er…well, what’s it really like living there?

Wife & I are seriously looking into emigrating, original idea a few years back was Oz, but we’re both now too old! However, we both really like the look of NZ – esp. Christchurch area.

We can both see lots of positives, but we’d heard mixed reports on the political/economic situation i.e. almost as s**te as the UK 😉

As we’re both almost officially middle aged…arghh!, we’re wondering how things like healthcare, social services etc. compare to the UK. An ex-pat NZ friend (who’s now gone back!) reckoned it had gone thru a rough patch (because of a spell of Thatcherite type Govt??), but was still better than the UK. He returned to NZ ‘cos he wanted a better life for his kids – so guess it can’t be that bad! 😀 Also heard a lot of conflicting opinions on North vs South Islands.

Can anyone advise please. TIA

errr…..anyone?

I’m interested to hear any ideas also as me and the missus are thinking of heading out in a year or so.

I moved to NZ about 6 months ago, your prospects of finding a job depend on what you do i guess. my move was never going to be for life, well unless i prefered it.

what would you like to know, i mainly know about the north island as that’s where i live

Amongst other things, cultural/social wise, do you think people generally take more social responsibility for their actions, and are less ignorant than their UK counterparts?

On a more mundane, practical level, we’re wondering about quality and accessibility of healthcare. Don’t know if you’ll have had cause to use it yet, but in reality, do you need full private medical insurance over there?

Oh, and again, don’t know if you’ve been there long enough, but how does the economic climate and outlook feel over there? (if you don’t already know, the Govt over here has put the economic recovery into reverse – and the full effects of their economic and social changes haven’t even taken effect yet – outlook is very poor, unless you’re Philip Green, Lord Ashcroft, Rupert Murdoch of course)

Well, it’s an awesome place to bring up kids (can’t compare to the UK but have fond memories of my childhood in NZ), and a very relaxed lifestyle. As long as you’re not into health and safety as you’ll have to let your kids run about in barefeet all summer!

If you’re after the outdoors lifestyle, Christchurch is great for biking, skiing, hiking etc. Nelson too. Tauranga too. Rotorua (aka Rotovegas) is singletrack heaven but I’d say nearby Taupo is a nicer town to live in (sorry Vegas).

But like anywhere, there are pro’s and con’s so keep an open mind…

– Large yet cold housing (no central heating, full insulation is just kicking in)
– Good summers, but can also rain/blow a gale for endless periods at times
– Friendly people – people say it’s like Britain was in the 1960s (“media” culture is much less dominant)
– Isolation and self-sufficiency go hand-in-hand, i.e. no cafe at the trailhead, if there is a trailhead
– No motorways so be prepared to drive long distances in the South Island for weekends away (but gorgeous when you get there)
– Relatively good public healthcare and social care (waiting lists for big ops like here though)

What strikes me whenever I visit home is how everyone meanders very leisurely around the supermarket. And there are no queues in the post office. And that’s in Auckland! Anyway, some food for thought.

I lived in Auckland for year and a half. I’ll just say I was counting the days until I could leave the awful place.

To answer your second post, I’d say more people are environmentally aware as people live much closer to the whims of mother nature (earthquakes, volcanoes). Social responsibility – depends where you live but petty crime can be high in places.

You don’t need private medical insurance as public hospital care is good and accessible to all, but doctor’s visits cost around $50 each (ouch).

Not sure on the economic outlook as haven’t lived there for a while, but the feeling I get is there’s a similar pessimism as in the UK. Note that interest rates are historically much higher too. Generally NZers have a lower disposable income than the UK, but the quality of life is often higher as not everything can be measured in $. Hope this helps.

Chunky, please elaborate..?

I’d love to try it but I have a wife who says “I can’t be that far away from my family’, as a lot of them seem to…

I spent my childhood in Auckland. I’ll just say it was a great place to live, few years ago now though.

