I made it to Australia!🇦🇺 Arriving in Melbourne - Backpacking Australia begins

Backpacking Australia 🇦🇺 EPISODE 1 📍Melbourne
So after a long time planning and dreaming I have finally arrived in Australia. My first stop is Melbourne and after a long 24 hour flight, a bus and a lot of walking I arrived at my hostel. This vlog is a bit all over the place, my apologies, but trying to vlog whilst also finding your feet in a new country is not an easy task. I promise they'll be better here on out! In this vlog I take you along with me on some of the top things to do whilst you're here in Melbourne!
Let me know any other top tips you have for Melbourne and any must-sees.
WEBSITE:
💻 www.kimberley-ann.com
BLOG:
✍🏽 www.kimberley-ann.com/all-blogs
Instagram:
📸 / kimberley_ann_
ABOUT ME:
I'm Kimberley, call me Kim. I'm a solo traveller from Hampshire, UK. I spend my time exploring new places around the world with my backpack and throwing myself into anything animal related, so I can guarantee lots of stunning views and fluffy animals on this channel. I love to make these videos for inspiration and tips and anything related to this backpacking lifestyle.

[@michaelmayo9048]

Woolami beach at Phillip Island That was a cool week this week is much warmer ...

[@kimberley-ann]

Yeah when we went the weather wasn’t great! But still amazing

[@nedkelly2864]

Welcome.🖐

[@viviennetaylor4185]

Two of my kids work for Phillip Island Nature Parks. Great place to work and not a bad “office”. They mainly work at the penguin parade and love every minute of it.

[@kimberley-ann]

It does look like a really god place to work!

[@vandoreviews]

Wombats are the coolest animals, especially when you see them in the bush if you ever get that chance. Enjoy Oz!

[@kimberley-ann]

They are!! I’m hoping to head that way at some point

[@dnoordink]

There were definitely sharks off that pier on Philip Island. Don't jump off :)

[@kimberley-ann]

Good job I didn’t then😂

[@DaveWhoa]

congratulations for following your dreams 👍 😄 ♥ You wont have any regrets now! we hope you feel at home while you're in Oz 😄

[@kimberley-ann]

Thankyou!!! Yeah absolutely loving it so far glad I came

[@culverit]

If you do end up heading up the east coast, make sure to stop by Springbrook National Park an hour or so south of Brisbane, with all the rain we've had recently the waterfalls will definitely be flowing! East of Springbrook is the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, which I think you'd love as well. Also close to Brissie is Moreton (and Stradbroke Islands), Moreton Island has a desert with amazing sand dunes, be sure to take some sheets of cardboard and a few candles to wax them so you can ride the dunes! Those are just suggestions though, no matter what you do, enjoy your time in our beautiful sunburned country!

[@kimberley-ann]

Thankyou so much! I’m heading up to Sydney tonight. But I’ll definitely take your suggestions on board when I head up towards Brisbane! Moreton island sounds amazing, is there tours or anything that will take you there, what’s the best way to do it?

[@culverit]

Sadly I know almost nothing about Sydney, but I hope you enjoy your time there! As for tours on Moreton, I had a quick look and there seems to be a few places based out of Tangaloooma where the ferry makes berth, so I don't think you should have any trouble. I've never done a tour though, I've only ever been there on scout camps back in the day.

[@kimberley-ann]

@@culverit thanks so much!! I’ll have a look into it myself when I get closer up that way. Appreciate the recommendation!

[@tareskisloki8579]

@@kimberley-ann Not sure if you've made it that far yet (as this was a month ago), but they do some fantastic clear-bottomed kayak tours out of Tangalooma that are well worth it (they do them at night too).

[@lnique_]

the surf beach view is insane woww 🤩 i’m invested in this series already

[@kimberley-ann]

I knowww😍😍 beaut scenes and we’re only just getting started

[@nathanroberts355]

U should make you get to see cairns and the great barrier reef also and Kuranda markets and I'm a cairns local

[@joefoley6297]

Great coverage, Better than just walking City streets and catching trams. Enjoy it all.

[@kimberley-ann]

Thankyou! I’m not a city girl so you’ll find I tend to steer towards day trips outside of the cities rather than staying close by. I find it a lot better too because there’s so much more to a country than it’s tourist spots!!

[@ervinslens]

Outstanding shots my friend, this looks and sounds spectacular 🔥🔥🔥

[@kimberley-ann]

Thankyou so much!! 😊

[@helenthompson5532]

I live on Phillip island in Cowes. We DO NOT HAVE ANY CROCODILES.

[@kimberley-ann]

Lol I know we were just messing around 😂😂

[@helenthompson5532]

@@kimberley-ann I hope you enjoyed my beautiful home island. Sorry the weather was so cold.

[@dylans2376]

Welcome to our wonderful country. Have the best time and always ask if you need any tips :)

[@kimberley-ann]

Thankyou!

