Where should we move, UK vs Australia vs Canada (home, movies)

[Bradpaisley94]

I have been doing quite some research on this forum and beyond in an attempt to find a good place for me and my fiancée to emigrate to. We are a young couple in our mid 20s that finished university a couple of months ago. She is a trained physiotherapist and I have a science bachelor’s in environmental science. She has some field-specific work experience, me not so much.
We are from Gothenburg, Sweden but we are currently living in Perth, Australia. The reasons that we are trying to escape Sweden are among others socialism, bad climate, not much to do, vague culture, homogenous people (outside the ghettos in the larger cities) and so forth.

We are down to earth, outdoorsy, traditional/conservative, family-oriented, easy-going sort of people. We are not big on drinking, partying, night life and such. Furthermore, we are not career focused and see our jobs are necessary to uphold a decent lifestyle. But we do not regard it very high and are not too big on material stuff. What we do like is sports, outdoor activities, culture, movies & music, to travel and explore and so forth. We do like the English language and would like to live in an English-speaking country that would provide us with a larger quantity of opportunities to have a better lifestyle and life satisfaction.

We are considering United Kingdom (in particular the east coast and medium sized “historical towns” like Rochester, Lincoln and Durham), Canada (in particular Ontario and the Ottawa region) and Australia (in particular Perth, where we currently reside). Most other English-speaking countries are not interesting for us for cultural, economic, geographical and so forth reasons. We don’t see that New Zealand could offer something that Australia could not, same for Ireland towards UK. The US is a bit tricky as it does have a wide variety of climate, political – and cultural diversity and good economical possibilities. But it is too risky considering the guns and lack of social security, so we are not considering it. It is almost impossible to obtain a green card anyway.

So, between Canada, UK and Australia who has the best:

Job opportunities/economy
Scenery/landscape/outdoor opportunities
Work-life balance/income compared to costs
Climate
Housing/housing opportunities
Visa opportunities/future prospects
Family oriented/family friendly
State benefits/social benefits
Education/healthcare

We could see ourselves in all three countries on way or another, so it is a bit difficult to choose which one to really try out. UK should be the most natural destination as it’s the closest and as it now stands the easiest for us to stay in. But I’ve heard bad things about the economy (cost of things compared to low salaries), the climate (lack of seasons, snow and sunshine), bad housing and all the confusion with Brexit. What worries me about Canada is too much political correctness, too harsh winters, lack of culture and lack of social security. As we’re already in Australia on a working holiday visa we’re considering trying our luck here. But it is very difficult for us to find job within our fields of study and also very difficult to gain a visa to stay permanently. It is also very far from family, very high cost of living and a bit materialistic society.

Most of these are just fears and not necessarily facts. There are a LOT of things we like with all three countries which is why we are considering them as our future home.

WHAT DO YOU THINK, WHICH ONE WOULD SUIT US THE BEST? Thanks

[Bakery Hill]

Originally Posted by Bradpaisley94

We could see ourselves in all three countries on way or another, so it is a bit difficult to choose which one to really try out. UK should be the most natural destination as it’s the closest and as it now stands the easiest for us to stay in. But I’ve heard bad things about the economy (cost of things compared to low salaries), the climate (lack of seasons, snow and sunshine), bad housing and all the confusion with Brexit. What worries me about Canada is too much political correctness, too harsh winters, lack of culture and lack of social security. As we’re already in Australia on a working holiday visa we’re considering trying our luck here. But it is very difficult for us to find job within our fields of study and also very difficult to gain a visa to stay permanently. It is also very far from family, very high cost of living and a bit materialistic society.

Most of these are just fears and not necessarily facts. There are a LOT of things we like with all three countries which is why we are considering them as our future home.

WHAT DO YOU THINK, WHICH ONE WOULD SUIT US THE BEST? Thanks

Have you considered other parts of Australia, including regional cities? The experience will be different than Perth, particularly in cites like Darwin or Hobart which have very different mindsets. The cost of living needs to be seen in the context of what you can earn, but there are places in Aus that are better suited to people who aren't that career focussed. It sounds like you'd be better off on the east coast, which would offer more cultural, lifestyle, climate, economic diversity as well.

[bigpaul]

if your already in Australia why not stay there? my personal pick would be Canada as a second choice to my home country UK but the wife couldn't put up with the cold there.

[Tall Traveler]

Australia is your best bet of the 3...the USA has a much stronger economy if you had excellent qualifications.

[deneb78]

Originally Posted by bigpaul

if your already in Australia why not stay there? my personal pick would be Canada as a second choice to my home country UK but the wife couldn't put up with the cold there.

Vancouver and Victoria have a climate similar to the UK with sunnier summers. There would not be much climatic adjustment.

[deneb78]

As for the OPs question, if you can get a long term Visa for Australia, I would try and stay if you can as it will reduce moving expenses. The economy there is in very good shape and the salaries are excellent even if cost of living is also pretty high especially with regard to housing. For me personally, I love the warm/mild climate in most of Australia and if you want snow in winter, there are locations like Thredbo and Charlotte Pass not far relatively speaking from Canberra/Sydney that you can go skiing and do other winter activities.
Canada would be a great second choice if you can secure a job ahead of time and I would probably steer clear of the UK with all the instability regarding Brexit at this time. Just my two cents.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Bradpaisley94

. It is also very far from family, very high cost of living and a bit materialistic society.

Canada is closer to Scandinavia, has a fairly similar cost of living to Australia, but is not significantly less materialistic than Down Under is.

[ilovelondon]

So you want to get away from Sweden's "socialism", but you think Canada "lacks social security"

TROLL.

[Greysholic]

Australia>Canada>UK

[NJmann]

Originally Posted by ilovelondon

So you want to get away from Sweden's "socialism", but you think Canada "lacks social security"

TROLL.

Was just thinking that.

OP is just bored....