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Alrighty here's the deal:
I'm 21 and am going to take a year off and travel to Australia for a year.
details:
I live in Southern California, Orange County, and I have both American and British Citizenship because my dad immigrated here. 1) So should I do the Working Holiday visa or the Work and Holiday visa? What's the difference?
2) Also, I was thinking east coast australia, but I hear housing and looking for a job right now is really bad in sydney. I'm going with a friend of mine and we want to live around the coast. And basically we're just trying to figure out housing and jobs or good ideas of how to find one's once we are there. We aren't leaving until late August because that's when our current jobs contracts are completed. Also I hear that is when they start hiring for the busy summer season in Australia.
3) I know a lot of the variables like jobs, housing, etc. aren't going to be figured out once we are there but if you guys have any tips or advice on how to find them or which city to stay in it would be greatly appreciated. Jobs like manual labor, or restaurant, or even temp agencies are what we were looking for, not really into the fruit picking thing.
I searched the threads but a lot of them ended up turning into Melbourne vs Sydney which one is better threads. So I'll just tell you now that we are kind of artsy but we want waves and surf too and we're pretty outgoing, we don't have to go out to clubs every night to have a good time, so nightlife isn't a huge issue.
Alrighty here's the deal:
I'm 21 and am going to take a year off and travel to Australia for a year.
details:
I live in Southern California, Orange County, and I have both American and British Citizenship because my dad immigrated here. 1) So should I do the Working Holiday visa or the Work and Holiday visa? What's the difference? The Working Holiday visa is not offered to US citizens so you would have to apply using your British citizenship. The Work and Holiday visa is available to US citizens. A quick read of the rules suggests both visas are pretty much the same.
2) Also, I was thinking east coast australia, but I hear housing and looking for a job right now is really bad in sydney. I'm going with a friend of mine and we want to live around the coast. And basically we're just trying to figure out housing and jobs or good ideas of how to find one's once we are there. We aren't leaving until late August because that's when our current jobs contracts are completed. Also I hear that is when they start hiring for the busy summer season in Australia. These visas are meant for people who want to travel in Australia, and the ability to work is meant to allow visa holders the chance to top up their $ funds. Most people who use these visas stay in backpacker hostels and travel around, picking up work here and there. On both these visas you are not allowed to work for any one employer for more than six months. Depending on where you choose to stay, it may well cost you a lot more to rent a furnished house/apt than to travel around and stay in backpacker hostels. In many towns (other than capital cities) it is very hard to find furnished houses/apts ... and they always cost more than unfurnished. However, you should be able to find house-sharing opportunities where you wouldn't be tied to a lease. If you're thinking of Sydney, try the online 'shared accommodation' classifieds at the Sydney Morning Herald's website to get an idea of what the costs would be. Google 'backpacking in Australia' to find sites that will give you an idea of rates, for comparison purposes.
3) I know a lot of the variables like jobs, housing, etc. aren't going to be figured out once we are there but if you guys have any tips or advice on how to find them or which city to stay in it would be greatly appreciated. Jobs like manual labor, or restaurant, or even temp agencies are what we were looking for, not really into the fruit picking thing. See above.
I searched the threads but a lot of them ended up turning into Melbourne vs Sydney which one is better threads. So I'll just tell you now that we are kind of artsy but we want waves and surf too and we're pretty outgoing, we don't have to go out to clubs every night to have a good time, so nightlife isn't a huge issue.
Very Much appreciated.
I suggest you plan to spend at least a month or two travelling around so you can better judge where you might want to put down your roots for the remainder of your visit.
Did you do an advanced search for Temporary Visa. I did and found several threads on just this but did not know how to link to this thread. Checking these out may help narrow down your questions so people can better help you. Oz is the size of US48 and the majority of the population is in close proximity to the ocean so it would help if you can come up with more specific questions.
I swim at Sydney's beaches and rock pools year round. Sometimes it is quite cold (especially Aug - Oct) but it is not numbingly cold
Sea Temp Conversions:
Melbourne
18 C = 65 F
13 C = 56 F
Los Angeles
20 C = 68 F
14 C = 57 F
I looked up stats on average SST's in California on internet (don't know how good the source is)
but it seemed that most or all of California about Santa Barbara southwards was warmer than Melbourne.
As a Californian beach-lover,
you would probably know just looking at those sea temps for Melbourne converted to Fahrenheit how that should feel to you.
I believe a "Work and Holiday Visa" requires proof of some kind of post-secondary education,
and cannot be renewed for a 2nd time, like a Working Holiday can. (12 months vs. potential for 24 months)
*Could be wrong about the Work and Holiday Visa, but I haven't looked into it too much since I'm not American.
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