Advice on moving to Australia

[andrew26]

So I'm currently in the UK, have been my whole life. However I'm seriously considering moving to Australia and main reasons being weather/lifestyle which I know is better than UK. People keep saying its too expensive, holidays are less than what you get here. So I'd just like to hear what life is like for someone who actually lives there, if they enjoy it, the good and bad. 

[rammygirl]

I would say that the weather is definitely better. I lived in Lancashire where it was mainly grey and damp! I love the big blue skies here they really lift my spirits. Not that we don’t have grey skies and rain just not as often as not as long. I now live in the Adelaide Hills and love it.

It isn’t cheap and housing is the biggest cost for most.

A lot will depend on what you do for a living and where you are considering moving to……it’s a big country……..

[Marisawright]

14 hours ago, andrew26 said:

So I'm currently in the UK, have been my whole life. However I'm seriously considering moving to Australia and main reasons being weather/lifestyle which I know is better than UK. People keep saying its too expensive, holidays are less than what you get here. So I'd just like to hear what life is like for someone who actually lives there, if they enjoy it, the good and bad. 

Yes it's more expensive overall, but then if you're a tradie, or in the medical field, your salary will be higher so it becomes swings and roundabouts.  If you're in the corporate world, you may have to take a salary drop and you'll probably have to live in the very expensive major cities to get a job, so it all gets a lot harder. 

As to whether the weather is better -- it depends where you're coming from and where in Australia you'd be going to.  Personally, I'm not good when the temperature over 30 degrees, which is extremely common in most of Australia in summer. That's why I live in Melbourne, which is cooler than most of the rest of Oz. 

Anyway, your first hurdle is to work out whether you can get a visa.

 

[can1983]

yep more info is required for sure on their circumstances

For us moving to Hobart in 2017 presented a huge increase in quality of life from an inner city deprived area in the UK commuting an hour a day to living at the beach less than 5 minutes from work. But even since 2017 its all changed and we wouldn't be able to do the same move in 2024. People would say Tassie has the worst weather of all states but we love it. Its cold in winter but lots of clear days unlike the greyness of the uk

Which state are you thinking, what job etc

[Toots]

18 hours ago, andrew26 said:

So I'm currently in the UK, have been my whole life. However I'm seriously considering moving to Australia and main reasons being weather/lifestyle which I know is better than UK. People keep saying its too expensive, holidays are less than what you get here. So I'd just like to hear what life is like for someone who actually lives there, if they enjoy it, the good and bad. 

You are going to get a lot of differing opinions.  Australia is huge with quite large variations weather wise.  I've been in Australia for over 4 decades and have found I prefer a cooler climate.  I'm in Tasamania now after living in Sydney for a long time and Perth for not such a long time.  No doubt about it, Australia is expensive especially housing.  The length of holidays never bothered me as when I left the UK we had 2 weeks annual leave back then.    

Where are you thinking of coming to in Australia?

[Skani]

First of all, how old are you and what is your employment history?  That will determine whether a visa to move is even possible.

[Quoll]

Weather and lifestyle huh? For me, the weather isnt better - I like to walk and in the summer here I do not like having to get up at 5 to walk otherwise be burnt to a crisp.  In the winter it is OK because I can layer up.  When it rains, IT BLOODY RAINS - none of your nice gentle mizzly stuff and you will be drenched within a few minutes. I am also one of the ones who gets SAD with relentless blue skies, especially when you are in the middle of a drought when you PRAY for rain, the more torrential the better! (Yes, blue sky SAD is a real thing! cured only by skies broken with clouds!).  But Australia is a huge place and the weather is as variable as can be - from almost arctic (that's a joke, Tasmania!) to tropical and all stops in between.  Some places have standard seasons, some dont. 

Flies - I hope you like flies, they attract themselves to every orifice they can see and their intent is to penetrate every one - with buzzy noise accompaniments.  Lifestyle - hmm, is that the old work life balance thing? or is it the inclination to have a barbie every weekend with the flies and their mates, the mozzies?  Of course there will be places you can go which dont have flies but whether that's where you might want to live - in a huge expensive city - is up to you.  As for the work/life balance, that was never better for our family - both of us worked well over the 40 hours a week we were paid for, back in the day, and so, yes, we might have been numpties but we needed the jobs and the jobs needed doing.  You might struggle with just 4 weeks rec leave a year though.

