Fruit Picking - Auz or NZ

Blue Badger

I was wondering if anyone knew what the situation with fruit picking was down there. Myself and a friend were considering doing it for the entire summer, not to work towards residency, just to pass the time. We don't want to get stuck in Ireland for another summer with nothing to do. Making a few bob after flight and accommodation costs would be a plus!
So, anyways:
Does anyone know if there is much work available in fruit picking in the summer?
If so, where are the best places to work?
Is it possible to secure the work before leaving?
Is it possible to get a job that would last the entire summer, and not have to keep skipping from one place to another?

Anyone input would be greatly appreciated!
Cheers! (if this doesn't work out we'll have to go WWOOFing in Spain haha)

lilirish

Fruit picking season in NZ is mid November through to April (ish). You mentioned you wanted to go for summer, if you meant an irish summer then obviously these dates won't work!!

There are a couple of regions in NZ that are good for picking. I'm in Hawkes Bay at the min and thats a big hub in the north island for picking etc. The south has got Bleinham, Queenstown etc.

Work so far has been easy to pick up in this area. You coulds try and pick something up before you came out but trying to do that so far removed from NZ would be difficult. A lot of hostels help to find work if you stay with them. Some are more helpful than others. Yes, you can generally just specify how long you want a job for and your pretty much sorted. I'm only here for four weeks and I got a job, others have been here for 3, 4 months and still have work. The pay in minimun wage so don't expect to make a fortune, just enough to get by on.

If your coming to NZ I would consider longer than a summer. You'll have to get a working holiday visa which is valid for a year once you've used it thats it. It becomes a lot more difficult to get another if you decide you want to come back.

Best of Luck and hope this helps.

WanderingWife

Hi there.

I have worked citrus, mango, cherry, stone fruit, pruning and lambing seasons from South Australia, up through New South Wales and into Queensland (southeast and central west). I’ve worked on farms and stations and in all sorts of conditions.

Fruit picking in Australia is a vibrant industry with plenty of jobs for the..um..picking. At the moment, cherry season in SA and NSW is in full swing and payment is usually by the bin. But there’s the stone fruit season that’s about to gear up on the eastern seaboard so…it just depends on what you want to do and what you are fit enough for. (You need to be fit and agile for some jobs and of course you need to be able to handle the heat and yes, employers in this industry are allowed to discriminate due to the intense conditions).

Throughout the summer (Dec-Feb) there are various seasons available throughout the country but it depends on what you want to pick and where you want to go. People with experience in grapes are usually well regarded and get first preference. As an aside, if you have any agricultural experience, there are plenty of jobs for jackaroos and stationhands available too.

But you must be able to handle the heat.

No point in securing anything before you go because the majority of jobs you can land when you rock up. Australians don't want to do this type of work which is why the majority of pickers are foreign, wanderers or on the run