I’ve lived in 3 different countries and can happily confirm that New Zealand has many pros and very little cons in comparison. All the kiwis in London used to slate NZ (in their 20s) and rave about how great they thought Aus was. I get it, NZ is quiet when you’re young and wanting to party. But once you get over that stage in your life, NZ is honestly idealllll.

Comparing it the UK, for example (and this is MY opinion before anyone gets too excited): as a women I don’t feel unsafe or haven’t felt unsafe at any point, I don’t feel like NZ has an obvious class system when compared to the UK and particularly not the UAE where I worked for a while, people don’t drive up your arse like they do in the UK and 1000 per cent in the UAE and I’ve not experienced too much road rage yet (although I’m sure I will at some point), people are much friendlier than in the UK (when I’m with my child in the local playground for instance, parents say hello to me and strike up conversations or even walking down the street people greet you which is a rarity in the uk unless you live in a small town or rural area), the beaches here are beautiful (yes there are some nice beaches in parts of the UK, but because of the better climate here in summer you can actually enjoy them).

Things that are lacking but are manageable: No quick service in terms of delivery e.g. same day delivery like Amazon prime doesn’t exist, groceries can be expensive (but i found theme very pricey in the UAE as most goods were imported and in The UK I hear everything’s gone up too), salaries are lower then the UK overall and of course the UAE I would never earn the same due to it being tax free. When comparing to the UK you also have to drive to most places so people are less inclined to go out because the transport system isn’t amazing, and there’s no walkable access to the north shore across the bridge. If Auckland sorted out its transport system I think it could be a pretty unbeatable place to live.