GoingIn2011

Glad: Yes

simonsi

Interestingly both our kitchen hob and the BBQ run off 9kg LPG bottles. We use 2 on the BBQ to every one on the kitchen hob. No the BBQ is not under cover.

Can't imagine that in the UK, even on the South Coast.

GoingIn2011

Is that right? Anyway, if so, it is misleading.
I lived in Bristol for 20 years - it's overcast for 11 months of the year and seems to rain almost continuously.

Auckland - specifically the Waitakere Ranges, less so other suburbs - gets pelted with rain frequently all year but it comes down in torrential downpours and half an hour later its blue sky again. It's rarely overcast like it was in the UK/ Bristol. Even if it has higher rainfall, it seems to rain to me a lot less time-wise. One dimensional statistics can lead to flawed conclusions being drawn.

simonsi

I reckon it rains 4x as fast here as in the UK, so even twice the annual rainfall falls in half the UK rainfall hours....much better all round I say :-)

GoingIn2011

By the way, questions like this posed by the OP rarely yield any truly useful information imho. Every city in the world will have its supporters and detractors. Some may say you will get a general sense particularly if a place tends to one extreme or the other. But the respondents here are unlikely to be sufficiently representative. So that's flawed. It really comes down to the individual concerned; and only you will be able to judge whether it's for you.

You really ought to try and come out before making any firm decisions.

I am writing this from a lounge of a hotel in Tongariro National Park. That's my happy place. I like Auckland, but I like it even more for how easy it is to access numerous other great places in NZ which are just a few hours drive away.

Every weekend is packed with fun and excitement for the family. We viewed our weekends with dread in the UK. We couldn't be happier.

But is my experience necessarily representative? No.

GoingIn2011

I never experienced rain like it before moving here!

The biggest things I noticed re the weather coming over here:

* How hard it rains but for less time
* How little it is overcast - whereas the UK was overcast almost all the time (and that used to really get me down)
* How strong the sun is here
* How mild our first / the last winter was
* How rubbish NZ housing is for even mild winters!

Stephen Jones

so where do you live now then?

Catchafire

Marlborough, top of the South.

We liked Auckland, but ultimately it was not the picture of NZ we were looking for.

cappuccino

Since when has Auckland been the capital?
JAFAs have this strange concept that nothing exists beyond the Bombay Hills!!

gina and danny

I thought I had missed something big then

simonsi

Try looking it up, you might learn something, I said "a capital" which Cambridge happily defines as "the most important place for a business or activity", you know, as in "cultural capital", "financial capital". Clearly seat of Govt does not make Wellington (or anywhere else in NZ that has been the seat of Govt), the economic capital of NZ, but Auckland IS, like it or not, and THAT is what drives the issues it has.

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dict...tish/capital_1

simonsi

Yes you did, but not what you think ;-)

cappuccino

So you are now implying that Auckland is more important culturally and financially than Wellington. Keep digging your hole Simonsi.

simonsi

Economically, growth, population and pop growth. if not these then which factor(s) do you think cause Auckland's issues then?

Being upset that no-one compares London and Welly isnt an analysis.

chris the property man

Back to the point, guys...

My family (wife, 21 year old and 18 year old 'kids') and I have been in Auckland (Howick to be exact) for nearly seven years now and have loved every minute of it.

We had what most would class as a nice life back in UK. I had my own business doing well, kids were enjoying school, nice cars, holidays to USA and Europe. But it wasn't really what we wanted. Too much crime, too many people walking around looking depressed, crap government, a health service being brought to its knees...need I go on.

We did our home work on NZ, Oz and Canada. Oz had too many things that can kill you and extremes of weather, so that was discounted. Canada was a maybe but we decided NZ looked the most likely. It seemed to have a lot of similarities to UK but different enough, in a positive way, to make the big upheaval worthwhile.

We decided to visit NZ and if it didn't suit then we would look further into Canada. We came over for a 2 week exploration expedition and fell in love with the place. We stayed in a motel on the Bucklands Beach peninsular with Rangitoto staring at us in the face every morning. The weather wasn't fantastic for the 2 weeks, but still much better than any 2 week period we could remember having in the North West of England.

Six months later we were here - we sold the house etc. so that we weren't just going to 'give it a go' but were fully committed. It was the right thing to do for us. The kids seemed to step back into their childhood by 3-4 years. In UK kids 'grow up' far too quickly now. They seem to stay kids for much longer here, which we see as a definite plus.

I haven't earned as much as I used to, but I'm hoping that to change soon. But money was not the reason we came here. It was for a slower, nicer way of life, and we got that. Yes, the houses are a bit crap and the wages are lower and....etc., etc. It isn't perfect, but it suits us down to the ground.

The point is, as many have said, it is a different experience for everyone. You can get all the opinions you want, but ultimately you have got to suss things out yourself and make that decision. We didn't want to look back in 10 years or so and say "why didn't we go for it". But, similarly, I don't think it's a good idea to emigrate anywhere with a "we'll give it ago - we can always move back" mentality. Everyone that I've met that did that has ended up returning back. Probably because they just weren't committed to making it work. It's like getting married. You shouldn't do it until you know that it's the right thing, don't do it half heartedly.

It still might not work out (as with some marriages) but at least you will have given it the best chance you could.

My advice...do your homework. Choose which place is the best option, taking all the factors into consideration, and do a 3 week recce. Suss out the different suburbs and schools so that you can make the decision once you go back (that'll make your mind up, I bet...getting back to the gray skies and depressed looks..sorry, that was my experience).

The fact that you are looking at uprooting your famiy and moving as far away from UK as possible must mean that you are not happy where you are. Correct? So, you just need to work out whether NZ and specifically Auckland is the right place to move to.

Best of British!