Stephen Jones

If we make the move to NZ rather than Australia then Auckland is the place I am most likely to find work, bt is it a nice place to live?

I admit in pictures and on t.v. it looks gorgeous, but I would be interested in the opinions of those who are there.


Steve

Dave and Lyns

Hi Steve!

Yes - I'll second that As if we might end up going that way then it would be to know of the opinions of people too. Again this would be down to where to find work, probably more than where we would like to live in NZ (but lets hear the opinions first!)

Cheers

Dave

NZ Climber

Look, there are pros and cons of living anywhere, it's the way it is. However, we live in Ak and feel like the pros outweigh the cons. The traffic is shocking, the people are ruder and more "Londoner-like" than other places in NZ, it's more expensive (for everything), higher density and populated by more Asian restaurants and shops that don't even have English signs than you can shake a stick at but we still love it.

You can drive for 30 minutes and be in the countryside and you're never far from the water. The sun shines and the city sparkles and here is where the majority of the jobs are. It's the financial capital of NZ, the largest city in NZ and is therefore a lot more cosmopolitan than much of NZ.

We love the fact that it looks like Baby's first city from the water (and that's not meant to be demeaning, it just has a fairly low rise skyline) and that there are beaches basically right near the CBD, where else can you get that?

There are plenty of green areas, there are nice bits and nasty bits and the shopping is probably the best in NZ, if that's what you're looking for. Housing is much much much more expensive than anywhere else but that's what happens in big cities. You can commute by ferry, the train station is cool and the public transport system in general is less crap than most other places in NZ. It's still a small enough city that if you're on a late bus back from town, the driver will drop you outside your house, whether there's a stop there or not. That's nice.

Basically I think that Ak gets a bum deal, other NZers hate it and abuse people from it but I love it and I love living here.

xpat19

We've lived in Auckland for 4 years, and think it's a nice place to live.
It's so large and diverse, there's some thing for every one. If you like nice white sandy beaches head for East Auckland, if you like bush and big surf beaches head west. If you want to live in or near the city then that's possible to..... but pricy.
You have a lot of choice in Auckland, and don't have to live right in the thick of the city, unless you want to. Leave the city in any direction and within 15 minutes you can be in the country side or on the coast.

The city its self isn't very pretty - apart from the water front & the domain but apparently there's a lot of work planned, that will improve things.

StueyMoff

Auckland is the most multi-cultural place in NZ with a high number of Polynesian, Indian and Asian (note over here Asian means Oriental not Indian subcontinent as in UK). Lots of different cultures to experience as well as Maori and Pakeha. In many ways this gives Auckland a UK City feel.
Therefore Pommy immigrants don't warrant a second look, rather like Londoners are with Kiwi's. Unfortunately what xenophobia there is is mainly directed at the Asian communities. Don't expect a Utopian melting pot!
The driving really is atrocious but I commute 20 minutes on the train into work and it's great watching the sun rise over the docks as we get into Britomart station in the morning. Also it doesn't take long to adopt defensive driving techniques when driving around.
Aucklanders are historically disliked by other kiwi's and called JAFFA's. Just another f***ing Aucklander. They are perceived to be either a bit wide boy, yuppie or if your a West Aucklander a bit trashy.
The houses are perhaps a bit expensive but we bought well through a private sale (just stopped the car outside and asked the owner re: the for sale sign). Auctions are also good (and a great afternoon out).
Piha beach Mirowais and Bethells beaches are 1/2 hour drive away and are spectacular.
Also there's the sport, Eden park for Rugby (Auckland Blues/All Blacks) and Cricket.
There is a growing interest in soccer and the New Zealand Knights are in the A League (Aussie) and Auckland City FC based in Kiwtea Street is a good place for expats to meet and watch the league champs on a Sunday. Good little stadium and friendly crowd. Like an English third div set up.
My one complaint (sorry) is the lack of a decent boozer in West Auckland although there are 3 good pubs in town, the Fiddlers on Victoria Street and the Dogs Bollix off Newton Road for starters and one in Vulcan Lane name escapes me (I've been too busy in truth to go boozing much but it's nice to know they're there!). Also recommend the Kingslander opposite Eden Park stadium (sports bar that shows Eng Prem)
Fish and Chips are highly highly recommended all over, although there is a gap in the market for a Greek Cypriot Coffee shop I reckon.

newkiwi

We lived in AKL for two years when we arrived in NZ.

