Australia and New Zealand on Your Bucket List?

This is a fantastic article, but it's all about Australia. No question - Australia is great. I've been to Sydney and Melbourne, and I can't wait to go back to visit those cities again and discover more of the continent.

Both countries are very expensive compared to most U.S. cities. Generally, expect to pay about twice as much for most things as you would in the U.S. Public transportation is reasonable, though. Don't let that dissuade you from visiting, just save up a little more and be prepared for sticker shock.

Australia and New Zealand are two of my favorite places, but of the two, I liked New Zealand better. Auckland is beautiful, friendly, and safe. It has two large bays, one facing the Pacific Ocean and one facing the Tasman Sea. Both waterfronts are filled with sailboats. Auckland is known as the "City of Sails." There are good museums and a Sky Tower (tallest structure in the Southern Hemisphere) that offers stunning views. The city is very walkable and has a good bus system. The Ponsonby and Parnell neighborhoods have interesting shops and restaurants, and it's fun to just stroll up and down the street and stop in places that pique your curiosity.

Auckland has a hop-on/hop-off bus that travels a circuit of all the city's attractions. You buy a one- or two-day pass and ride around all day, and you can get on and off whenever you like. Sydney has one too, by the way.

Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin are each beautiful in their own way, and have their own personality and charm. They are well worth at least a couple days each. Wellington has the capitol buildings, as well as a beautiful botanical garden and small mountains within the city that offer spectacular views. In Christchurch, the Antarctic Exploration Center is well worth a visit. There's another place you can go to see penguins up close. Dunedin has a strong Scottish flavor, both in its architecture and some of its people.

There are many other places I didn't get to visit on my first trip and I can't wait to go back. I'm looking into the possibility of renting a small RV (about the size of a hotel or rental car shuttle van) and driving all over the country for a month or so. There are several rental companies that offer this. The countryside is among the most beautiful you'll see anywhere.

I could easily retire to New Zealand from a quality-of-life standpoint. There are two factors that make both Australia and New Zealand difficult to retire to, though. One is their immigration requirements (which are almost identical). If you're over 56, your only way to get a permanent visa is to invest a large amount of money there. If you moved there during your working years, it would have been much easier. You can get a tourist visa for up to six months. I've heard of people who bounce back and forth between the two countries every six months, but I think that would be disruptive and difficult to sustain. Intercontinental snowbirding might be an option. I don't know how tolerant they would be of making "visa runs" every six months (weekend trips outside of the country for the sole purpose of restarting the six month clock).

The other prohibitive factor is the high cost of living. Most of us are looking for places where we can retire for less, not more.

In closing, some people may be tempted to focus their trip on Australia and tack on a couple days in New Zealand as a side trip. This would be a mistake. There's much more to see and do in New Zealand than you realize. As the article's author suggests, either take two separate trips, or take a longer trip and split your time evenly.

Dave Hughes
RetireFabulously.com

Editor's note: Thanks Dave, these are really helpful additions to the article!

We went to Australia in 2001 for 10 days but that was not a bucket list item, just a vacation. We spent time in Sydney, Cairns, Melbourne and Hobart Tasmania. We loved it there and at the time looked into moving there but that was a no go because we couldn't work there unless invited.

This September we're doing our first bucket list item and that's to Tahiti for 2 weeks. We're not retired yet so we wanted to do this trip while we have substantial money coming in because it's costing us a small fortune. The next bucket list item will be to Ireland and points beyond.

I lived in New Zealand for six years while my husband was working at the US Embassy in Wellington. We had a wonderful experience. I agree with Dave Hughes. I would visit New Zealand over Australia, though we did visit Australia and enjoyed it. The major difference is there are no snakes of any kind and not the kind of poisonous spiders they have in Australia. There is so much geographical diversity in New Zealand - from tropical rain forests, to mountains, to glaciers, to beautiful cities, a desert, etc.... so much to see and do. Our daughter learned to ski on an active volcano. Retiring there would be very difficult, for the reasons Mr. Hughes pointed out as well as the article. The people were very friendly and accomodating. We plan on visiting again soon.

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