Thread: USA or Australia?

Hi, new member, looking for inspiration. We are a family of 5, a nurse and a firefighter with 3 children of 3, 6 and 8yrs. We are looking to emigrate with wifes nursing qualifications however we cannot seem to decide where to go, Oz or the US! The process for Oz seems alot easier and we both have freinds out there however we have holidayed in Florida quite a few times, loved it and cant seem to let go of the idea of life there! Is there anyone out there who has committed to one or the other? And what factors influenced your decision? Any feedback on either destination would fantastic and greatly appreciated.

Hi sideshowbob!

I've never been to Oz but I had to been to the States many times before we moved here. I'd been to many different states including California and it was the awesome weather, pace of life, cost of life, people, beautiful landscape that made us choose California. I've not been to Florida yet so I don't know how California compares. It took us two years to get our visas and the process was tough. We set a timeline and if we hadn't got our visas when we did we were looking at Oz as another option. We've got friends who emigrated there around the same time as us and they seem as happy as we are.

Welcome to B-A Bob

Hi traveller,

thanks for your reply, california sounds great. I personally love america although I've only been to florida and a short stint in North Carolina, I've read that the opportunities for success are still there if , you are prepared to work for it, I've always found americans quite freindly and the climate is fantastic. However, for a long time my wife has had concerns about how safe it was for our 3 young children. Obviously there is alot of negative info about the US out there and thats before you look into the schools! I do believe that if you were to read say 15 articles on Florida for example, 5 of which were great and 10 which were not so great, your impression on that place would be not so great, which could be completedly wrong!
We have friends in Australia who can give us an honest account of life over there. Unfortunately its difficult to get an accurate idea of life in the US for an average family of five.
We would love to find somewhere thats safe, friendly and family orientated. I am thinking of a fact finding trip to Califirnia now!! Forgive me for waffling on.

Thanks andy.

Hi and welcome to Britsabroad!

I would choose Australia any day but this is only my opinion, I have been to New York state, Florida, California etc. as well as NSW and QLD in Australia and Australia is just beautiful whereas I find America too like Britain in many ways.

If you have the opportunity to visit Australia I would strongly recommend it - everyone is different.

What do your friends in Oz make of life there?

Dan :-) Dreaming of life in Qld, Australia...

I understand your concerns about safety and education.

Education is one of my concerns but the more research I do (I'm a Specialist Teacher back in the UK) the more I find that a lot of the progress being made in education is based on studies and programmes that have been going on here in the US for the last twenty years so I'm having to change my views. I'm a big fan of the European approach to education but San Francisco in particular has developed some amazing programmes. Again I've not looked at Florida so I can't judge the quality there.

As far as safe goes, I guess the best way I can describe where we live is more like the way people describe the UK in the 50s - people don't lock things away here, when you walk past people in the street they smile and talk to you - it's definitely made me more sociable. It's very family orientated here but if you haven't got kids it's not overpowering - you can get away from them! :twitcy:

We knew on our first trip together here that we wanted to move, so I guess if you've been to Florida but you're still not sure I would try and get to Oz for a holiday - hopefully you'll know when you've been there which one is right for you and your family.

Not to put a damper on things, but Florida is hot and very humid to live in during the summer, and I mean uncomfortably so, unless you're up in the panhandle. There's also the hurricane risk and the lack of employment at the moment so it's not a great bet.
Honestly, the US is hard to difficult to get into unless you are a US citizen or have a close family member that will make your case easier.
To put it in real terms, you really need to work out if you would even get a visa to live in the US based on your own personal circumstances. You could start with the USCIS.gov website and see what you would need to do. Research is the key, and the internet and google is your friend for that. :)
Best of luck.

You would have less minor hurdles in Oz, they drive on the same side of the road is one example.
Also, I have floridian friends and the first thing they did when they went to work was move north, just to get away from something called "Palmeto Bugs" (!)

Originally Posted by thearmchairdetective

Also, I have floridian friends and the first thing they did when they went to work was move north, just to get away from something called "Palmeto Bugs" (!)

Palmetto bugs are probably the least of anyone's worries in Florida right now. ;) They really aren't a big deal unless you have a phobia of insects.