Extended "vacation" in Australia... Recommendations on areas please (rentals, crime)

[pod]

Hi guys,

Taking a extended trip to AU. Given how massive the country is I wanted some ideas on areas to live. It looks like one set of time is made up to stay in Carins.

Here was some of the needs, as this is a family vacation. Not some bumming around youth hostel stuff..

-kid has autism so can't live in the middle Of nowhere. Need healthy grocery stores for food selection as he has a limited diet

-safe area. Don't like to live in bad or dangerous areas and don't mind paying higher for these areas but I don't want the snobby rich areas as I feel uncomfortable in them. Haha.

-access to outdoor activities. The kid does not like tv and wants to be out all day so need an area where there is stuff to do

-wanted an area where there is access to aboriginal "activities". Wife is really into anthropology so would like access to opportunities to the aborigines. We found some tours run by aborigines but they all seem to run out of Sydney as I assume a popular tourist destination spot.

-just want a daily life feel. I'm not wanting a vacation time as we just like living normal life and going to the grocery store and just feeling what it's like to live in AU.

-preferences is not too populated. We hate cities and the kid has issues with crowded areas so we usually do better in towns with 30k population. But open to places that are higher just throwing out what we normally gravitate to but we're not staying so it's fine whatever someone recommends.


So I'm throwing this out as obviously AU is as big if not bigger then the USA ( where we live ) and could never narrow down places with how massive the country is. Just looking for nice comfortable places to live to have a great family time and just live normal life.


Also a couple of other things as being there an extended time...

-anyone know sites for month to month rentals. I can not for the life of me know where to start searching as even in the USA this is a huge problem trying to find month to month places.
-anyone know best site or way to buy a car and sell off as I will be there too long to rent and will be moving at least twice in the trip.


Thank you so much if you read this. Please throw out some ideas or anything you would like to add as I'm new to AU. Thanks!

[King Harold]

Cairns sucks. If that is not set in stone I'd skip it unless you are cool with the Australian version of Panama City Florida. Personally I would suggest the Barwon Heads / Ocean Grove area of Vic. Easy to find holiday homes and close to Geelong if you need the services of a medium sized city.

[WildColonialGirl]

The Central coast of NSW, or the riverland (Renmark, Mildura, Albury Wodonga, etc). Or what about Darwin or Alice Springs?

Problem with places is you've specified no big cities, and not the middle of nowhere, but there is very little in between thise two. On the bright side, while Australia is the same area as the US, the densly inhabitable area is a fraction of the country. I'd also caution you that if this is not a vacation, then we take our immigration laws just as seriously as you do. Do not attempt to work unless you have a visa permitting it.

[artemis agrotera]

Darwin would be a good option.
I just don't know how you'd go in summer there.

If you do opt for Cairns, just north of there is a well known Indigenous centre at Mossman Gorge
Welcome to Mossman Gorge

The Mossman Gorge Centre

[Maxicat]

Hi,
Its hard to specify without some more details

Australia is gorgeous but pretty expensive especially along the coast. Do you have a budget in mind?

Also what kind of weather would you prefer? Cairns is breathtaking and a awesome option but its very hot and humid in summer, your child may not be able to comfortably play outside for long periods in the middle of the day without getting either sunburnt or over heated .

Do you like the coast or the bush? Will you buy a car? Public transport out of the capital cities is pretty hit and miss in Australia, so I would definitely recommend looking into buying a cheap run around.

Holiday letting would be your best bet. There is a huge rental shortage in many parts of Australia and the rental market can be very competitive. With a holiday house you may be able to get a discount for month long stays. Air B and B would be a good place to start your search, or stayz or even just try typing in holiday houses in your preferred location and you should get some hits!

Personally I would look into the Illawarra region of NSW such as Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama and the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. The Blue Mountains just outside Sydney is also very beautiful and they should offer lots of accommodation options. All these areas are very, very safe especially compared to U.S standards but of course there may be bad pockets in each town. Just look at crime stats or google maps before agreeing to any lease.

Best of luck!

[Dunbar1]

Look at Carsales . Com .au for buying a car.

A couple more places to check out- Devonport, TAS; Nowra, NSW; Toowoomba, QLD; Armidale, NSW; Wangaratta, VIC; Mackay, QLD;Bunbury, WA.