A young British woman has revealed the one thing she hates the most about each Australian city after moving Down Under for a better life, only to be left feeling very disappointed with reality.
The expat went online to vent about the problems with some of the country’s major cities and it appeared thousands of people agreed with her and many had their own reasons to add to the list.
She said Melbourne is too much like the UK, Sydney is too expensive, Perth requires a car to get around and the Gold Coast is fiercely competitive for jobs and housing.
The Londoner added that Melbourne and Brisbane also lack easy access to good beaches, which is the reason many Brits come to Australia in the first place.
The harbour city with its great choice of surfing breaks was still a hard pass for the beach-loving Brit who said the cost of living there was just too high.
She said rental prices in the NSW capital are on par with London.
‘If you’re working a casual hospitality job in Sydney, I just don’t know if that would give you enough money to live a good life,’ she said.
Melbourne is too far from good surfing beaches, has a ‘crazy’ public transport system and ‘psychotic’ weather according to some
The expat said that life on the west coast of Australia, which is ‘quiet’ and has the drawcard of some of the country’s most stunning beaches, still has one flaw.
‘Everything is quite spread out so you do need a car really to get around, which is quite annoying,’ she said.
Others who agreed that Australian cities weren’t all they were cracked up to be had a few things to add to the list and said they were common across all the major cities.
A general pet peeve about Australia is that cafes close around 3pm compared to global cities like London which have bars, cafes and restaurants open at all hours.
‘In Australia all the coffee shops and the cafés shut at 2pm it’s like they don’t want to make money, that is my ideal time to go and sit in a café – why?’ one asked.
People complained that Sydney is expensive, cliquey and everything closes too early for it to be considered a fun place
And many said the beach lifestyle, especially in Sydney isn’t even as accessible as it first seems and there’s only so much of it you can enjoy.
‘For the much vaunted beach lifestyle, almost all are a massive pain to get to unless you live next door, Cronulla is the only one you can catch a train to,’ one said.
‘It sounds controversial but I actually found the beach really boring, like there’s only so many times you can go and sit on the beach,’ another added.
Others said that Melbourne’s ‘psychotic’ weather had eventually turned them off living there and then in springtime many are attacked by ‘vicious’ allergies.
‘In one day, it can be rainy, sunny, windy and humid – you get all the four seasons,’ one said.
The Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast have perfect beaches and weather but the current rental and jobs market makes it too competitive for some to consider
‘My hay fever was so bad in Melbourne, I’ll never live there again,’ another added.
And the young Brit isn’t the first person from the UK to be lured from London by the promise of paradise only to be left wondering why they got on a plane at all.
Owen Willis, a British expat who moved Down Under, listed the five things he hated about Australia.
After spending time living in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast he concluded that the Aussie experience didn’t live up to the social media hype.
‘Australia isn’t going to solve all your problems. I actually don’t think Australia is all that people think it is in their head,’ he said in a video.
Mr Willis was expecting a ‘utopian paradise’ when he relocated to the lucky country, but instead he found a cold, boring, expensive place where it’s difficult to get a job.
Owen said that the weather isn’t that good, the cost of living is crazy, skilled jobs are hard to find, the lifestyle is ‘really boring’ and everyone knows everyone.
‘The traveller warned people that moving to Australia wasn’t the answer to everything, as your problems will only follow you: You’ll just be depressed on the beach, or anxious on the beach,’ he said.
‘Yeah, as an Australian I’m pretty disappointed with our country, too,’ another agreed.
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