both Victoria/Queensland, I have to admit Queensland would win every time. For me Melbourne was very much like the UK, which is great if you want to adjust slowly. We were there 8 years so it can’t of been so bad. I think it was the weather and blandness of Melbourne that got to me. Don’t get me wrong if I had to choose between the UK or Melbourne, then Melbourne would win hands down. We did a lot of road trips around the East Coast and found lots of other areas that suited us more. 

‘What I will say to you is that either State will have a Suburb that will suit you. If you don’t like the ones you visit whilst here, don’t give up as there are some stunning areas and some dumps. Also, what is right for one family may not be right for yours.

Please let us know how you go on, and don’t forget your jumpers.

[Bran]

Id love to know how you get on...
 
We are going for a holiday in Feb and if our visa application is successful we will probably do the same as you.
What do you do for a living? what type of jobs are you looking for?
 
Wish you all the best

Partner is currently an assistant headteacher, and we know that teaching is generally difficult to get into full time, so have also been exploring childcare centres as an alternative if necessary, albeit at lower wages.

I’m currently managing the customer services department for a Pharmaceutical company. My skills are transferable to other areas or industries so I’m fairly confident I can find something that suits me, and am prepared to take lower positions initially.

We haven’t actually decided 100% yet that we will make the move, but have both agreed that after this trip we’ll need to make a decision.

Wishing you all the best too!

[Bran]

Hi [mention=265279]Bran[/mention] how exciting, although you are coming in the middle of winter so please be gentle on us lol.
Its funny as when we say Melbourne or Brisbane we expect it to be a small radius when in reality it’s absolutely huge, even though we are an hour from Brisbane we still say we live in Brisbane when anyone asks from outside the area as it gives them a recognisable pointer. It was the same when we lived in Melbourne, we were classed as SE Melbourne but an hour from the city unless it was rush hour and then it could be 3 hours.
Having lived in both Victoria/Queensland, I have to admit Queensland would win every time. For me Melbourne was very much like the UK, which is great if you want to adjust slowly. We were there 8 years so it can’t of been so bad. I think it was the weather and blandness of Melbourne that got to me. Don’t get me wrong if I had to choose between the UK or Melbourne, then Melbourne would win hands down. We did a lot of road trips around the East Coast and found lots of other areas that suited us more. 
‘What I will say to you is that either State will have a Suburb that will suit you. If you don’t like the ones you visit whilst here, don’t give up as there are some stunning areas and some dumps. Also, what is right for one family may not be right for yours.
Please let us know how you go on, and don’t forget your jumpers.

Thanks for the advice Pom Queen, nice to have some insight from a ‘local’!

We have definitely noticed the difference in weather online between the two cities and although more sunshine sounds great, we are worried we wouldn’t cope in the Brisbane summer.

I think initially we will need to think with our heads rather than hearts and do what’s practically best and decide where we need to be to get established. further down line we could then look at where we would want to live,even in a different city/region, and then look at options to making that happen.

Where are you based if you don’t mind me asking?

[Guest The Pom Queen]

13 hours ago, Bran said:

Thanks for the advice Pom Queen, nice to have some insight from a ‘local’!

We have definitely noticed the difference in weather online between the two cities and although more sunshine sounds great, we are worried we wouldn’t cope in the Brisbane summer.

I think initially we will need to think with our heads rather than hearts and do what’s practically best and decide where we need to be to get established. further down line we could then look at where we would want to live,even in a different city/region, and then look at options to making that happen.

Where are you based if you don’t mind me asking?

This was the reason we chose Melbourne, plus Hubby had a relative there so I think it was having that security if ever needed. Although we never saw them when we did move, only once or twice a year.

We lived near Berwick when we moved to Melbourne, although our first rental was in Beaumaris we could never afford to live there so in reality it was a poor choice by us. Thankfully we hadn’t chosen school for the children so we didn’t have to disrupt them again. In fact we kept them off school for a few months,  but then held them back a year to make up for the disruption. In this time we had finally settled on a Suburb and even squeezed in a quick vacation. Then a few months later we bought our first house in the neighbouring suburb.

We then moved up to Cairns, I absolutely loved it there and would still be there if it wasn’t for medical problems that meant I needed to fly down to Brisbane to the hospital. We tried Townsville for a year and hated it. We are now in the Lockyer Valley.

People always say Brisbane is hot but to be honest I find it absolutely fine. In fact if anything, too cold, but that’s after my time in Cairns. You hear people say Queensland is too humid, but unless you work outside it doesn’t affect you. Work places are all aircon, cars/public transport have aircon and same with shopping/homes.

If you have family in Melbourne then it may make sense for you to head there, it just gives you that extra emotional support if needed.

[Marisawright]

17 hours ago, Bran said:

We have definitely noticed the difference in weather online between the two cities and although more sunshine sounds great, we are worried we wouldn’t cope in the Brisbane summer.

