Moms Travel TipsTravel Tips and Vacation Ideas for the Whole Family

Located approximately 60 kilometres south of Queensland’s capital city of Brisbane, Tamborine Mountain is a volcanic plateau set within Australia’s Gold Coast hinterland.

An outpouring of lava from nearby Mount Warning – many millenia ago – created Tamborine Mountain’s lush, forested plateau which is approximately 8 km long by 5 km wide and now sits 600 metres above sea level.

The many attractions of the Mount Tamborine area and its picturesque villages include craft and antique shops, cafes and restaurants and numerous galleries which attract thousands of tourists every season.

The area is also known for its award-winning wineries with many offering tours, free tastings and affordable meals in beautiful surroundings. If you enjoy walking, nine National Parks within the region await you. Shady walking tracks lead through magnificent subtropical rainforest and past breathtaking waterfalls, natural swimming holes and rock pools. Sun dappled picnic, BBQ and rest areas pepper the way and spectacular lookouts offer stunning views towards the ocean as well as to the West over the hinterland.

The Rainforest Discovery Skywalk is one of the latest Tamborine Mountain attractions and was completed in early 2009. Set on 30 acres of magnificent rainforest and alongside a tumbling creek, the Skywalk consists of an eco walking trail that leads to a 40m-long platform set 30m above the rainforest canopy. A short drive away, another popular attraction are the Glow-worm Caves that offer guided underground sightseeing tours through two spectacular man made caves filled with thousands of glow worms.

The rich volcanic soil of the area supports a diversity of horticulture which can be enjoyed on nature walks as well as by visiting the local Botanic Gardens. The bounty of many Tamborine Mountain residents’ gardens is also on display at several roadside stalls that abound with kiwi fruit, rhubarb, avocados and macadamia nuts quaintly displayed around an ‘Honesty Box’.

This small plateau also thrives with animal and bird life. Platypus, green tree frogs, scrub turkeys, wallabies and of course koalas form part of the Mountain’s varied range of wildlife and in the morning, the calls of lorikeets, kookaburras and lyrebirds can be heard.

The state of Queensland is known as Australia’s ‘Sunshine State’. On Tamborine Mountain, you can enjoy abundant sunshine year-round but without the heat and humidity that the more northerly parts of Queensland often endure.

The surfing beaches, shopping malls, theme parks (including Warner Brothers and Sea World) plus many other Gold Coast attractions are a comfortable 40-minute drive from Mount Tamborine while Brisbane is one hour away, making the Mountain the ideal ‘base-camp’ location from which to explore south-east Queensland.

 The nearest international airport is Brisbane, however national travellers often land at Coolangatta (Gold Coast) airport, a mere 45-minute drive from Tamborine Mountain.

Whether you are parents-to-be seeking a tranquil Babymoon destination, a newly engaged couple looking for that perfect Honeymoon location or if you are simply looking for the best Mt Tamborine Bed and Breakfast you will delight in the serene privacy of Mount Tamborine’s Witches Falls Cottages.

Witches Falls Cottages offer an idyllic retreat to nature and consist of private cottages tucked away along rainforest pathways in one of Tamborine Mountain’s  and perhaps  even Australia’s most secluded and peaceful locations.

This part of our guide to emigrating to Australia focuses on getting an Australian visa…

Australia has a universal visa system, which means that all people traveling to Australia (except Australian citizens) require a valid visa to enter the country. Failure to arrange this prior to arrival will result in you being turned away on arrival at the airport and being immediately sent back to the country you flew from.

You can find details of the various types of visas offered by visiting http://www.immi.gov.au, where you can also download an immigration application form. Be sure to read through all of the information and advice provided on the website to ensure that you’re both applying for the right type of visa and are eligible for it.

An immigration application form must be completed by all applicants wishing to emigrate to Australia and it must be sent to an office of the Department of Immigration and Culture (DIAC) with all relevant documentation and the fee.

They aren’t known for their leniency so you should check and double-check both your application form and all accompanying documents before sending it off. Any errors will result in it being automatically rejected, without you having the option to make any slight amendments to it.

How much the application will cost is dependent on which type of visa you’re applying for, but, when also factoring in police checks and copies of medical records, you can expect it to be more than $300. As for time, it normally takes at least 12 months for the processing of a successful application.