I’d not say people are more environmentally aware, if you ride a bike on the roads you are not far off being seen as a vermin, i’ve ridden in east end of london and people are far far worse here, public transport is also a joke (which is good as i’m a highway engineer).

also most NZ towns look like a large industrial estate, but there country side makes up for it. economic outlook is touch and go, much like the UK but it’s very closely related to china here so if you think china’s growth is sustainable it will be okay, if not then who knows.

i could give you a list of pros and cons that would take me all day, i really like it here but i really really like the UK so will return after a while (as things stand).

my sis and bro in law moved there about ten yrs ago and now live about 70 k north of Auckland. no kids, just turning 50, like it alot, got citizenship and no plans to move back. clearly not all great, its not that hot and sunny (although it varies around the place obviously), its not crime free, drivers are cack, RoW are limited, there is not much history or culture – compared to western Europe anyway. but it is value for money, friendly, good social set up, decent room to live and move about, great walking, riding, some skiing, good diving, good sailing and so on.

If you do a forum search this has been asked a few times, you also posted your original message at 3am equiv time so you’re replies would have been a wee bit slow 😉
For background I’m an ex-pat lived here for 13 years, 11 in Wgtn where i am now.

I’ll properly answer your questions though.

>>healthcare, social services etc. compare to the UK.

Healthcare is generally good, the public system suffers from its usual foibles of lots of people to service with limited funds. Private health care is relatively expensive. Doctors you have to pay for so expect $50-$80 per visit but high quality generally. Dentists you pay for (i dont; think there is an NHS equiv) and like all dentsist they can charge. Social services and general council services very good , well in Wgtn anyway.

>>conflicting opinions on North vs South Islands.

What do you want – career, expectations, income etc. all define how successful you will be. If you want acres of open space, a 5 minute commute and nobody around then you’d not live in Akl. If you want to earn $150,000 in the cut and thrust of business you’d not live in Nelson/Taurange/Napier etc or any of the other regional centres. main cities are Akl, Wgtn, ChCh and Dunedin. WHat do you do for a job as that may define where the best place is to go. As a generalisation if you live in a regional center you may experience a better ‘quality’ of life at the expense of finding employment harder and also feeling like you live in the wop wops.

>> Amongst other things, cultural/social wise, do you think people generally take more social responsibility for their actions, and are less ignorant than their UK counterparts?

13 years ago yes, NZ was firmly stuck in the early 80’s. Now however it experiences the same problems as the rest of the world but on a lesser scale. There are social tensions between Maori/Pakeha that have been here forever and come and go. Generally I have found the people to be more positive, forward looking and helpful. There are of course exceptions like my miserable next door neighbour, but he is English 😉

>> On a more mundane, practical level, we’re wondering about quality and accessibility of healthcare. Don’t know if you’ll have had cause to use it yet, but in reality, do you need full private medical insurance over there?

Like the UK if you want action NOW then yes but otherwiser you are in the public system. I have used both and been impressed with both.

>> Oh, and again, don’t know if you’ve been there long enough, but how does the economic climate and outlook feel over there? (if you don’t already know, the Govt over here has put the economic recovery into reverse – and the full effects of their economic and social changes haven’t even taken effect yet – outlook is very poor, unless you’re Philip Green, Lord Ashcroft, Rupert Murdoch of course)

We’re in recession, times are hard. NZ is NOT a cheap place to live any more, housing is classed as unaffordable relative to income, food is expensive, fuel is expensive, rates, water, power etc. It is no different to the rest of the world. There are shoots of recovery as i think we escaped the worst being a relatively self sufficient country however tourism etc will have suffered and will continue to do so.

I’ve said it before and will say it again, moving here is what you make it. Being dissatisifed with life will not change if you move and do not do it with open eyes. Some people hate it (Chunky for example is vociferous on his hatred as he obviously had a bad time), some people love it. On balance i enjoy:
1) The space and relative simplicity of life – i ride my bike to work in the sun alongside the ocean and it takes me 25 minutes to get to work through light traffic – in the capital city.
2) The people are very very funny, open, honest and communicative. Positive attitudes.
3) I live in a nice house with a great view which has double glazing, solar water, heat pumps etc so is comfortable. That is an exception, whoever built the NZ housing stock thought it was a tropical paradise. Many cities were planned in the UK btw – hence some interesting streets and houses facing the wrong way as they forgot the hemisphere change.

Happy to answer specific stuff – email in profile. HTH.

