glhall

We cant make up our minds! First it was Brisbane, then we heard all these horror stories about people dying of the heat and going to hospital etc. 43 degrees is 1 degree hotter than our spa can go and its hard to get into it at that temp. So then we decided on Melbourne, now hubby is worried its going to be just as cold there as it is here in Hamilton nz. I said I could probably put up with the cold if we can get a nice summer even if it is hot now and then in Melbourne more so than having a fabulous winter in Brisbane and then dying in the summer or close to it. Has any one out there spent a few years in both places who can give us some advice on which is more bearable/pleasant to live in, thats just weather Im talking about at this stage. Thanks Catherine.

jayr

Well, I can't bear the weather in Melbourne (brrrr...)

ABCDiamond

It really does come down to personal choices.

For me, I prefer the warm to the cold.

Air Con in the house keeps the house cool
Air Con in the car keeps the car cool
And all the shopping centres have Air Con

In the real HOT weather, you don't go out and just stand around in it. In just the same way as you wouldn't go out in the real cold weather and just stand around.

I never liked the UK cold weather, so my choice is to accept the few days of really hot weather up here.

But others will prefer the cold, and wrap up with jumpers etc.

Badge

I'm your man for the job, Katherine.

Brissy weather (ie it is sub tropical and then some); is more humid than Syndey or Melbourne - indeed some would say Melbourne is less humid than Sydney. We've had mid 30s and the occasional 41 here in Melbourne, and people say we've had a cool summer!

Winters in Brissy are nice. End of story. Yes everyone suffers at some point in the summer but I notice that it's also down to fitness, attitude, acclimatisation, dress etc. Sportsman seem to come over and 'manage' in the heat after a few weeks but they work at it. I see Australians suffer when I am OK. That aside, it DOES get hot, no two ways about it, bloody HOT ask my mate Dotty amongst others etc (sorry Dotty! Just sending you a few referrals).

There is an argument that high temps 'seem' lower in Australia. There is a degree of truth in this; proably due to acclimatisation. But people on this forum have been known to go to war over the differences in opinion on this one esp if the differences are couched in those terms relating to humidity. Temps are measured in the shade in a nice box elevated on a post so may not reflect the true temp; average temps will always be lower.

I have to admit, in Sydney, I arrived in Feb and wore a rugby shirt and wasn't hot in 28 degrees, whereas that would be a heatwave in the UK and you would not even think about wearing winter dress. And of course if it is 27 in the UK, then it would be summer and you would have had 20-22, whereas I had come from 7-10. So in Sydney, maybe there is less 'humidity' - I can't say without being jumped on. When I arrived back in Sydney at Christmas it seemed more humid than I ever had remembered, but everyone admitted that it had been particularly bad.

Melbourne (and Sydney) do get cold. I was surprised my first year.
You will hear peple say that you put on your coat to go indoors(!).
Not cold as in London cold, admitedly, but it WILL seem VERY cold especially if you arrive in the Southern Hemisphere summer and have acclimatised to heat. Winters seem cold down south because the houses are bloody feeezing - but no matter - as the UK bods going back can tell you - you can always do something about the cold - wear 2 fleeces aorund the house, get AC reverse cycle, or get a fuel burner, or loads of little fan heaters. This is why shops like Target and KMart are so good - you can buy 2 fleeces for say 15 bucks each. I wore a fleece over a singlet all winter in 2002, and added another one indoors. Was warm enough during the day.

You may get a frost - read the windows of your car get wet, it happend only the other day and we are 1/6 of the way through Autumm(!) but even in Melbourne I gather you rarely have to scrape your windscreen with any degree of effort on more than a few mornings every year. Although there may be one or two nights of 0 degrees its not common.

On the other hand, the good thing about Melbourne and Sydney winters is that you still get plenty of sunny days, and days even in the high teens. Sydney gets low 20s as well. Brissy - no worries - best time of year probably!

Melbourne can be very changeable but not quite as changeable as 4 seasons - more like 2. You may not get the ultra blue skies that you get in Brissy - or even Sydney. If will often start cold and overcast and then heat up gradually and become pleasant unlike Sydney which seems to be more consistent. (Of course, days start gloomy and brighten up everywhere). Even in the last month of summer, I felt a tad cold on 2 mornings. Get out of bed, make a cup of tea - solved.

There is a lot more rain in the winter in both Melbourne and Sydney - Sydney gets twice as much rain as Melbourne, but certainly more, but in less time, but I suppose it will rain all day. You won't get days and days of drizzle like in the UK. Although you might...(!) Spring is the most changable time of year I gather for Melbourne, very windy and this may be the time of year when you wish you were in Brissy or even Sydney.

Melboune gets a fair amount more daylight (not sunlight) than Brissy. Enough to make a difference to your quality of life. Add together the Daylights Saving in VIC (and NSW) and the lower lattitudes - further from the equator, and the summer solstice has sunset at c2045. Now it is still light at 1930. Not bad! Certainly more than a hour more past Brissy. In the winter it is 1730 not bad..

have a look at this. Best site I've found.

http://www.weather-climate.com/melbourne.html

cheers

Badge

HUP

I havn't experienced the winter in Melb yet but the summer was good. We had a couple of days in the late 30's but they were followed by a cool change down to about 22-23. Its good because you actually get to cool down.

March has been glorious and by all accounts generally is (locals opinion) with temps in the early to mid 20's.

Yep there is a winter and temps can get down to single figures (generally overnight only) and it can rain a bit to.

We preferred the more seasonal weather outlook and the more central location.

NJFOZ

We opted for Melbourne - the weather here is better than the UK by a long shot, but it still has seasons. I've been here only 7 months so I can't comment on the whole range yet.

