Best suburb/Country Town to raise a family in australia (leaving the UK)?
This is what I’m looking for (I know I’m not likely to tick all the boxes but I’d be happy to tick most 
:
Suburbs/Country Town (relaxed)lifestyle
Not too far from the city an hour or 2 drive max (maybe even 3hrs)
Open space with green leafy area but not a rainforest lol
Great schooling/education system (my little one will be 12 when we move)
Culture & history such as museums & art galleries etc
Not too touristy (there will always be people on holiday visiting but not a complete/high tourist area)
Things to do, entertainment for children & adults such as cinemas, bowling alleys, shopping etc
Great transport links
Beach or beaches not too far
Quiet to modest area, I’m not a big fan of great noise with hustle & bustle lol
Good family/community environment & feel
Local hospital & health career job opportunties for my nursing career
Cost of living isn’t too expensive
Multicultural
Low crime rates
6 Responses to “Best suburb/Country Town to raise a family in australia (leaving the UK)?”
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November 26th, 2011 at 3:37 am
you could try bendigo or ballarat, but they are not close to the beach
November 26th, 2011 at 3:39 am
Hobart or Launceston are good picks.
November 26th, 2011 at 4:38 am
I’d look to some of the smaller towns, satellite cities or places not too far from the bigger cities…
I’ll use south-east Queensland as I know that area pretty well, however most places you could do something similar for examply near Sydney, go to the Blue Mountains or in Perth look into Freemantle…
I would consider going to the Sunshine Coast. This covers a large area, a few areas are toutisty (like Noosa) but mostly it’s more what I would term “family tourism” – mostly it’s family’s there kind of thing. Yes a lot of people are tourists along with the locals but generally it’s kind of quite. Beaches are there and there’s a mix of parks and entertainment. There are some local buses and a train service down to Brisbane. There are a number of private hospitals, one large public hospital and two smaller hospitals. Consider even going a little inland say to Montville or Maleny which are smaller more “artsy village” types maybe all of 15 to 20 minutes from the main strip.
Places like Toowoomba shouldn’t be discounted either. Toowoomba is inland 1 1/2 to 2 hours from Brisbane. Plenty of health facilities (public and private) to work, good community etc, ok transport. You aren’t hugely far from beaches or some of the cultural stuff of Brisbane eg most concerts / events whether it’s Lady Gaga / Pink / Elton John / Cirque de Soleil state theatre, ballet etc aren’t too far away.
November 26th, 2011 at 5:22 am
Auroa, lets see what we can do with your questions from an outsiders point of view.
1.&2. That would cover most of the states, For example in Melbourne you could go to the Dandenongs (please excuse my spelling of these places). Whereas in Sydney you could go to Cecil Hills, or the Northern or Eastern Suburbs.
3. Most all of the cities and suburbs around Australia.
4. Australia is well known for it’s excellent education system, I have friends in Sydney and Melbourne that have kids going to the private sector and others to the public sector, and all are intelligent.
5.Sydney and Melbourne has a good coverage of that, as well as the other states.
6. Where your asking in question 1 & 2, you wouldn’t have a problem.
7. For things to do, it’s a mixed bag over there, they have more bowling alleys than we do. MultiPlex Cinemas, as for shopping they have it down to a “T”. Sydney I went to these places called Westfields. Melbourne has similar, they are multi Level shopping complexes, with major stores and boutiques. Then you you have in other centers, you local family green grocer, bakery or drug store. That pretty much covers the other states all so.
8. I found where I went, the public transport system was unique. The network was simple to follow and had a good coverage of the city and suburbs.
9. Depending on where you set up house, it’s pretty average going, you would be anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour from a beach, unless you live in a beach area.
10. covered in 1 & 2, you wouldn’t want to go to a populated beach area.
11. Most of the above covers the family, community feel, they are big on environment.
12. The Hospital set up over there is again unique, I can’t see you having a problem.
13. For cost of living, there are always expenses, if your out of the city area like 1 & 2 you should be fine. it all has to do how you can budget also, initially.
14. Australia is reputed for it’s multicultural initiatives.
15. Very low in comparison to other major cities, in other countries like the US as an example.
You may gather I am not Australian or live there, but I have been on assignment out there a few times which meant I had to live there also. One thing that was prevalent, it didn’t take long to pick up good local friendships, that’s where the real learning process starts, and picked up a lot over the years. We are still very close to this day, I still travel there on a regular basis. I hope to return again very soon with my wife, and two of our grand children
November 26th, 2011 at 6:22 am
I’d also say Ballarat, Bendigo or even Castlemaine (small town close to Bendigo…but v multicultural and strong arts community).
Ballarat has an advantage in that I think it meets all your requirements – 1.5 hour train ride from Melbourne and 1 hour drive to the beach around Geelong. Good hospital system. Not really multicultural but certainly more than it was 10 years ago!
Only thing is that it’s cold during winter, and a fairly conservative town.
Hobart would also be a good choice – tasmania is beautiful, but again, cold!
November 26th, 2011 at 6:54 am
The Central Coast north of Sydney or the Sunshine Coast north of Brisbane would fit most of your requirements. Just about anywhere in Adelaide, particularly the Hills, the southern suburbs or around Gawler would be good too. Melbourne has some delightful suburbs as well as very interesting towns and small cities inland. Hobart is also well worth considering as it ticks every box and parts of Perth would do so too.
In fact, you will find your ideal spot in many parts of Australia. We can recommend places to you but our opinions are biased in favour of the places we like best. You should presume that you will find what you want wherever you decide to live so look for work that is available to you and make your choice based on where you decide to work.