EDIT: You may also not be eligible to move here – check the visa status as they move the goalposts regularly. After 5 yrs of residency (continusous) you are permitted to apply for citizenship and thus a passport. But getting work visas etc can be quite difficult (and i speak as an employer).

EDIT: You may also not be eligible to move here – check the visa status as they move the goalposts regularly. After 5 yrs of residency (continusous) you are permitted to apply for citizenship and thus a passport. But getting work visas etc can be quite difficult (and i speak as an employer).

if you are on the skills short list then it couldn’t be easier, i had my medical, police report etc handed my application in and 1 day later they said i could come and pick it up….you need to get a full time job offer prior to going this route.

you need to get a full time job offer prior to going this route.

THAT bit can be quite hard as an employer as i have to prove that there is nobody who can do it in NZ. But anyhoo yes the process itself is quite easy, i handed my residency in in London and had a message on my phone at work 2hrs later to come back and pick up my passport all stamped !!

Me and my wife moved out here almost three years ago on a bit of a whim. No complaints about living in the UK, we just fancied a change, found jobs over here, sold the house and car and moved out here. This was just before the global economy turned to custard though. We love it, and have no plans to move back. We live in Tauranga (North Island). Here are a few random thoughts, some of which address your questions…

As others have said, the economic outlook here is uncertain – as it is in much of the rest of the world these days – but IMO, based on speaking to friends and family back in the UK, NZ seems to have had it pretty easy by comparison.

I find life here much the same as UK in many ways, except that outside of the Mon-Fri 9-5, and with hardly any effort, it’s like being on holiday, all the time. (It probably helps that we live right next to the beach, and that our part of town (Mt Maunganui) fancies itself as a bohemian, surfy, arty sort of village.)

The weather is generally better than in the UK, but that’s not to say we don’t get crap weather. It can be pretty windy for long periods (Wellington in partiuclar is known for being excessively windy), and I’ve never seen rain in the UK as torrential as I’ve seen it here, but then parts of the N. Island are sub-tropical (I think the north of the N Island is even classed as tropical) so it’s to be expected. There is generally a lot more sunhine, IME. There is also a lot more UV, thanks to us sitting slap bang under the hole in the ozone layer (remember that?) so you’ll get through a lot of sunscreen.

The standard of driving here is lower than the UK (not saying that it’s great in the UK though…). I think that in order to pass your driving test you have to prove that you can a) drive at 80-90 in a 100km/h zone then, when you get to a passing lane, speed up to 110 to prevent anyone from overtaking, before slowing again when the road narrows and b) pull out from driveways or intersections into the small gap between the penultimate and last car in a bunch of cars, causing the last car in line to have to brake hard, despite there being a large and safe gap behind the last car. Under no circumstances must you allow other cars to get in the way of you making progress in this situation. Also you have to demonstrate a healthy disregard for cyclists, and try to take the racing line through all corners, even when you can’t see round said corner, and it requires you to cross the centreline. On the other hand, there is very little congestion, especially if you don’t live in Auckland, Welly of Chch, and even there it’s light compared to any UK city.

NZ doesn’t have a RoW network like the UK, so you can’t just pick up an OS map and head out exploring, but there is still a ton of good walking and riding, both trail-centre and back-country stuff.

You can still get dial-up internet access, and a lot of people don’t see why you’d need anything more… Fibre-optic is available in some cities, ADSL is pretty much everywhere, but it’s expensive and you generally pay by bandwidth (volume) and speed.

Mobile phones are generally not subsidised by the providers like they are in the UK, so expect to pay close to full retail for a new phone, unless you’re happy to sign up for 18-24 months. Having said that, mobiles are still considered as utility devices, rather than mobile entertainment systems, so most people just have basic phones for ringing and texting (or maybe that’s just my friends and colleagues??). Mobile internet is not a big thing. These last few things are slowly changing though, I’ve noticed it even in the three years we’ve been here, and companies are selling the entertainment side of things. Maybe it’s just because I’m too old (at 32) to be interested in the latest new-fangled HD-ready mp4-playing internet phone?

