What one tip would you give someone heading to OZ?

Bring an Irish extension lead so you only need one plug adapter. And invest in a decent adapter

Stop comparing everything to Ireland asap

Enjoy yourself and be respectful. Don't give the Irish a bad name.

Go with an open mind too, you will enjoy it more.

Buy a watermelon as soon as you land, they're unreal over here.

- Don’t be scared to ask for help. My friends and I have been to hell and back some times over here but whether its asking for a lend of money to afford a bond for an apt, or whether its suncream when you're down the beach because you forgot yours, we are all out here trying to succeed together and that comradery can be seen a lot when here. People and friends will help you out if you ask for it.

woolymammoth wrote: »

remove your phone from your pocket before running like en eejit into the ocean.

You dont need to run.

Another wave will be along shortly.

If you wanna stay and make it happen, keep the drink low key until your a bit more settled.

Seen a few lads come over, drink like their in Ibiza for 2/3 weeks, get depressed after a drinking, book a flight back home and hav'nt even seen anything other than a hostel, McDonalds and the bottle shop.

Seriously, if you wanna do that go to Spain, Australia is for living!!

2 days is the worst iv seen. landed, 2 day bender and home, wtf!

Come over with an open mind about life and get outdoors.

Bring as much money as you can (sell your granny if you have to) or you'll end up like the Irish guy I seen on gumtree - homeless on the streets, no money and looking for somewhere to stay.

There are 7 deadly snakes in Australia. Do everyone a favour and find all 7 of them and kill them!

Use currencyfair to transfer money, now is a bad time Euro is down against Dollar.

Keep all your money in one Super fund as they all charge for the pleasure of gambling your money on the stock exchange and a monthly fee. Your bank should give you details of their superfund, look into them and put it all in there.

Dont buy a round of shots for 10 people you just met lol

Gumtree is a cheap place to find lots of stuff for a new place.

Lots of happy hours and 10 Dollar food deals in pubs which are actually good food in most places

Visas can be done by yourself plenty of help in this forum for it if you get sponsored.

I will fix any computer issues you have just pm me lol

Have a good time and get work before you spend all your money assuming work will come easy

markymark21 wrote: »

haha, wasn't an I-Phone or something along those lines was it?

ahh.. no! just an old nokia. Still, quickly went from to , then , and then ran back in a second time

Lot of laughs reading this.

My advice is more of a serious nature. And would like to stress that this is purely my opinion and down to my experiences here over the last 3 years.


1)Don't be picky about work
I'm going to be honest - things are slowing down. A big Australian construction company let 500 staff go in Sydney last week. Also feedback from my friends tell me temp work in Sydney and Melbourne has slowed down.
As long as you want to work and are not too picky - you should find work.
It is getting harder for people just arriving on working holiday visas as they are competing with people here a few years who may be sponsored etc and have Australian employer references.
Don't expect to have a job the day you land. Sometimes it works like that, for me it did - but that was 3 years ago. In the past few months, I have seen people waiting 2 months to get a job and also someone who got a job the 2nd week of looking.
CHANGE your resume to the Australian format. There's a big difference!

2) Don't have unrealistic expectations about the money you will make. Yes we have all heard of so an so working in the mines making $$$$$$'s who doesn't have the time to spend the money he's making/ is buying a house at home outright etc.
Realistically - I know one or two people, at the top of their trade with years of experience who are actually doing this. Most people are the same. And they do 12 hour shifts 7 days a week in the middle of nowhere to earn this kind of money.
I'm so sick of hearing - "i'm going to go to Perth, that's where the big money is" - truth is, anyone I personally know who has landed in perth in the last 3 or 4 months has really struggled to get work and especially a rental property. Seems to be a lack of both for the demand. And my tradesman friends are making the same money in Sydney/Melbourne as the ones in Perth.

Reality is - I make a decent living and have a great lifestyle. Some weeks I haven't a bean - but that's mostly down to me having too good a time. Count yourself lucky to have a chance of working and maintain a decent social life.

When home last August I heard a girl tell me about her friend who was going to move to Australia with her boyfriend and 3 kids on working holiday visas, she was going to stay at home to mind the kids - he was making x amount of Euros as an electrician in Ireland (which was going to automatically double in Australia coz thats what can be made according to this one!) and they were all going to live off of half his wages and send home half to save - so they'd save about 50 grand a year and come home after 5 years and buy a house outright.
I just sat there and nodded. Do people really have this unrealistic view of Australia?

3)Be prepared to pay for living in some of the biggest and best cities in the world!
I live in the Eastern suburbs in Sydney. Its expensive. Especially if you are single and want your own room. But remember where you are. Unless you lived centrally in Dublin in the good times, you will probably have a heart attack when you get here and see what the going rate for decent accomodation is. But even though my rent is expensive, I still have a good chunk of my wages left to play with every week after rent and bills are paid. Pay is good, rent is expensive. That's just how it goes. I wake up every day and can see the ocean from my bedroom. Worth every cent.

4)When you land - you have 12 months on your visa - don't wait until the last few weeks to decide you don't want to go home!
Visas take time and preparation. If possible, do your regional work first so you have the 2nd year option available straight away. Good regional work is getting harder to find with the crazy weather we are getting the past couple of years.

5)Applying for a rental property is no walk in the park
My friend who landed in January thought you could just look at a property online, ring the estate agents and say "i'll take it!"
Its a soul destroying process - you'll show up for a viewing which could be in the middle of the day on a week day so you'll usually need to get off work. There'll be lots of people there who all want it. Many will have their application forms and deposits in hand.
Application forms want years of rental and employment references aswell as 100 points of identity - which is hard to gather up, usually want Australian utility bills in your name etc. Try and get as much as you can together from home - letters from landlords, rent receipts etc.
Just as a guide - moving into our last place, over 2 months we viewed about 30 properties, applied for 6, eventually got 1 but ended up having to live on a friend's floor for a few days in between. It's tough!

That's my main advice for people just coming. Hope it helps!