The DIAC will inform you of their decision by letter, which will also include details of how to get your passport updated (if your application was successful) or how do apply for a review of their decision (if your application was unsuccessful).

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Finding work in Australia is the topic for this installment of our guide to emigrating to Australia…

How easy it’ll be to get a job in Australia depends primarily on your qualifications, work experience and flexibility, with your nationality (i.e. not being an Australian citizen) not being a barrier to your success.

Depending on your qualifications and experience, job prospects may be better in one part of Australia than elsewhere. For example, if you have a background in manufacturing companies, you will have more chance of finding a suitable job in Melbourne, and to a lesser extent in Adelaide. If you’ve worked in finance companies, Sydney is the major centre of employment, while those with a background in resources should look at Perth. You may need to live outside of the major cities though, where theres less competition for jobs.

How much value Australian employers place on your qualifications, certificates and references varies from one to another, but you should expect them to not regard them as highly as an employer in your home country would as they’ll probably be unfamiliar with the institutes that issued them. Ones acquired from Australian institutes are generally given preference so be prepared to convert or top-up what you already have if you’re planning on a long-term career in an industry in which they’re particularly valued. 

Similarly, the experience you’ve gained from working outside of Australia won’t be viewed in the same way as if you’d spent that time working within Australia. There isn’t anything underhand about this, it’s just that employers would rather employ people who have worked for companies that they’ve heard of rather than obscure ones from another country. That’s not to say that your past work experience is irrelevant, it’s not at all, it’s just that you’ll be at a disadvantage when applying for jobs that people with in-country experience are also applying for. Therefore, you should be prepared to have to accept lesser jobs (in terms of skills required and pay) until you build up some local experience.

This installment of our emigrating to Australia guide focuses on the cost of living in Australia…

It’s human nature to convert prices back to your home currency when you first arrive somewhere new and prices in Australia can seem cheap when doing this. However, once you start earning Australian Dollars you’ll find that the money doesn’t go as far as you first hoped. Living is less expensive in Australia, but that you may well earn less and will possibly be taxed more.

Yet despite having less money coming in, most immigrants find that their overall standard of life improves after moving to Australia. It’s consisently highly in the various international quality of life indexes that are carried out, and low in the the level of expensive ones, with Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide doing particularly well when two such indexes are cross-referenced.

Approximations vary depending on whether you opt to live in the more expensive major cities or the cheaper provinces, but a sensible outlay for rental or mortgage for a family of four would be around $500 a month. On top of that would be about $150 for water and electricity (which is considerably less than you would expect to pay in other countries with a similar level of development).

As for food, when compared to the US it costs around the same, but that’s still 25 percent less than most countries in Europe; for a family of four, $700 would be a fair estimate for monthly outgoings on it. When you also consider that schools are free and healthcare is subsidized, you can see who Australia is such a popular destination with those looking to emigrate.

Manufactured goods tend to cost more than you would expect, particularly imported goods, including automobiles, electronics and clothes, which are generally more expensive than in Europe or North America. Also, if you plan on doing a lot of traveling, be aware that, despite petrol being well-priced, transport costs can be high due to the larger than normal distances between locations (particularly outside of the major cities).

Where to live in Australia is the topic for this installment of our guide to emigrating to Australia…

Sydney, the biggest city Australia has to offer, is located on Australia’s south-east coast. Despite being regarded as an expensive city, it’s a leading destination for immigrants. One of the pacific regions biggest business hubs, it’s the regional headquarters for approximately 500 multinational coporations.

Melbourne, the second most populous city in Australia, is the capital of the State of Victoria. Viewed as Australia’s sporting and cultural capital, it’s also a centre for commerce, industry, education, arts and tourism, as is Consistently ranked as one of the world’s most livable cities. It’s seen sizeable population and employment growth in recent years and there has been substantial international investment in the city’s property market and industries.

Brisbane, the state capital of the Australian state of Queensland, is a center for business within Australia. Blue-collar industries include metal working, petroleum refining and paper milling, and white-collar ones include financial services, public sector administration and information technology.  With over 20% of its residents being born outside of Australia (South Africa, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom being the main contributors), it’s also noted as being a particularly multicultural city.

Adelaide’s history of attracting immigrants from non-English speaking countries has given the costal city in the state of South Australia a reputation of being a welcoming multicultural place. It ranks as one of the world’s most liveable cities and is noted for its many sporting events and festivals, its food, wine and culture, and its beautiful beachfronts. The economy there is principally based around Defense technology and research, exporting, and manufacturing form the basis of the the economy there.