Bottom line though, you have to be old/young enough and skilled enough to get a visa so that might be your first hurdle. 

[Bulya]

9 minutes ago, Quoll said:

Weather and lifestyle huh? For me, the weather isnt better - I like to walk and in the summer here I do not like having to get up at 5 to walk otherwise be burnt to a crisp.  In the winter it is OK because I can layer up.  When it rains, IT BLOODY RAINS - none of your nice gentle mizzly stuff and you will be drenched within a few minutes. I am also one of the ones who gets SAD with relentless blue skies, especially when you are in the middle of a drought when you PRAY for rain, the more torrential the better! (Yes, blue sky SAD is a real thing! cured only by skies broken with clouds!).  But Australia is a huge place and the weather is as variable as can be - from almost arctic (that's a joke, Tasmania!) to tropical and all stops in between.  Some places have standard seasons, some dont. 

Flies - I hope you like flies, they attract themselves to every orifice they can see and their intent is to penetrate every one - with buzzy noise accompaniments.  Lifestyle - hmm, is that the old work life balance thing? or is it the inclination to have a barbie every weekend with the flies and their mates, the mozzies?  Of course there will be places you can go which dont have flies but whether that's where you might want to live - in a huge expensive city - is up to you.  As for the work/life balance, that was never better for our family - both of us worked well over the 40 hours a week we were paid for, back in the day, and so, yes, we might have been numpties but we needed the jobs and the jobs needed doing.  You might struggle with just 4 weeks rec leave a year though.

Bottom line though, you have to be old/young enough and skilled enough to get a visa so that might be your first hurdle. 

Just don’t see the fly problem since the dung beetles were introduced.   

[Bulya]

God’s country or Blighty.  Pretty simple decision…

[Skani]

24 minutes ago, Quoll said:

Weather and lifestyle huh?

Quoll, I can see the solution is for you to move to the arctic part of the country:  almost never too hot to walk, plenty of mizzling rain - not that stair rod tropical stuff - and barely see a fly (maybe on a sheep station?)  

[Toots]

47 minutes ago, Skani said:

Quoll, I can see the solution is for you to move to the arctic part of the country:  almost never too hot to walk, plenty of mizzling rain - not that stair rod tropical stuff - and barely see a fly (maybe on a sheep station?)  

I was out walking in the mizzle this afternoon.  No wind but the leaves were floating from trees.

[Blue Manna]

9 hours ago, Bulya said:

Just don’t see the fly problem since the dung beetles were introduced.   

You obviously weren't in WA last summer then. The damned things could have carried us away.

[Bulya]

5 minutes ago, Blue Manna said:

You obviously weren't in WA last summer then. The damned things could have carried us away.

Not my favourite place.   

[Quoll]

10 hours ago, Toots said:

I was out walking in the mizzle this afternoon.  No wind but the leaves were floating from trees.

Ah, but.... Tasmania!!!!!

[Bobj]

So are mango leaves and custard apple leaves.and coconut fronds, those big things you have to chop into three pieces to remove them.

But warmer.

Cheers, Bobj.

[Toots]

3 hours ago, Quoll said:

Ah, but.... Tasmania!!!!!

It was 5 degrees earlier this morning but I was kept warm mucking out the horses.

[Quoll]

4 hours ago, Toots said:

It was 5 degrees earlier this morning but I was kept warm mucking out the horses.

It's hit a gddy 7.6 here in Canberra but, they say, and I believe them, feels like 2.4!!!!

[calNgary]

If you can get a visa and want better weather than what you have ,head for QLD, ive been here a fair few years now and am pretty happy with the heat and beautiful sunshine, except when it rains for days and days which does sometimes happen.

 I think cost wise it is much of a muchness compared to the UK, some things cheaper, some more expensive. Once you have been here a while, you 'learn' when to shop for certain things to maximise savings..

Lifestyle around here is pretty laid back. Holidays are not so cheap (unless you want to go to Bali) as flights can be expensive, on the flip side here in QLD you can holiday every weekend on your doorstep and such vast differences in places can be found only a few hours drive apart, from sandy beaches, to sunflower farms in the country, walks in the rainforest, bathing in waterfalls and dipping in warm streams and did i mention the beaches ,lol...

 

    Good luck with everything and keep us updated

                 Cal x