Anyone lived in Rotorua, NZ?

[Cousinit]

It looks like DH is going to be offered a job there. We have never been to NZ but lived in Australia (Adelaide) for a year and loved it. TBH Australia would have been my first choice but there do seem to be more job opportunities in NZ at the moment. The things I loved about Adelaide were the climate, friendly people, relaxed lifestyle, lots of things to do with children, always lots of events and cultural things to do, cleanliness, good food and wine. I could go on! My question is would we find a similar lifestyle in Rotorua? Currently there are no opportunities for him here in the UK (he's a doctor and struggling to find a permanent job) so from that point of view we have nothing to lose. I've been reading the recent threads on NZ with interest and am really uncertain whether it's for me or not. Would be really interested to hear from anyone who lives or has lived in Rotorua. I gather it's a stunning place to visit but have read mixed things about it as a place to live.

We are not clear on whether we would move perm or for a year or two either so we would certainly keep our house here initially. DH has also brought up issue of flying back for interviews etc should we decide we want to return. It is so difficult trying to decide what to. Totally agree with you about e-mailing to explore options elsewhere but DH seems reluctant to do this for some reason. I think he believes it would be a waste of time. The more I think about this job the more uncertain I become. DH seems quite keen on the job though - unsurprisingly, since it's his first and only offer in 7 months of job-hunting. The only reason he registered with the agencies in the first place was because we wanted to try our luck in Australia. However, due to all the things I've mentioned in previous posts, I definitely wouldn't consider a rural location in Aus. So again, that limits our options somewhat. NZ was never really somewhere we had thought about and even now I am still thinking of Aus. I would love to return to Adelaide and have tried persuading DH to contact hospitals there directly. I know the chances of getting a position there are slim but if you don't ask you'll never know, right? On the other hand, we may love NZ. Could be the best thing we ever did. Aaaargh, this is an impossible decision. Have been following the other NZ thread with great interest and will continue to do so. Just haven't had anything v. useful to contribute at this stage...

And yes, you are probably right about jobs going to the locums in post. It's just neither of us wants DH to be living away from the family for long periods of time, which is what would happen while he's doing locums unless he's lucky enough to find something commutable. DS is nicely settled in pre-school, due to start school next year. Moving him around the country isn't an option.

He really should consider e-mail it almost certainly wont lead to anything

there again it might
but it might lead to his name being mentioned when someone mentions a job to someone.......

maybe someone in Adelaide is just desperate for 12 months off for sabatical/writing/etc etc and can't find anyone suitable

it seems a bit leap from city Oz to small town NZ I reckon you would get a partial hit on about 50% of your list but you would be in small town NZ not Adelaide

If you want an adventure for a year or 2 then really there is little to consider other than his chance of getting a job in the UK (would your son get a school place if not in in recep?) which only he can work out.
If you want ot emigrate to Oz then I would suggest that taking a job in Rotorua because he can't get anything else probably isn't going to make you happy
but you know that I'm just wondering if articulating it is helping?

Letter of offer has come through to sign. They are offering v. good relocation package and salary. Have researched area a bit more and managed to find a friend of a friend who lives there who has given us more info. We are feeling much more positive about it. I think if we didn't go for it I would possibly regret it and be thinking "what if?". We don't feel very happy about being in the UK right now and I don't believe it is the best place to bring up children. If we can achieve a better lifestyle for the children in NZ then I will be happy. I really don't think we have much to lose by giving it a go

That's looking much more positive! I think you're right that it'll be a great experience, and you sound really realistic and sensible about the move. Look forward to hearing updates from Rotorua.