Perth, located in western Australia, is seen as the center for government and business for the whole of that side of the country. It has a growth rate consistently higher than the national average and this has seen it develop into the fourth largest city in Australia. British-born residents are plentiful there, and it’s also been a particularly popular destination for Chinese and South African immigrants. Manufacturing aside (due to its substantial distance from other populous Australian cities), lots of employment opportunities are on offer there.

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We’re looking at becoming an Australian citizen in this part of our emigrating to Australia guide…

To become a formal member of Australian society you need to apply for citizenship there. If you do so and are accepted then your rights, privileges and opportunities will be equal to those who were born in the country, and you’ll no longer need to apply for visas to reside there.

To apply for it you must: be aged 18 years or over; be of good character; be a permanent resident in the country at the time of application (and have lawfully resided there for at least 2-4 years); be likely to reside in Australia for the foreseeable future. You must also pass a citizenship test, which is in English and consists of 20 multiple choice questions on various aspects (history, culture, laws, citizen responsibilities, etc.) of Australia.

Information and advice regarding methods of application, the application process and fees can be found on the website of the Department of Immigration and Culture (DIAC). Carefully read through this before downloading an application form from the website or collecting a paper version from a branch of the Australian High Commission. At $200 per application, it isn’t cheap, so be sure that you’re eligible and have all the necessary documentation before proceeding.

The status of the visa you have when you apply, or any future ones you apply for, won’t be affected by a failed citizenship application but you won’t get your application fee returned to you. To save yourself both the time and expense incurred by an unsuccessful application (though either ineligibility or incorrect documentation) you might want to consider consulting with a migration agent, who will be able to advise on your likelihood of gaining citizenship and also guide you through the process.

The final step in the application process requires you to make the Pledge of Commitment at a special ceremony presided over by an Australian government official. After this has been done you’ll receive a Citizenship Certificate which enables you to change have your documents (passport, driving license, etc.) amended to reflect your new status.

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Australian Visas are what we’ll be looking at in this part of our guide to emigrating to Australia…

There are several types of visa that can be applied for when emigrating to Australia depending on how long you plan to stay there and what you’ll be doing there. These are the main types:

The skilled independent visa is a residency visa for those with qualifications and skills in demand. It’s not necessary to have an employer to sponsor you to obtain one but you’ll need to pass a points test (which assesses your qualifications, experience, aptitude, etc.). An alternative is a business visa, which doesn’t require you to pass a points test so long as you’re sponsored by an employer.

A working holiday visa offers a person aged between 18 and 31 the opportunity to stay in Australia for up to 12 months (with extensions being a possibility). working rights are limited to incidental employment of up to 6 months per employer to supplement your stay, which means that these are only really beneficial to backpackers and travelers, not those looking to establish themselves in Australia on a long term basis.

Retirement visas are designed for self-funded retirees who are 55 years or older, have no dependants (other than a spouse who can be any age), and who want to reside in Australia during their retirement years. It gives you permission to stay in Australia for up to four years, at which time you must apply for new one.

To obtain a visa to study in Australia you must be enrolled in an Australian academic institution and receive a Confirmation of Enrollment (which is usually issued after tuition fees have been paid). Those planning to also undertake any form of employment will need to apply for one with an accompanying right of ‘permission to work’.

Australian partner visas allow the spouse, fiance, or partner of those permanently residing in Australia (including immigrants) to also live and work in the country. Family visas can be obtained to also get these rights for dependent relatives and children.

Australian immigration rules are what we’ll be looking at in this part our guide to emigrating to Australia…

Virtually one in four of Australia’s population of 22 million was born outside of the country and each year more than 100,000 new migrants arrive in the country under the Migration Act 1958, which is implemented by the Department of Immigration and Culture (DIAC).

A universal visa system is in operation, and this means that all non-citizens (unless you are a New Zealander) must possess a visa to enter Australia and that all non-citizens in Australia who don’t hold a valid visa are there unlawfully and are liable for detention and deportation. To get a visa, you must make an application to the DIAC under one of their visa programs, and submit the subsequent fee (which differs from program to program).

The various visa programs on offer (skilled, employer sponsored, retirement, etc.) each have their own terms and criteria that must be met. If you mistakenly apply for the incorrect one, or you fail to satisfy the Australian government that you qualify for it, your application will be rejected without refund of the application fee.