I think initially we will need to think with our heads rather than hearts and do what’s practically best and decide where we need to be to get established. further down line we could then look at where we would want to live,even in a different city/region, and then look at options to making that happen.

Where are you based if you don’t mind me asking?

Yes, the difference in weather between Brisbane and Melbourne is huge.  Remember, the distance between Brisbane and Melbourne is the same as the distance between London and Madrid, so it's only to be expected.  

It's impossible to say whether you'll find the climate in Brisbane too  much, it's such a personal thing.    Some people aren't bothered by humidity at all, whereas other people (like me) melt like an ice cream, and can't stand it.   As PomQueen says, if you're an indoors person then it's irrelevant because you just go from air-conditioned house to car to work to shops.  If you're an outdoors person that's different, but it will depend on how your body reacts to humidity and what exactly you do outdoors.

Humidity isn't much of a problem when the weather is cool - the hotter it gets, the worse it feels.  The attached map illustrates the combination of heat and humidity in various parts of the world.   As you can see, if you've only lived in Europe, you've never experienced anything like the heat+humidity you'll get in the northern parts of Australia - so it's a pity you're visiting in winter rather than summer.  

Edited July 20, 2018 by Marisawright

[ramot]

As Marisa said, Brisbane is hot and humid in Sumer, buildings are air conditioned, but would be hard if working out of doors, realistically it’s only a maximum of 4 months, the rest of the year is predominantly lovely. Winter is mostly clear blue skis, low humidity,  temperature in the low 20’s, but can get down to 5/6’ over night, 

I can’t help with the work situation, but my son and wife seem to do ok. Brisbane is obviously much smaller and often referred to rather rudely as a small country town. There is plenty going on there, and we have most of all the good shows, exhibitions and major sporting events, and Southbank is a bit special.

I live on the Sunshine Coast which is a bit far for a daily commute, we do have aircon, but a surprising number of people only have fans.

Good luck with your visit.

[nicolesmith]

On 20/07/2018 at 16:57, ramot said:

As Marisa said, Brisbane is hot and humid in Sumer, buildings are air conditioned, but would be hard if working out of doors, realistically it’s only a maximum of 4 months, the rest of the year is predominantly lovely. Winter is mostly clear blue skis, low humidity,  temperature in the low 20’s, but can get down to 5/6’ over night, 

I can’t help with the work situation, but my son and wife seem to do ok. Brisbane is obviously much smaller and often referred to rather rudely as a small country town. There is plenty going on there, and we have most of all the good shows, exhibitions and major sporting events, and Southbank is a bit special.

I live on the Sunshine Coast which is a bit far for a daily commute, we do have aircon, but a surprising number of people only have fans.

Good luck with your visit.

We live an hour north of Brisbane and only have ceiling fans.  Fortunately we have high ceilings downstairs, so the air flow is good.  We found it fine in the summer, hot but bearable, with only two nights that we felt we needed more than open windows and fans.  So we bought a portable air conditioner, and had the kids camp out in our room for the night.  But we really had no need for it other than that.  

Can't comment on Melbourne though, as I've never been there.

[calNgary]

1 hour ago, nicolesmith said:

We live an hour north of Brisbane and only have ceiling fans.  Fortunately we have high ceilings downstairs, so the air flow is good.  We found it fine in the summer, hot but bearable, with only two nights that we felt we needed more than open windows and fans.  So we bought a portable air conditioner, and had the kids camp out in our room for the night.  But we really had no need for it other than that.  

Can't comment on Melbourne though, as I've never been there.

I'm an hour South and we just had air con fitted this year, for the past 10 years we too only used ceiling fans and days that have been totally unbearably hot (too hot to move) are few and far between in all that time. In fact so far the air con as been used more for heating than cooling,lol.. The biggest negative i have about living here (other than missing family) is the cold nights in July and August., i really feel the cold and they just depress me as do the dull days in winter,but  thankfully we don't see too many of them and the sun creeps out most days all year round. 

 A car how ever is a different kettle of fish and i wouldnt even entertain one that didnt have great air con.

 

 Cal x

[Marisawright]

14 hours ago, nicolesmith said:

We live an hour north of Brisbane and only have ceiling fans.  Fortunately we have high ceilings downstairs, so the air flow is good.  We found it fine in the summer, hot but bearable, with only two nights that we felt we needed more than open windows and fans.  So we bought a portable air conditioner, and had the kids camp out in our room for the night.  But we really had no need for it other than that.  

Can't comment on Melbourne though, as I've never been there.

I'm very glad for you.  If I were in your shoes, I'd be really suffering.  Like I said, different people have very individual reactions to weather.   Some people will manage very well with ceiling fans and be perfectly happy, whereas some people won't be able to cope at all, so it's really unwise to say to a stranger, "don't worry, you'll be fine."   There's no way any of us can know in advance.

