I decided to leave to Australia to do a working holiday visa. One year break in my life. One year where I will learn more on myself than ever. What is this and why you should do it?
Working Holiday Visa in Australia, let’s go !
This is an amazing VISA you can get if you have less than 30 years, when you can take up to one year to work and travel in Australia. No prerequisites, no quotas, simply apply online, fill out the form and pay $ 365 AUS.
Once done, you’re almost 100% sure to get it within 10 days. Easy, isn’t it? 😀
Why this Australia tab in the menu ? We hope through our posts to bring you with us throughout our wonderful experience! That way, you, dear friends and family who read these words, you can, in addition to SKYPE / WHATSAPP / TEL / MAIL / AND CO follow our journey. And you, dear readers that we do not know, if you are about to go there yourself, or just interested in Australia, you will find ideas / tips!
The protagonists : A few presentations : Bouboule (Nickname for Mélodie) & Moumou (Nickname for Aurélie). Two best friends, from Paris. Already made a trip to Australia in November-December 2012. Fell in love with this beautiful country ! So we took the decision to leave again for 1 year!
More details :
-Bouboule : 23 years (when leaving), Packaging Project Manager but crazy about kangaroos!
-Moumou : 23 years (when leaving), Digital Project Manager but crazy enough to leave everything!
Some tips before leaving: For those of you thinking about a WHV Australia, here are some essential things to think about :
– Money : You need to save a minimum on your account before you leave. I’d say around € 3,000, this will back you up before you find a job in Australia. The cost of living is high there, so you should go there with some money to get started.
– Plane ticket: A single plane ticket to Australia costs between 500 and 1,000 €, a way/back ticket between 1000 and 1500, roughly. The journey is long, between 16h and 22h FLIGHT whether you fly to the west or east coast. As there are no direct flights between France and Australia, I advise you to choose a flight with a stopover as short as possible .
During our 1st trip, we had 13h stopover in Shanghai, so we had to travel 35 hours in total, which was SUUUUPER long. This time, we have 2 hours stopover in Doha, which is better (with Qatar Airways).
– Insurance : Health insurance is essential. It is a cost, but it must be considered in the same way as your ticket. Medical expenses are very high in Australia, and if anything happens to you -let’s touch wood for NOT- you must have an insurance that covers and your costs. A good insurance : Globe Partner. It costs approximately 450 € for 12 months.
– An Australian bank account : The Westpac bank allows you to create an online account in 10 minutes, even before you arrive in Australia, which is very convenient. To do so, just go on the Westpac Website. After filling out your application online, you receive a confirmation email. Some days later, an operator will call you to verify your identity and the day of your arrival, you show up in any Westpac branch, you show your passport, and you activate your account + you are issued your credit card. Perfect!
Then, you just have to organize a great farewell party with all your friends and you can fly for great adventures down under !
We are so excited ! Departure in one week ! Stay tuned
Main photo credits : Suhyeon Choi