dave7370

Firstly, hi to all the BE people and I hope everybody had a good Xmas and are looking forward to any possible moves to the other side of the globe in the New Year.

Ok then, I have the offer of employment in Cairns, but, have never been there. My wife and I are quite keen on the idea what with the Barrier Reef etc on the doorstep and what seems like reasonable prices for houses plus the fact the job is literally the same as what I do and enjoy now. What I'd like is an idea of what it's like there, areas to look to live in and what their inidividual thoughts and experiences were / are.

Many thanks, and have a Happy New Year!

Dave, Cheryl and Jacob (4 weeks, 3 days old)

Speargun

Hey Ive got relatives in Port douglas which is just an hour to the north of Cairns...beautiful place and cairns has much more going on!! The only thing is come this time of year it is very sticky wet! So not sure If we still want to be going there - as for a few months each year its just too hot to go out!

brido

I think the weather is more tropical and my workmates kids and friends went backpacking through Oz and Asia.They got to Cairns loved it,then went to Thailand for a few weeks then decided to go back to Cairns for 6 months!!They cant speak highly enough of the place.

wannabauzzienurse

We're off to Cairns next year, I've got a job at the hospital. I haven't been there since 1993 but loved it when I was there before, yes it gets humid in the summer but you soon get accustomed to the climate.
There is plenty to do with the reef and rainforest so close, lots of shopping centres, cinemas, markets etc.
Some useful sites we have been looking at are.....

http://www.cairns.qld.gov.au/
http://www.cairnspost.com.au/
http://www.cairns.aust.com/
http://www.cairns.qld.gov.au/communi...b_profiles.htm

Hope that helps

Thydney

We visited Cairns twice, once during a Cyclone not my idea of a nice place to live Port Douglas is far nicer. The climate is similar to Florida and yes you do get used to it and faster than you think I live in Florida and now find 60f cold . so you'll be a jessy before you know it. Don't forget you won't always be diving and sight seeing when you live there so be sure there's more there than that for you.

dave7370

Thanks for those, very imformative.

Has anyone recommended a specific area / suburb to move to at all?

wannabauzzienurse

I've ben told to avoid suburbs beginning with 'M' and that the northern suburbs and beaches are most sort after. There are nice looking places to the south of the city and prices are lower there but for me to get to the hospital I'd have to drive one end of the city to the other so we're looking at the closer beaches (Machans, Holloways) and closer northern suburbs (Redlynch, Brinsmead, Whitfield etc) would also consider Smithfield but it's a bit further to the north. It's difficult to know until we get there so we'll rent first, didn't have kids when I was there before so need to look at schools etc

steandleigh

It takes 20 minutes to drive from Clifton/Kewarra/Trinity beach to the hospital and it is an easier drive than southside up to the city.

Suburbs beginning with an 'M', mmm, maybe. Manunda, Moorabool etc are lower socio-economic areas with a higher concentration of community housing.

Congratulations on the job!

steandleigh

All valid points. One mans meat is another mans poison and all that.

Personally I don't like Port - too many Gucci toting wannabees, overpriced restaurants and tourist tat shops. Cairns city has that too but we don't frequent the city all that much.

Life at the beaches is very peaceful and has excellent access to The Tablelands and The Daintree, both of which are stunning. really depends what kind of lifestyle you are looking for.

The weather is a mixed bag - Cyclone Larry last year was interesting :scared: but usually its mild year round and stinking hot around this time of year but you do adapt very quickly.

Cairns is a little way behind in terms of consumer choice, adequate provision of services (hospital and educational services in particular) and you are a decent way away from any major city. If you have the funds, then a jaunt to Brisvegas only takes an hour or so by air. However, if you can adapt to these things and don't yearn for the big city life, enjoy nature and a slower pace of life then Cairns might be ideal.

FWIW, I think Cairns is a good place to raise little ones but I would not rule out moving elsewhere as they grow older.

wanderingwombat

As others have said Cairns can be hot particularly in the wet season. Do as the locals do at that time of the year and slow down. It cant be all that bad if the population is approx 120k.

It is all very laid back.

The trick is to find somewhere to live that has shade to sit outside under and air con is probably a must.

Search the forum for info about Cairns suburbs. The southern burbs tend to be now newer dormitory suburbs. Yes, by Cairns standards the traffic from the south can be bad (laughable compared to the rest of the world ).

The good thing at the moment is you wash your car as many times as you like AND water the lawn .

Current weather http://www.eldersweather.com.au/loca...aploc&lc=12316

WW

Oz wannabe1

Hi Dave and family
Firstly have a great New Year
I have been to Cairns a few times and yes it gets hot and yes it is full of backpackers but WHAT A PLACE!!!

Although I am heading for Perth(second choice), Cairns was first on my list. Change of mind was purely due to business reasons. I will be looking to get to Cairns as often as poss. I had a blast there.

Best of luck with everything.

dave7370

Thanks for all your replies, absolutely top banana!

We had our hearts set on Melbourne (easier to get work as I'm a maintenance fitter in the car industry) but have been put off by the possibility that I'd end up doing the same thing but just in a different place. The other small things such as the indifferent weather and the fact that we found the beaches no where near as nice as we did when we were up Queensland way.

If the way of life in Cairns is far more relaxed than in Melbourne then it wins hands down. I've had enough of living in a big city and spending hours queueing just to go the smallest amount of distance and getting attitude form Tom, Dick and Harry, so a smaller place would be a welcome change.

The job offer I have is quite exciting (to me anyway) and the boss is an ex-pat and came over as a top bloke on the phone. At the end of the day, if we didn't end up liking it, we can always move.

Bix

Hi Dave,

Check out this link.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...ghlight=cairns

Oodles of information and opinion in there.
Follow some of the links. I put Photos in there.

Lord Pom Percy

As you said the beaches in Melbourne aren'nt very good, but have you been 1 hour outside Melbourne either West to the great ocean road or east to Gippsland, there are some of the best beaches in OZ, although too cold to swim in winter.

Baz

We went to Cairns over the summer and loved it, we hope to move there next year. It has loads going for it, its not too big but it still has everything you need, and not too small that you would get bored quickly. It feels very laid back, and is very pretty with forest all over the place, and then of course the Esplanade and Lagoon on the water front. You have nice beaches and residential areas to the north, rainforest and then the tablelands to the west, Mission Beach to the south, and Port Douglas to the north which is great for a visit. It strikes me there is alot to do in the area, and that it is developing very quickly, so will increase in size (whether this is a good or bad thing is another question.)