Crime… happens, not that I’ve been on the wrong end of it though. But then I don’t recall ever being the victim of a crime in the 29 years I lived in the UK either. There are gangs – the Mongrel Mob, Filthy Few etc, they seem to drive around on motorbikes and make and distribute “P” (methamphetamine) but I’ve never seen any gang trouble personally. Other than that there’s the usual graffiti, petty theft, random muggings etc that you get in the UK. I don’t think it’s any better or worse than the UK, but don’t have any stats to back that up.

Most places, even the big cities, are small, and cycle-commuting is often feasible. I cycle every day, have great views of the harbour and I’ve seen a seal, dolphins and orcas (aka killer whales) on my way in to work. I also see little blue penguins most weeks while out in my kayak.

I’ve only had limited experience of the health service here (and almost no experience of it in the UK, I’m rarely ill and have been very lucky accident-wise), doc’s visit costs $40ish, prescriptions are v cheap though. I had a sudden-onset back pain while playing squash a few months ago, couldn’t walk, and couldn’t raise my legs while sitting. The ambulance took me to hospital, docs gave me a check-over and determined it was either a pulled muscle or cramp, and off I toddled. It cost me nothing. Dental surgery, on the other hand, costs a fortune (as the wife found out). Expect to pay $150 for a check-up, and several hundred for a filling, a grand or more for a removal or root canal. The standards, however, are top notch. Expect the dentist, on your first visit, to look in your gob, roll his/her eyes, and say “NHS?” in a faintly accusatory manner.

I miss old stuff. Most buildings are less than 100 years old, and only a handful are older than 150yrs.

There is a lot of good music on the radio, not just commercial pop tat. When I say good, you need to have a tolerance for AC-DC, but inbetween their tracks rock/metal gets a sizeable amount of airtime, which I like 🙂

I find that people here are a lot more active. In the UK, being active in more than one sport on a regular basis made you the odd-one-out, or that’s how it seemed to me. Here, we play squash a couple of times a week, mountain bike regularly, I bought myself a kayak and go for a paddle or a fish most weekends, I play for the local hockey team over winter, the mrs plays touch rugby and netball, we play beach volleyball after work for two nine-week spells each summer. This seems to be quite a normal amount of activity over here. If you go out on the beach-front road here early in the morning you’ll see plenty of parents out for a run, pushing a pushchair along as they go! Triathlons and multi-sport events (i.e mtb/kayak/run) are very popular and accessible.

Holy giant post, Batman. Sorry for the stream-of-consciousness waffle, hope it helps. Also, spend a few hours browsing ENZ, there’s a whole load of useful advice there.

Been here in Christchurch for the last 7 years. I can only echo NZCol and WillH comments.

Those thorough and honest posts from NZCol and WillH cover all you’ve asked-good skills lads.

All I’d add is if you’ve not been before, go for a holiday first as its a really long way to move if you’ve never been there before!
Trips can be expensive, but not really compared to moving accross the other side of the globe to somewhere you’ve never been before, 3 weeks of travelling around is better than nowt and can give you a bit more of an idea if NZ will suite.

My mate was living in ChCh for a few years, he loved the lifestyle, surfing, snowboarding and biking with in easy reach. Unfortunately he couldn’t get the work he wanted (Architect), so moved back to the UK to his old job…

I probably can’t add much to what NZCol/WillH have said but as a newbie here I can tell you how I’ve found it so far. I arrived in December and spent 2 months driving around the North and South islands in an old ambulance trying to get a feel for the place and doing plenty of riding.

Didn’t intend on settling anywhere, was planning on just getting some fruit picking work or whatever but we’ve been in Wellington for a month now and have somehow ended up with a job and a flat. I work in IT and had 3 job offers in a fortnight paying comparable or slightly more than I’d get back home. My GF is basically unskilled and intially struggled for work but hopefully starts in a bike shop on Monday so there are jobs around depending on your career I guess.

Really liking the city so far, coming from the south Wales valleys it’s pretty built up but there’s great riding within the city (broke my finger the day I got here riding DH!) and epic countryside a few hours drive away.

Biggest difference I’ve found is the people are a lot more friendly and straight up. Doing day to day stuff like opening a bank account or shopping people seem keen to have a chat and generally seem in a better mood than back home.