Your ethnic origin, race, nationality, religion and sex play no part in determining eligibility, but factors such as previous visa history, overstay risk, character, criminal records, age and medical history, do. It’s an open procedure though and you have the right to lodge an appeal with an independent review tribunal should you feel that you’ve been unfairly discriminated against.

Separate migration and humanitarian programs are used, so as to provide a balance between Australia’s international humanitarian obligations and the Australian Government’s economic, social and environmental objectives. Annual limits are in place on each of these and once reached no more immigrants will be given visas until the next year.

We’ll be focusing on Australian migration agents in this installment of emigrating to Australia guide…

Using a migration agent, who is an expert in the field of emigration issues, isn’t necessary when applying for an Australian visa, but many prospective immigrants enlist the help of one anyway. This is because their knowledge and experience of the visa regulations and the application process can shorten the time it’ll take to obtain your visa, and almost eradicates the likelihood of an incorrect application being lodged (most offer a guarantee of a refund if this happens).

If you opt to use an agent, be sure to only use one that is registered with the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) and also make sure you get a full account of all the costs involved before starting the application process.

Try starting off with one of the free eligibility tests that many migration agents offer on their websites, which take less than 10 minutes to complete. They’re only meant to be preliminary review of your eligibility, and the result of them shouldn’t be taken as 100% accurate, though they are based on the DIAC’s official immigration criteria.

If you seem to be eligible, an agent will then contact you to discuss your application and will advise you on what type of visa you require for your circumstances. This is both a complex and crucial step as there are numerous types of visas available and applying for the wrong one will result in your application being rejected and the whole process having to be started again. Having decided on the right type of visa, they’ll then collect, examine, assess, and process all of the information and documentation necessary for your application.

East Coast Australia really does offer something for everyone from major cities, water sports, scenery and some of the world’s best beaches. If you are considering visiting this wonderful area then you will be pleased to know that when it comes to holiday accommodation Australia has much to offer.

The two big cities along the East coast, Sydney with it’s stunning harbour and vibrant lifestyle and the river city of Brisbane are firm visitor favorites. Brisbane offers some exceptional centres for the arts including the popular Queensland Performing Arts Complex. Sydney is a very easy city to visit for holidaymakers and Sydney apartments can be rented in almost every part of the city. Sydney combines every modern amenity into one package, world class shopping, excellent tourist facilities, and easy access to the surrounding areas, perfect as a base of operations from which to explore the likes of Hunter Valley and Bondi Beach.  For those who love their sun and sand, few places in the world offer such a great combination of scuba diving, surfing and stunning beaches as Byron Bay.

Gold Coast accommodation is very simple to locate, there are some excellent deals to be had in this area, allowing the visitor to exploit this exciting area. If you enjoy spending time on holiday exploring new beaches and coastal cities then maybe a tour of the Sunshine Coast might be more to your liking, this allows you to include more traditional destinations such as Montville in the Blackall Mountain Ranges to add variety to your beach holiday. If your travelling as a couple then a few nights in a Maleny Cottage is a romantic way to enjoy some peace and quite, great food and stunning natural surroundings.

For the water sports enthusiast one cannot forget the Great Barrier Reef. This is one of the leading tourist attractions along the East Coast. Combine your scuba diving adventure with a visit to the Whitsunday Islands for double the pleasure, world class scuba diving in incredible tropical surroundings. Although these areas are not particularly noted for budge accommodation rentals Australia is still exceptional value for money when we consider the overwhelming natural beauty of east coast Australia, and the myriad of activities which can be enjoyed by the visitor.

Whilst on the discussion of activities available to the visitor to east coast Australia, it is worth mentioning Fraser Island. A world heritage site and the largest sand island in the world this is one of the primary natural areas that east coast Australia has to offer. An incredible variety of animal life can be found along the white sandy beaches, inside the tropical rainforest in the interior of the island and in the seas which surround Fraser Island.

A vacation to the East Coast of Australia truly offers something special for any visitor from stunning scenery, beaches, food and accommodation. There are plenty of short term and long term accommodation rentals Australian companies and private individuals have made available in east coast Australia, take advantage of these great offers as part of your ideal east coast Australia holiday.

Article by Richard Greenwood of holiday accommodation website MakeMyStay.com.au

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