[nicolesmith]

43 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

I'm very glad for you.  If I were in your shoes, I'd be really suffering.  Like I said, different people have very individual reactions to weather.   Some people will manage very well with ceiling fans and be perfectly happy, whereas some people won't be able to cope at all, so it's really unwise to say to a stranger, "don't worry, you'll be fine."   There's no way any of us can know in advance.

 You're right - I wasn't telling the OP that they would be fine.  I was just saying how we had found it on our first summer here.  And as I don't know the OP I obviously can't tell them how they would feel.

My family would probably think the winters too hot here.  They don't like it any hotter than 20 degrees in the UK summers.  The first time I came here was in the winter, and I spent three months being the only one in t-shirt and shorts while all the people I knew were well rugged up.  I guess I acclimatised, as I now wrap up for the arctic for my walks each morning.

[nicolesmith]

13 hours ago, calNgary said:

I'm an hour South and we just had air con fitted this year, for the past 10 years we too only used ceiling fans and days that have been totally unbearably hot (too hot to move) are few and far between in all that time. In fact so far the air con as been used more for heating than cooling,lol.. The biggest negative i have about living here (other than missing family) is the cold nights in July and August., i really feel the cold and they just depress me as do the dull days in winter,but  thankfully we don't see too many of them and the sun creeps out most days all year round. 

 A car how ever is a different kettle of fish and i wouldnt even entertain one that didnt have great air con.

 

 Cal x

Me too.  As soon as the daylight hours start shortening, and the mornings and evenings cooling off, I start thinking of flying north for the winter!

We had a car without air con in a Cyprus summer (up to 45 degrees a couple of days).  We managed ok, but I sure do appreciate being able to drive in a cool car.

[ramot]

As Nicole mentions high ceilings plus a fan do help to cool a house, the other thing I would suggest is when looking to rent or buy a house in Qld cross airflow does make a difference as well. All our main rooms and bedrooms have windows on different walls. Another point to consider is that although this sounds obvious, if you have a 2 story house, upstairs is much hotter. 

I refuse to live without aircon, I know it is said you adjust, but I lived in Brunei for 10 years, hot and humid all year, and although ok outside, never adjusted to a hot and humid house. We only had aircon in the bedrooms to start with and I foolishly Cooked a full Christmas lunch early on for 18 people and had to lie down in a darkened cool room afterwards!! 

My attitude is I wouldn’t live in UK without central heating so why on earth would I live in a QLd without aircon, but each to their own, but after 15 years here there have been some sweltering hot summers when aircon has definitely made life more comfortable and a few summers that it hasn’t been needed as much.

[ramot]

1 hour ago, nicolesmith said:

 You're right - I wasn't telling the OP that they would be fine.  I was just saying how we had found it on our first summer here.  And as I don't know the OP I obviously can't tell them how they would feel.

My family would probably think the winters too hot here.  They don't like it any hotter than 20 degrees in the UK summers.  The first time I came here was in the winter, and I spent three months being the only one in t-shirt and shorts while all the people I knew were well rugged up.  I guess I acclimatised, as I now wrap up for the arctic for my walks each morning.

In winter We laugh gently on the Sunshine Coast, we are as you say rugged up usually wearing a fleece, walking past visitors in bikinis!

[Toots]

20 minutes ago, ramot said:

As Nicole mentions high ceilings plus a fan do help to cool a house, the other thing I would suggest is when looking to rent or buy a house in Qld cross airflow does make a difference as well. All our main rooms and bedrooms have windows on different walls. Another point to consider is that although this sounds obvious, if you have a 2 story house, upstairs is much hotter. 

I refuse to live without aircon, I know it is said you adjust, but I lived in Brunei for 10 years, hot and humid all year, and although ok outside, never adjusted to a hot and humid house. We only had aircon in the bedrooms to start with and I foolishly Cooked a full Christmas lunch early on for 18 people and had to lie down in a darkened cool room afterwards!! 

My attitude is I wouldn’t live in UK without central heating so why on earth would I live in a QLd without aircon, but each to their own, but after 15 years here there have been some sweltering hot summers when aircon has definitely made life more comfortable and a few summers that it hasn’t been needed as much.

Exactly my thinking too.

[Bran]

Thanks all for the replies. We validated in July, visiting Melbourne and Brisbane, and loved it as we expected, albeit a holiday and fully aware that living there will be different.

As mentioned in some replies, it was strange seeing locals wearing scarves and gloves in Brisbane whilst we were in shorts and tees, but the weather was perfect. We do consider though that summertime may well be unbearable.

Other than checking out the city centres and exploring some suburbs where we may like to live, there wasn’t much else we could do on the trip to help in the decision on whether to move or not. Job research has been done from the U.K. and I think we are comfortable with our prospects.

The things left to consider are the property we own in U.K, our pets and the family we’d be leaving behind, all quite difficult to decide on but something we have to make a decision on soon!