Moving to a new country is a scary thing to do. It’s even more so if you don’t know anyone where you’re moving to. And let’s be honest – the older you are, the harder it becomes to make new friends.

Here’s the thing, though – establishing a new social circle doesn’t have to be hard. Thanks to online communities, you can easily connect with people in your new city.

To get you started, we’re sharing three platforms that lets you make new connections in the real world. While Internations connects expat specifically, Meetup and Facebook groups creates opportunities to meet just about anybody in your area.

1. Internations

Internations is the ‘largest international community for people who live and work abroad’.

Roughly 6 000 events and activities are held monthly in 420 cities across the world where expats get to meet other internationals in their city. This creates opportunities for networking, connecting with like-minded people, and exchanging tips about living in the country.

In Australia, you’ll find Internations communities in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Canberra, and Sydney.

2. Meetup

The first message you see on Meetup’s website is ‘The people platform – Where interests become friendships’. It couldn’t be simpler either! All you have to do is create a free account. Once you’re set up, you can search for groups in your area. You’ll find groups covering a wide variety of interests, ranging from fitness and career development to the arts and the outdoors.

You can join as many groups as you like, and if you can’t find a group about a specific interest, you can start one.

Meetup groups exist all across Australia. You can see the full list on Meetup.

3. Facebook groups

Facebook introduced a brand-new way to connect with friends to the world. You can join neighbourhood groups, sports clubs, parent groups, industry communities, and expat groups to meet people.

Finding groups is as easy as typing what you’re looking for in the search bar. For example, try ‘running clubs near me’. You’ll immediately see a list of clubs in the immediate area.

Why wait? Connect with a local group today. Even if it makes you uncomfortable! At the very least, you’ll get to try something new. But chances are you’ll make a bunch of new friends. It’s a win-win if you ask us.

What do you do when you want to know what it’s like to live in a certain country? Do you do a search online? It could give you some answers, we agree. Should you perhaps rather visit for a holiday? You’ll definitely get a feel for the country, but holidaying in a place is often vastly different from living there permanently.

The best things to do (in our opinion)? Speak to people who already live there. That’s exactly what the Expat Explorer Survey does and it’s how we’re going to compare life in Australia to New Zealand today.

The reason for the comparison is not only because we offer immigration services for both countries. It’s also because many people interested in living in Australia also considers New Zealand when starting on their emigration journey.

What is the Expat Explorer Survey?

The Expat Explorer Survey happens annually. It is a global survey and in 2019 a total of 18,059 expats took part in the survey. Respondents had to answer 27 questions and their answers were used to create a league table. A minimum sample of 100 expat respondents was required for a country to be included. In 2019, 33 countries from around the world made the cut.

The survey has three categories – Living, Aspiring, and Little Expats

The Expat Explorer Survey’s 27 questions are spread across three categories:

1. Living
2. Aspiring
3. Little Expats

While ‘Living’ covers a multitude of aspects around your well-being, ‘Aspiring’ covers your income and career. ‘Little Expats’, as the name suggests, addresses issues that affect children.

Here’s how Australia and New Zealand fared in each category:

1. Living

Between Australia and New Zealand, Australia came out tops for quality of life as well as physical and mental well-being. The beautiful weather gets the credit for making expats feel physically healthier than in their home countries.

However, New Zealand came out tops when compared to Australia for fulfillment, having welcoming communities, political stability, and the ease of settling in. New Zealanders are known as warm and friendly people for a reason! You don’t have to search far for a story of how a New Zealander helped an expat when their first arrived in the country.

Position out of 33 countries in the Survey: Australia – 4th | New Zealand – 3rd

2. Aspiring

While New Zealand were scored higher by expats for income, Australia scored more for disposable income. So it seems that although expats in New Zealand earn more on average, expats in Australia have more of their salary to spend as they wish after deductions.

Australia also beat New Zealand when it came to career progression. The Expat Explorer Survey found that while expats don’t initially opt to work in Australia to help progress their careers, this is one of the reasons why expats often end up staying long term.

The tables were turned again for economic stability, reaching one’s potential, and work-life balance. Here New Zealand beat Australia. It’s to be expected as New Zealand is known as a country that values work-life balance. This is often one of the main reasons why expats choose to go to New Zealand.

