Just wondering if anyone has moved to Canada before without doing a recce trip or holidays? I have been twice before but have no real concept of what its like now as I was there back in early 2001 so lots will have changed I guess. I know that you wont really get a proper feel for things unless you actually live there.

We are in the planning stages still but because we live in New Zealand its going to take a massive chunk out of our money to go and 'visit'. So would love to hear from anyone that just picked a part of Canada and moved there......

Like you say it'll be expensive to "visit" from new Zealand, but surely it could end up being a very expensive bad move if you found out it was a mistake after going through the whole process.
Personally I would do another recci trip.
That's just my opinion though.

Yep you are probably right, would be interesting to read stories of those that didnt to a recci trip though.

Hi,
I agree with Stu. I have never been to Canada but it is a place I have always wanted to go. So we are off on March 24th for a 10 day reccie trip to see if it is a place that we want to live, I really think we do!
John

I guess I'm thinking that no amount of research or holiday can actually prove that it will be the right place for us. Holidays are great to have a nose around and find your bearings but living there is different again. Good luck with your trip in March. What part of canada are you off to?

We are off to Nova Scotia for 10 days. We are going to travel around and see as much as we can. I have also met some really nice/helpful people from this site who have given me some great advice. Hopefully get a chance to meet them as well. Only down size is our visa application will not be posted off till early Feb, for various reasons! So I think it will be a long wait after that, my wife is a social worker so going down the FSW visa route.
Hope all goes well if you decide to come to Canada, where will you look at|?
John

Thanks, we are looking at Winnipeg, Toronto and Nova Scotia. Cant do a holiday at all 3 places so want to narrow it down to one and try fit in a visit if we can in July. Hard work tho deciding on whats the best option for us. My head is bursting with questions. I have also got lots of help on here from people living there at the moment. Thank god for BE

Hello,

From my experience going the other way, I definitely think a few trips are required. I travelled to London on a couple trips to check out what it was like before I moved. In hindsight, I should have spent more time looking the places I could actually afford to live, rather than all the touristy parts which not very many people actually can afford to live here(the center of london)
Important other factors I wish I would have contemplated more were "culture shock" and how that would affect me, and if I would really be able to accept being away from my friends and family forever. Having not really thought about it, it came on as severe depression when it actually hit me, that this was it for a while, I wouldn't be coming home. I was like FML. That was VERY difficult.

Also, money and jobs are something to take into consideration as growth in any part of the world is slow at the moment, and unfortunately that does include Canada. (Although, it's not nearly as bad as some other places)
We went through £20,000 in a few months when I moved out here on basics alone.

Basically, you will have to do some major research because just 1 visit isn't really good enough to provide you with the realities you will face should you move.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

Hi and thanks. I totally understand what you are saying re:culture shock. When i moved to New Zealand after 2 trips previous to moving, the homesickness hit me like a ton of bricks. Still does every now and then. No amount of research can prepare you for homesickness tho. Its all part and parcel of the process.

We also had intentions to move to a certain part of nz but when we came here we ended up living where we could afford which was somewhere totally different to where i had dont my research. Tho I didnt do very much research for coming to nz.

We have norrowed our search to where the work is as far as I know but by the time we are ready to move, that may have changed. More than likely we will go there and then find work. But if a job comes up before we move then obviously we would do that too.

I never go into something thinking its forever, simply because nothing ever is forever.

I'm guessing you have pr status?

Yeah, the culture shock thing also hit me like a ton of bricks, and although I am used to living in London and that, I still feel like my life is on hold until I can move back to Canada if you know what I mean.
I know no matter how much research you do, plans can change, but speaking in regards to what I went through, I wish I would have done more.
I know nothing is forever, but I guess I used that term to state how permanent the change felt at the time. Because we have now completed our paperwork to move back to Canada, it feels less intimidating than it did.

If you've already been through the culture shock, then you'll know what to expect if you decide to move to Canada. I think this may actually be a good thing, as you'll have already been through it and you'll know how to deal with it.

I would still say to visit the province where you may end up living. There may be questions you have, that are better answered whilst you're there.

I'm sure there are loads. Check out the Moving Back To The UK forum.

What did you like or not like when you moved to NZ?
What were you looking for, and what did you find?
What is your line of work - and how realistic is it to find that work fairly quickly (and I mean within the first 3 months) ?
What do you hope to find in Canada that you have not found in NZ?

If it is a temporary move, ie, for just a few years, then just come anyway ... sounds like you are going to be paying moving costs from NZ regardless, so it doesn't matter where you go.

No amount of visiting or researching can prepare you for how you are going to deal with the day to day living in a new country. The internet is a wonderful tool to research different areas and visiting them beforehand can confirm that its worth giving it a go or not as the case may be. We visited many, many times and researched as much as we could, got jobs, school places and house rental before moving. My niece moved to Australia without visiting, successful job interview via the net and relocated to Brisbane without anywhere to stay. Everyone is different, just depends how brave you are.

I think you are better off saving the reccie money and being very transient when you first arrive. Rent, don't buy, don't commit to big immovable expenditures (long car leases, etc). Pick somewhere you think will suit, spend all your energies getting work, and then if it doesn't work out or you get homesick use the unspent reccie cash to move city / province / country (home).
If you end up picking the right place and are happy and stay to get citizenship, then blow all that cash (plus tiny amounts of interest earned) on a huge spendy vacation

By the way, I'm on province number 3. Settled now, not moving again!