[@superlight7654]

Be careful. Particularly swimming at some beaches, isolated areas suggest you don't do that on your own.

[@kimberley-ann]

Not a chance, I’m petrified of the sea 😂

[@mrd4785]

I live in Melbourne now for certain reasons now and I really enjoy it, but I grew up in South West WA/ Perth and I often think about potentially moving back. Honestly I'm surprised how many people pass it up on their travels. I was watching a video the other day produced by an American couple based in Melbourne and they said they preferred Fremantle to all the places they'd been over east. The highest number of immigrants from the UK choose to settle in Perth for certain reasons and this fact is often overlooked by tourists - i.e. there must be a good reason. Perth has the most hours of sunshine of all the cities in Australia and a few other selling points. Just saying it might be worth a look, but I hope you have an amazing time visiting Australia. Appreciate you might have limited time/ budget to cover it all.

[@kimberley-ann]

Perth is definitely on my list, however I don’t think I’ll be managing it on this trip. I purely want to travel the east coast this time and hopefully come back to do van life along the West coast and hopefully central aus!

[@mrd4785]

@@kimberley-ann Sounds like a solid plan 👍 Glad that of all the great places there are to visit in the world, you’re already thinking towards a second trip back here before your first is even over. I don’t know if you’ve seen the latest news this week, but the state of WA is actively recruiting people in the UK to move out permanently, or at least for a couple of years or so to give it a go. British migrants are always welcome and make a great contribution, as we’ll always share a lot in common.

[@kimberley-ann]

@@mrd4785 is that for skilled worked etc? not sure if I’d spend so long here. I’m a bit of a home bird, love my family to bits so would always want to live closer to them but it’s definitely something to think about! Yeah this trip was specifically to do the east coast, I’ve been wanting to do it for about 4 years! So as long as that’s done now, I’m happy. I feel like van life would be so much better to do everything else as I’d love to go to less touristy places etc and have a bit more freedom (I don’t drive hence why this trip is a bit more restrictive) I kinda just had to go because I’d put it off for so long, very last minute thing

[@mrd4785]

@@kimberley-ann I believe they are looking for skilled jobs like policing, mining, teaching, nursing etc but also stuff like hospitality, and all that it entails. There might even be a lot more categories than this. The state always has consistently the lowest unemployment rate in the nation and it’s often a struggle to find people to do basic jobs when there is so much demand and a lot of lucrative alternative work is available in the mining sector etc. Just crossed my mind and thought I might mention it as something you might want to look at while the offers have just been laid out on the table and certain places are available. Apparently they have people going around the UK now putting on presentations in pubs and offering to pay the bar tab for anyone who attends to hear out the proposition and see some promotional material. Just saw it briefly on the news only 2 days ago I think and the government was on about trying to lure as many of the best people across from the UK as possible. With hospitality or other work, you might even be able to get away with a shorter stint and it might negate the need to do regional work like farming if planning a longer stay. I’m sorry but I haven’t really looked into the thing in detail. If I get some time I’m sure they’ll have a website up for the Scheme and I’ll try and have a look. Also as far as housing costs go, Perth has become a lot more expensive lately but on average it’s still quite a bit cheaper than Melbourne and definitely Sydney. I know that’s not what you are here for but it might be at the back of your mind, so I thought I’d at least give it a mention. There’s something for everyone though in each of our capital cities. I grew up on a farm not far from a very popular beach town and that was great too. To be honest, I sometimes dream of going back home, if it weren’t for the effort I’ve put into my education and the corporate lifestyle I find myself in at present.

[@kimberley-ann]

@@mrd4785 perfect, Thankyou so much!! I’ll definitely look into it in the future. Like I said this trip is purely for travel purposes and there’s way too much to do in Australia for me to never come back again. So you’ll definitely be seeing more of me in the future here. I would love to work here eventually, I believe there’s a new whv for uk passport holders so we don’t have to do regional work and get 3 years to live and work. So I’ll definitely be taking advantage of that when it comes out! I’ll have a research when I get home about what you’ve told me, it’s definitely something to consider! Thanks for all your help! :)

[@bent444]

No Crocs in Melbourne 😁, Try the Zoo

[@kimberley-ann]

Ahaha just my impulsive thoughts showing themselves 😂 I’m doing some croc tours up in Darwin at the end of my trip, I’ll definitely be seeing them before I leave!

[@ross4970]

Wombats just like typical Aussie bloke. He eats roots and leaves.

[@superlight7654]

Wear a hat outdoors and have a good pair of sunglasses in Queensland and Northern Australia. It is so so hot.

[@kimberley-ann]

Yep😂learnt that the hard way

[@md.rajuahmmed9451]

Wow beautiful.you are very beautiful girl.,,,🌹

[@kimberley-ann]

Thank you so much

[@markgritt4876]

Just stay away from the middle....it's pointless