Cons:
Expensive, esp housing compared to the rest of NZ
Sprawling suburbs
Traffic is bad, both to the north across the harbour bridge and to the south towards Manukau
It rains a lot

Pros:
You have beaches everywhere, you can live there for a year and not have to visit the same beach twice
Restaurant choices are great
Waheke Island for a weekend or even just a day trip
Its warmer than most other cities in NZ
Its where most of the job opportunities are
Scenery is amazing if you take time to drive around a bit

Dave in Auckland

AKL here, for the last 12 months, pretty much all of it is good. If only houses were cheaper :-)

SteveNZ

lived in ak for three years now...and have to admit to liking it a lot...

I had reasons other than work to settle here... my wifes family all live in auckland too - although I am in IT work and it doesn't make too much career sense to move out to anywhere else.

I fully agree with NZ CLimbers comments and StueyMoff too - though I don;t think the fish and chips rate (well chips actually - I don;t eat fish) compared to the UK (see my other thread!)

StueyMoff makes an interesting point about the boozers though... the drinking culture here is vastly different to the UK. You can have whole villages and suburbs here with no pubs! (Where in the uk there would be about 8 of them!) - although - on your average weekend - most people don;t even get to the bars before 11pm-12am - you don;t have to be in a night club to drink till late - if that's what you like - though it could be argued that many bars feel like nightclubs anyway!

In my opinion - Auckland is the best place to be for a number of reasons - but for me - it has the job prospects and other advantages of being in a city - but there is much more space, it looks so much nicer than many cities - and the countryside, seaside and isolation is less (much less in some cases) than an hour away in all directions

Steve

Stephen Jones

Thanks for all your replies so far.

Steve

jjennings

Been here nearly a year and agree with everything said so far. Actually live about 30 miles North of Auckland but work in West Auckland so drive down every day. When I come around the corner and get my first view of the city skyline across the harbour each morning I still think "Wow". There's nothing like it anywhere in the UK.

Traffic sucks during rush hour (rush 2.5 hours? ) but at least most of the time you keep moving, just very slowly. You follow the 2 second rule (1, 2, stop, 1, 2, stop.........).

Access to the sea is the best thing. Loads of islands, amazing fishing and clear water. Since being here I've learnt to scuba dive and bought a speedboat. Water temp last summer was 23C. Can't afford to buy a house though!!!!

Cheers,
John

lapsed kiwi

Where are you living? Just to help my research on where to live on the North shore that's close enough to commute to Devonport. Hoping for Orewa but may have to settle for upper East Coast Bays

jjennings

We live at Gulf Harbour. Right in the middle of the international golf course (even get free tickets for the NZ Open). Rent is about 20% less than an equivalent house in the Auckland suburbs. Being on the Whangaparaoa Peninsula (it took us a couple of months here before we could spell it ) means that we just check the wind direction before deciding which of the beaches within 5 minutes drive we will be going to.

One other thing that gets us about this area - seeing the occasional parrots flying around!!! That proves to us that we are in a different world.

lapsed kiwi

Glad you like Wh-thingy peninsula, that area sounds really cool? Do you work on the north shore or in the CBD? How long does your commute take? Houses seem to get better value the further down the peninsula you go, but I guess this adds to the commute time.

P18PPS

Im interested in the commute from North Shore to the CBD. I have been told that it takes too long, but that was a HR person in the company I am going to work at. Any ideas about the time from say Milford to the CBD by car, as the ferry will probably only be used on occasions.

Stephen Jones

I am interested in the answer to this too.


Steve