redditchcouple

thinking of heading to adelaide with our two little ones when we will get our visa.....is it a great place to bring up a young family??

iamthecreaturefromuranus

Is Birmingham... or Manchester.... or Leeds?

Seriously, Adelaide is just another big city. Parts of it will be great, other parts less so.

redditchcouple

heard it is one of the best cities in the world to live in??
what about the area around there?

Aussie30

Adelaide is not a big city at all, and it is a wonderful place to bring up a family.
Make sure you do some research into which areas would suit your family's lifestyle before you move.
I am from Adelaide and we live in a sea side suburb there called Brighton which we love. Adelaide has a lot to offer, especially for bringing up a family, we have been away overseas for the past 18 months and cannot wait to go back home in a April to settle back into our life and start a family. Adelaide has beautiful beaches and sea side suburbs which are within 25 minutes of the city centre, as well as the beautiful Adelaide Hills (where I grew up) with amazing views and lots of open space. We have a fantastic lifestyle back home which we are missing a lot, lots of BBQ's in the local park, shopping at the Central Markets and China Town and hanging out at our favourite cafes near the beach.
If you have any questions regarding nice areas I would be happy to help you out.
www.realestate.com.au is a good website to get ideas of what houses and prices are like in different areas.

linloo

We live 20 mins south of Adelaide CBD and from my point of view its just great for us. It suits us down to the ground. We came here because it was very affordable, it has proper seasons, it is not to big a city, but has everything we need. The beaches are great, I could go on.. My friend and her OH came out with thier 6 year old and she has the best time here with so many activities she does not stop. Like anywhere its what you make of the place, and the kind of lifestyle your after. There are still rough areas and crime but that's nothing new. We love it here and I am really happy with our choice. Good luck

mysnix

We came from Birmingham and Adelaide does not even vaguely compare to it!!

Yes it is a city and has its less desirable areas - but it is not on the same planet compared to what we came from (well obviously it is, being Earth and all ... but you know what I mean!)

Yes it is a lovely place to bring up a family - lots of outdoor activities, beaches, parks etc. Less 'busy' than some of the other capitals IMO.

Nikki

jad n rich

Those surveys came up with iceland as no one place to live the year before it sunk into financial oblivion

Take them with a pinch of salt. Certainly dont move because of them. this forum got loads of queries on Darwin after it featured in a life downunder show, now without being rude, its a place the avg pommy migrant would last 5 minutes in, ( IMO of course )

Another favourite on the list is Vancouver Canada, a stunning city if your stinking rich and a city with hellish poverty, homelessness and drug problems for the not so lucky. Traffic and rain and low wages are real probs there for many too, however the survey loves the place. So do I but I am realistic about it.

Adelaide, small aussie city, quiet by even aussie standards, rough in many parts, hot dry summers, some people Love it, others may find its not for them at all. One of its big plusses is the housing is still cheap compared to many parts of oz.

Fly Away

We have been here 10 months and love it.

We have previously lived in Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester, London and Cardiff. As a previous poster said, it is nothing like a big UK city. However good suburb choice is essential, not because there are many 'bad' suburbs but you have to chose what suits your family.

We live 5 mins from the CBD and yet we live in a pleasant, quiet residential street with large blocks. It takes us 20 minutes to drive to the closest beach. You can't do that in many UK cities.

Be very careful about moving too far from the city if you are an office worker and likely to have to work there - unless that's what you want. I would say a 45 minute commute is about my limit. As with any city, there are bottle necks, so if you are going to commute then try the route out before you commit to an area.

It is a long way from the very top of the city suburbs to the bottom of the suburbs, so if your occupation is likely to be in the South, don't move to the North and vice versa. That's just common sense.

There are plenty of people who don't like Adelaide, if you are a person who likes everything possible in entertainment, it will be a disappointment. There are plenty of concerts etc but it's not a frenetic place. Life is slower than the other Aussie capitals, which we like but others might not.

Ditto the weather, it's not hot and sunny all the time and last winter was very wet (which was good apparently LOL) However it is considerably nicer than a UK winter if you ensure you heat your house. The Aussies don't have central heating so don't expect that.

There is still crime and antisocial behaviour too. It's a city... but there is considerably less than the other cities we have lived in. That doesn't mean you can leave your house or car unlocked!!

Aussie30

Have you ever been to Adelaide? You description of it is terrible and far from the truth.

Bob Tonnor

Hi there, i have traveled through Adelaide on a number of occasions and really liked the place, friends who live thinks its great too. It is a reasonably small city with just over a million people living there, it always gets described as having a large country town feel, whatever that means. Check out http://www.locationlowdown.com.au/se...ts/SA/Adelaide and see what you think, by the way its reasonably near (400km) the flinders ranges which is amazing for a long weekend away. I would say it is definitely worth a look.

Bob

mohogony

l've lived there, its quite nice but theres probably better places in OZ to live, it has less jobs then all the other cities except Hobart so make sure you can get work there first. As someone else said it all depends what part of Adelaide you live in some areas are really nice like the hills and eastern suburbs, while some other areas are real dumps. l found the summers there alot hotter then Melbounre
and its dryer. IF you can get a good job there and live in a nice suburb then l think you will like the place.

mohogony

Do you mean compared to overseas cities or OZ cities, l didn't find crime or anti social behaviour to be any less in Adealde then other OZ cities,

Cookster

We lived in Adelaide, Hallett Cove for a year when we first came to OZ and enjoyed it very much. Although have to say always felt like there was something missing. To be honest it could have been a city in the UK. Huge ex pat community too, which for us was a plus.
Dry, brown and barren for 8 months of the year, and bitterly cold in the winter. Having said that we liked the seasons too.
After a year we decided that Australia was too big a place to just make do so we ventured to QLD, never looked back. This is the Oz that WE were looking for.
Angela

Fly Away

I lived in Sydney many years ago but apart from that have only lived in UK cities so can only compare with what I know. I can't comment on other Oz cities really but they sound similar.

I meant to say that you aren't often able to live that close to the CBD in any city - not just the UK - and get this much space. Again only speaking from my experience of living / visiting cities.

Fly Away

I think that's largely true. Although there are some lovely places on the coast if it suits your employment. Brighton/Hove are very nice suburbs for example. I have friends in the North and the areas where they live are very pleasant too.

It also depends on what you come from. As city dwellers we expect a certain level of dirt/crime/traffic/bad areas etc etc but if you came from a quiet country village you would find the level of those to be higher than where you came from. Again common sense.

I think I am saying, it is a normal city, come expecting that and be prepared to do lots of research when you get here. What you read on line helps, but you must consider your own family's needs. Living by the beach if it means an hour's commute both ways might sound ok on paper but it gets wearing. You may not be able to afford the houses by the beach which are closer to the city. If living by the beach is your top requirement you might end up disappointed. Adelaide might have cheaper houses than Sydney but don't expect to be able to live on the beachfront in a cheap house.