hosebergine

Hi all

We're doing our recce to NZ in March and I wondered if anyone had any suggestions on things to suss out before putting in an EOI etc...?

We've got 16 days in the North Island which we need to use as both a holiday and a chance to really think about whether NZ is for us. We're flying into Auckland and out of Wellington.

Bit of background on us: lovely husband is an IT project manager so we're most likely to end up in Welly or Auck if we move over. I'm a full-time mum with a soon to be 3 yr old and am pregnant with our 2nd baby (yep, we didn't know when we booked our flights - can't wait to do that at 24 weeks pregnant!).

We were going to visit an estate agent or two, and hubby may try and catch up with a couple of recruiters too. Was thinking of looking at a kindie, or similar, as well......

Anyone out there got a list of things they wished they'd checked out or were glad they saw before they moved?

sunshine n jim

we havent got any info for you but hope you get to see lots while you are out there. the tower in auckland is ment to be worth a visit you can see different oceans either side of the land. all the best on your journey, please let us know how you get on. allt the best natalie

TeamEmbo

We did our recce in March last year, SI and NI 6 days whistle-stop tour! We checked out real estate offices, looked at some properties, went to some open homes, checked out supermarkets, clothes, electrical and household goods stores, eg. Countdown, Farmers, Briscoes, Bond + Bond, etc as well as local farm produce shops, to get an idea of quantity, quality of food and goods available, the prices and how much a weekly shop etc would cost us. I already had a typical food shopping list to compare to. Yes, I know you can't compare the $ to the £ prices but we had a rough idea what OH's salary would be in NZ to work from. We also checked out some schools, and got as much advice off as many locals, agents, etc that we came across regarding how things work here, like council rates, household bills, taxes, school entrance procedures, car usage, where/how to live etc.

Hope all goes well and you enjoy the NI.

happynz

Six days! Wow! I am impressed. You did all that in six days? Keee-rist! You should get an OBE or something like that for squeezing all that activity in.

irnbru14

My audition of NZ, not that I knew it at the time, was over 10 weeks in 2006!!

Back to the original post, it may be worth a good look around Auckland and Welly if thats where you think you will be staying, speak to some rental/property companies, have a wander, get a feel of the places, check the facilities and shops and see how you think it compares to home and if it is good for you! Check out some cafes (they are ALL amazing in Welly IMHO!) and restaurant, have a night out and see what you think of the places in the evening, tour about.

Then, when you have seen Welly & Auckland, take a few days out to enjoy yourself and appreciate what else NZ can offer for you and to think over what you have seen, a wee trip down to the South Island would suit you, even a short hop over to Nelson or a flight to C'Church from Welly is not that expensive in pounds, and not long really, so get round the places you think you may have to live and then have a wee holiday and see the country, you'll love it!!

hosebergine

Thanks everyone - that six day tour sound exhausting. Still you must have slept well on the flight home :-)

Getting a bit concerned about house prices over there. We think we'll keep ours in the UK but it means we won't have a big chunk of cash to put down over there. Must admit I hadn't thought of acutally going to any open homes - I'll see what we can do. Re: schools, did you arrange that before you got there? If so, how?

Hadn't thought much about the food / shopping side of things either so we'll be eating our way round Welly and Auckland now! How do you find the winds in Wellington...? I'm a bit worried my little girl might get blown away!

Can't wait to get there and have a nosy. I've been before but it was in 1992 and I think it will have changed quite a bit (I know I have). It's going to be a tricky balance of holiday (determined to get north of Auckland this time) and deep and meaningful chats about life, the universe and whether we're actually brave enough to make the leap. I'm assuming that you are all very content and loving NZ....?

luvwelly

I'm recently back from a 3 week touring holiday on North Island (I live in Wellington) and was impressed by the scenery everywhere...as everyone has always said...it truly is a beautiful country...I have now seen this for myself and still haven't visited South Island (except for an airport) so can't comment on that.
We did not really have any negative experiences/encounters....people were as friendly everywhere as they are here in Wellington. The only negative encounter was a teenager asking me for money at 10pm at night on a street in central Auckland...I politely refused.

Driving on the roads was easy peasy since despite it being the school summer holidays here there was hardly any traffic and we covered a large area.

I tried really hard to see economic deprivation mentioned by others north of Auckland and saw none...such is the rose-tinted view of the tourist.....I can well see from my recent tour, how you could visit here on a holiday and think it a veritable paradise.

Even in Rotorua - I think officially a very deprived area - nothing was evident. Lots to do there by the way....a trip up the cable car (luge if you dare) is worthwhile and the best of the thermal parks there is Wai-o-tapu.

We got excellent weather everywhere except Northland (north of Auckland - Russell, Waitangi & Keri-keri). I liked Auckland very much (thought it was a bigger version of Wellington and yes the Sky Tower is worth a visit as someone else said)

We also had a great time in Taupo where a Brit was recently murdered...it seemed like a lovely town with good shops by NZ standards but yes it would be quiet at night and if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time..or are followed when you leave a bar alone, it can happen anywhere alas.

To get an idea of what NZ can offer which is very different to Europe, aside from the excellent geothermal parks (Taupo & Rotorua) and glowworm caves at Waitomo, I would recommend the Coromandel Peninsula (easily reached by car from Auckland)..it is very unspoilt and Cathedral Cove at Hahei on a fine day is gorgeous but both the coasts on the Coromandel are crammed with fab scenery.

If you know you will be based in Wellington or Auckland, I would only do the property market research and schools (check out the ERO website)in those places..likewise the supermarket prices. The chain shops are the same everywhere but you can get most things amazingly. Wellington and Auckland have the best shopping anyway.

I would suggest driving around areas to get a feel for where you might want to live suburb-wise - in Wellington at least nowhere is particularly 'no go' although there has been a spate of recent late-night attacks in Newtown.

In Wellington region, have a look at the Kapiti coast (SH1)...you may want to live there in Porirua maybe???? Also the Hutt Valley is very scenic (SH2). You can go further and over the mountain into the Wairapa (sp?).

Mount Ruapehu is also excellent and has a cable car up to the view. Treat yourself to a night at this hotel www.chateau.co.nz if you do go there.

So enjoy your recce and your holiday..tourist wise, you will not be disappointed provided the weather is kind....don't worry about your daughter being blown over in Wellington. After several months here I'm beginning to think the 'windy wellington' tag is a bit of a misnomer but others tell me I have just been very lucky so far.