Have only ever been to Queensland on holiday and the sea temperatures there are fantastic. Not sure I'd ever want to live somewhere where I needed AC to survive.

Then again in the Uk I only ever wore one layer (and a jacket at worst). Hot blood!!!

Bordy

We chose Melbourne to & arrived a few years ago in July which is mid Winter here. After 20 Years living in the Scottish Borders it felt like Summer to us, I was in shirt sleeves while everyone else was wrapped up. But you do get accustomed to it & now anything under 20 degrees feels freezing. This time of year (Autumn ) is perfect in Melbourne with Sunny days & Temps of mid 20s.

davidw

I now live in Perth and have lived and worked most of my life in the tropics. Before coming to Australia, I viewed Melbourne's climate as a disadvantage. However, if there is one reflection I would share with potential migrants to Australia from the UK or indeed other hot climates, it is this. In Australia, the sun, and summer is the enemy, not clouds, rain or winter. The sun here is fiercer than anything I have experienced in 30 odd other tropical countries. It is too hot for an outdoor life in summer after say 9.30am and before say 5.30pm. Though I like sunny days, nothing prepared me for several months with literally not a cloud in the sky. Blue skies and sunshine are one thing, endless days without a wisp of a cloud are another. It may seem hard to believe in Blighty now, but there you go. And although this applies to WA not so much QLD, you'd be amazed how much you long for rain and moisture when everything is brown, parched - an ancient, worn continent. In short, I think Melbourne's climate is a real plus, not a minus. I can so understand why so many European migrants were drawn over the years to the coolest, greenest part (Tassie apart) of this oh so dry continent. I think its a much easier landing for UK migrants in Melbourne, though coming through Perth or Adelaide might help to remind people of the joys of rain, greenery and fertility. England is overcast but otherwise in my view, its cold is milder than Australia's heat. And Melbourne is far warner than Blighty.

I personally disagree with the view than its easier to cool down than heat up. Indoors perhaps. But I think it's much easier to put a coat or jersery on in 15 degrees and go out than to go outside in 40 degrees, with unimaginable UV levels. I said this to an Aussie in Perth and he said to me, "funny, I've never really noticed the sun, mind you I've had melanoma twice!"

Bottom line, I would urge UK migrants to consider Melbourne's climate as one of its advantages. And consider, paradoxically that for much of Australia outside Victoria, you're exchanging a mild climate (UK) for an extreme one (Oz).

Good luck with the decision!

Best wishes

David

HiddenPaw

Spent 18 months living in Mebourne - 2 winters and one full summer (plus 3 previous summer visits).

Winter - wore the same winter coat that I did in the UK, and scarves, and gloves. Day time temps may look better on a weather chart than the UK but a brisk antartctic wind (believe me, there's a lot of them) can drop the temps by a good few degrees). If the sun's shining in winter, it can be glorious, but as soon as you step out of the sun and into the shade you can really feel it! I remember often standing for trams in the middle of Collins St and my god would it be cold because of the wind.

I spent a lot of time outdoors in winter as I used to cycle into CBD daily - leaving house at 7am it could regularly be 0 or 1 degreees - on the odd occasion it may be minus -1 or -2 but I never experienced it less than that in the inner suburbs/cbd. If you're in the hilly suburbs - like Mt Dandenong/Sasafras, even heidelberg, then overnight it will be a lot cooler than this. I would have to wear full winter cycling gear, same as what I wore in the UK - I honestly didn't expect to wear the same gear, but I had to. (The fact that the shops in Oz sell the same is testament to this!!) Thankfully, never had to deal with heavy frost, ice or snow in Melbourne winter and daytime temps didnt stay below or near zero like they do in UK.

Summer temps vary by so much - The highest I experienced was 45 in Jan 03. Too hot for me. We had one day where it hit 39 then by 6pm same day it was back down to 18 - i.e quick change and lots of variation. But lots of days in the mid/high 20s (and also a few over 30)

The thing with melbourne is that it is so changeable, so quickly, but as long as you're prepared it's ok. Personally, I prefer Melbourne's cooler climate [compared to other parts of Oz]. I have only been to Bris on holiday and both times were September - and it was very hot. I don't think I could do outdoorsy stuff in those sorts of temps...but that's just personal choice and I guess all down to what you want to do and how you tolerate the heat.

Badgers is right about Melbourne getting more hours of daylight. But I must say that once the clocks had changed at end of March, the longest evening between April and end of Oct was sunset about 6.30-7pm (and in depths of winter, by 4.30-5pm), and I didn't like that (again, no fun cycling in the dark!)

Good luck in your decision - I know you are only considering it from a climate point of view at the moment, and I guess there are so many other factors to take into consideration, but wish you well.

bondipom

Aren't we all meant to be running around outside enjoying the lifestyle?

Phoenixuk2oz

Yes.........now put on your rose coloured glasses......... and out to play!!!

ABCDiamond

Not during those two hot months of summer !! It was too damn hot this year. People kept having to jump in the swimming pool all the time to keep cool.

It was OK last year though And it's OK again now.

glhall

Thank you to all who replied. Some of the posts would have taken a while to type. we appreciate your help. It has helped me.
Graham

Slater

That's what we thought, too bloody hot though! Later this year we will have a pool installed and aircon throughout the house,we thought that we were in for a great outdoor lifestyle, with our 4 children keen on playing all the sports at school, this just hasn't happened, today both our boys played Rugby. We are looking forward to to next 8 months, then we hope to spend December and January on a Thai island.


Slater

Bordy

Easiest way would be to win Tatts Lotto & have a house in Melbourne in the Summer & a house in Brisbane in the Winter, where did I put my ticket?