Echoing Will’s comments about sport, people seem a lot more active. Walking along Wellington harbour in a lunch hour and the amount of people jogging is unbelievable. Same goes for swimming after work and commuting by bike is popular despite some of the gurt hills.

Not done much socialising with locals yet but hopefully that’ll come with meeting people at work and lending a hand on dig days at the local trail centres. Drop me a mail if you need any more info.

Christchurch is nice, if a bit suburban – expect to drive a fair bit for anything, don’t expect anything to be walking distance like a UK town. Cycling is fine as a way of getting around though.

Weather – be aware it is nice in summer, but very cold and damp and foggy in winter.houses are wooden and insulation is typically a single sheet of tin foil under plaster board, oh, and no central heating, so you need a lot of jumpers.

I liked it out there, but missed a few things – firstly it is thousands of miles away from anywhere, so forget seeing friends or family from the UK, and wages aren’t so great you’re likely to be able to go back regularly. Secondly, while there are great trails, there isn’t the same network of rights of way, so most places you have to drive to ride. It is a bit of a cultural back water also, if you like music /art etc., you can expect to have to catch planes to the n. Island to watch gigs or whatever, and even the north island doesn’t get that many good gigs.

In many ways it felt like the Scottish Highlands, lots of nice hills, changeable weather, great outdoors stuff, but a bit far away from everything else physically and culturally. If you don’t have many close UK based friends you want to see on a regular basis, and you’d be happy living in (say) Fort William and never going away to bigger UK cities, you’d probably have a chance at being happy in Christchurch.

Thanks for all the replies folks. I haven’t had chance to have a proper read of them all yet (work getting in way…blurgh!), but some very useful and interesting stuff read so far. Will have a better look at lunchtime. Once again, thanks for replies (p.s. didn’t think about time difference of original post, until I’d hit ‘send post’ of course 😀 )…durrr

Emigrate forum is superb for the info you want/need.

when i posted on this i couldn’t tell you about the quality of health care, that changed on saturday when i got an open fracture of my finger. the quality of care was very good and everyone was friendly although both doctors i saw were english. however it did take me 8 hours to clear A&E and get to a ward. so just like the nhs except the english doctors!

mattw, what you say about the driving is so true, i’d also add that at a passing lane situation the first car should pass at about 1kph faster than the slow car then once past match the speed of the overtaken car but staying in the outside lane until it ends. the mount is a pretty cool place, we have a “holiday home” there, it’s actually my partners boss’ flat that she doesn’t live in and offers us all the time.

Thanks again for all the replies. Sorry it’s taken me so long to reply, I’ve been pretty manic with work, and then had one of my debilitating migraines – brought on by work stress (er…maybe another thing to address if we emigrate?!).

Some really interesting stuff, especially the housing, access arrangements and the driving. I can appreciate why the Aussies at work were winding up a couple of the Kiwi’s up about coming from Oz’s poor old fashioned relation – I’d just put it down to their general p*** taking Aussie humour! (tho’ the Kiwi’s could give it back!). Well, as far as the driving goes, at least living in Sheffield will have conditioned us to the sh**e driving a bit 😉

Work-wise, I think my wife should be OK, as she’s done a bit of homework and is on the ‘most wanted’ workers list, and she could potentially be on a reasonable salary. I think I’ll find it very difficult though, as my field of expertise is so highly specialised and pretty UK specific, I’m currently working as a self-employed contractor. I also really need to have occasional access to specialised equipment that only certain Engineering Materials type companies or University’s have. Realistically, I think I’d probably be scratching around for work. Prior to qualifying, I spent a few years working in various unskilled (dead-end) jobs and I certainly ain’t above doing it to keep myself busy and earning a bit of dosh. However, if my previous experience is anything to go by, unskilled jobs are often the hardest to come by in a recession. Also seems a shame to basically waste a degree and PhD that I worked so hard for in my 30’s – but, if this could be offset by a better quality of life, then it’s something I think I could get over.

I think I’m gonna do some more homework on the job option front – and we’re keeping our options open for a minimum 3 week visit to check some areas of the country out.

Thanks again for info.

I’m sure you won’t regret it. Not sure what you do but if it’s that specialised i’d stick to one of the main centres then – chch, akl or wgtn. Might even be an opportunity to set something up new.