Position out of 33 countries in the Survey: Australia – 12th | New Zealand – 8th

3. Little Expats

Expat parents in Australia rated the country highly for learning and schooling. Australia is two spots above New Zealand in both areas on the Expat Explorer Survey league table. New Zealand, however, scored better for making friends than Australia. The difference again was only two spots, so your children are going to have a great childhood in either country.

Position out of 33 countries in the Survey: Australia – 8th | New Zealand – 9th

Where do Australia and New Zealand sit on the Expat Explorer Survey league table?

Overall, Australia came in at 6th place while New Zealand sits at number 5. Switzerland, Singapore, Canada and Spain took the top four spots while Turkey, Germany, the UAE and Vietnam completed the top 10.

View the full league table here and view the comparison of Australia and New Zealand here.

Australia is big. The Kimberley region in Western Australia is roughly three times the size of England. Australia’s largest national park is nearly half the size of Switzerland. It’s no surprise that there’s so much to explore Down Under – especially its great outdoors!

Here are seven of the best Australian outdoor attractions and the best way to experience each one:

1. Swim with whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef

At Ningaloo Reef, off Western Australia’s north coast, you can swim with the giant but gentle whale shark. These beautiful creatures visit the reef every year from April to July. Other inhabitants you’ll see while gliding through the blue ocean waters are turtles, dugongs, manta rays and 500 species of tropical fish.

2. Sail the Whitsundays

The Whitsundays are made up of 74 islands and is situated on the beautiful tropical coast of Queensland, Australia. With the Great Barrier Reef hugging this part of the coastline, the waters are typically calm, which makes it deal for sailing, as well as snorkeling, diving, and swimming.

Most of the Whitsundays islands are uninhabited and protected by six national parks, making this part of Australia an enchanting experience. You won’t soon forget the dazzling sands of Whitehaven Beach or the charming Heart Reef.

3. Abseil in the Blue Mountains

The Blue Mountains is a rugged region in Australia’s New South Wales. Its most famous landmark is the Three Sisters. These ‘sisters’ are three rock pinnacles that tower over the valleys, waterfalls, and dense eucalyptus forests below.

You can explore the Blue Mountains by foot, mountain bike, or 4×4, but abseiling down the mountain cliffs is the by far the most thrilling way to do it.

4. White water rafting down the Franklin River

The Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park is named after the rivers that twist and cascade their way through this rugged part of Tasmania. The best of the rivers are said to be the Franklin.

This powerful river offers spectacular scenery, roaring rapids, and pockets of tranquility. It is one of the wildest and most memorable experiences in Australia when you negotiate the river by kayak.

5. Walk the coastline of the Great Ocean Road

The Great Ocean Road meanders along 243 kilometres of Australia’s south-eastern coast between the cities of Torquay and Allansford. Running alongside it is the Great Ocean Walk.

As the name suggests, the Great Ocean Walk is a hiking route that runs along the coastline. It’s no mean feat at 100 kilometres that takes 8 days to complete!

Every step is worth it though! You get to breathe in the fresh ocean air, step as close to the sheer cliffs as you can handle, and take in the majestic 12 Apostles.

6. Watch a sunset over Uluru

Uluru, or Ayers Rock, is on just about everyone’s Australian bucket list. It’s a massive red stone monolith in Australia’s arid Red Centre.

Let’s contextualise just how massive – Uluru rises 348 meters above the surrounding desert plain and it takes roughly three hours to walk the circumference!

While Uluru is a special sight any time of the day, those in the know highly recommend seeing it at sunset. This is when Uluru’s colours change as the sun sets on it, making it glow a majestic red colour.

7. Snorkel the Great Barrier Reef

This list would not be complete without adding the iconic Great Barrier Reef. The Reef is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, and stretches along more than 2000 kilometres of Australia’s coastline.

Your number one choice for an up-close-and-personal encounter with the abundant marine life in the Reef should be a snorkeling experience. You’ll get to appreciate the vivid corals, over 1500 species of tropical fish, sea turtles, giant clams, rays and dolphins in their natural habitat. Few other experiences come close!