Sydney or Melbourne?
 

Hi, <BR> <BR>I have the opportunity to study Heath Science at colleges in either Sydney or Melbourne. I have never visited Australia and am having difficulty in decided where to study. Please can anyone who has spent time in BOTH cities please give me a quick rundown and the pro's and con's of both in order that I can finally make a decision. Thankyou. Love, Light and Laughter - Lucinda

Hi <BR>You don't say where you are from - which would have helped but in any case here goes ( I will now run for cover from the expected poison pen letters from people in Melbourne) <BR>Sydney all the time my friend is the answer. <BR>Sydney is the world's most beautiful city from a natural point of view. It has the beaches and the harbour which are remarkable places at any time of the year. There are many more things to do and places to go from Sydney as you are not at the bottom of Australia. <BR>Melbourne is a nice but rather European type city with a rotten climate - it can be very cold and windy and then it can be very very hot and dry - in the same day actually. <BR>I live in Queensland and so I am looking at these two places without bias. Sydney gets a 9/10 and Melbourne would get a 3/10 in my book. Melbourne would normally get a 2/10 but it gets the extra point because its closer to Tasmania than Sydney!!!

Sydney is a beautiful city but Melbourne is a more liveable city. Melbourne can have very changeable weather but Sydney has more days of rain. I guess a lot depends on which university you will be attending and its location. Both cities have great restaurants, good sporting facilities etc.

I live in melbourne (and love it). However - Sydney is a great place for a holiday. it is spectacular, very beautiful and historic, but I would not want to live there. it is much wetter and more humid than melbourne, the traffic is worse and getting from point A to B can be difficult. melbourne is a less spectacular city (you really can't compete with Sydney's harbour), but is easier to travel around and is recognised as one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. I'm sure you'll enjoy where ever you decide and hopefully you'll get the opportunity to travel around a bit too.

Hi <BR> <BR>Sorry I havent been to Melbourne but as a new emigree to Sydney I just had to write a post here in response to the anti-sydney posts above! I come from Londoon, so I think I know a thing or 2 about great cities and I would have to say that Sydney is the most amzing, beautiful, friendly easy-going city i have ever been to. I have lived here since February and every day I cannot believe what a great decision it was. <BR> <BR>Traffic is minimal (despite above posters comments) consideriung you are ina huge city. In 8 months I have been in 3 traffic jams! In London, I was in them every day! <BR> <BR>I cant speak for Melbourne of course, but There is a great rivalry between the 2 cities. <BR> <BR>Traffic is the least if your concerns anyway! I think the climate here is wonderful...not humid at all and any rain is actually a novelty and I enjoy rainy days because then I can actually drag myself from my balcony and not feel like I am missing out by being inside! <BR> <BR>In London, we lived in a one bedroom flat on a busy road...here we have a 4 bedroom house with a pool, overlooking Middle Harbour for less rent!! We are within 10-30 minutes of dozens of beaches, national parks etc. <BR> <BR>I just cannot imagine Melbourne even coming close to this, but I guess it depends on what sort of person you are. People who visit Sydney for a holiday only see a one tiny facet of the city. I actually came to sydney for a holiday 5 years ago and hated it. Now I wonder how on earth I got such a skewed impression. If you live here, you will find areas tourists never see. We are always discovering new parks, waterfalls, beaches and cannot believe they are empty. <BR> <BR>Also, as the first poster said, from here you can easily drive up to queensland or down to Victoria. <BR> <BR>Well...just had to get that off my chest. I love Sydney 100% and wouldnt dream of living in another city in Australia...would seem pointless! <BR> <BR>

Lucinda - <BR> <BR>I have lived in both Sydney (1 year)& Melb. (3 yrs). Both cities are excellent, but in my book are very different. Sydney is visually more spectacular, and on a nice sunny day - I can't imagine being in a better place. However, it is much more expensive (real estate wise - which would probably flow down to rental rates) than Melb. My husband & I moved to Melb. because we quickly figured out how much we would have to stretch ourselves to get a house in Sydney anywhere near the CBD or any of the beaches, while in Melb. things are still very affordable. Anyway, both cities have excellent public transport. systems, and both have good nightlife. For the past 2 years, Melb. has had pretty light winters (not that cold or rainy really), while Sydney has had some really drastic weather - which according to all the 'locals' is a bit unusual. I don't like the humidity much, so I prefer Melb. which has very hot & dry summers vs. hot & potentially humid in Sydney. If you are in to surfing & like the beach culture, than look no further than Sydney. In my opinion, because Melb. doesn't have the panoramas that Sydney offers, it tries a bit harder in some other areas. Melb. seems to have more of an arty type culture (not to say that Sydney has none). I prefer the restaurants, cafes & shopping in Melb - but that could be because I have had more time here to search them all out. Sydney is one of the most visually spectacular places I have ever seen, but Melbourne has more of a european flair which appeals to me. I have often heard the comparison of Sydney to NYC, and Melbourne to San Francisco. Overall, I prefer Melbourne, but just slightly. I don't think you can go wrong with either city.

As an a neutral person who was in australia for the first time last year I have been to both Sydney (5 days) and Melbourne (3 days) and the result is I enjoyed both cities but would not go back to Melbourne again but would definitley visit Sydney again.

I agree with Leslie above. I grew up in Melbourne, first moved to Sydney for 2 years 20 years ago, have moved back to Melbourne twice since and am again in Sydney. Have now been here about 12 years in all. I have acclimatised and now find Melbourne's weather either too hot (in Feb.) or too cold (April to Nov). Both cities have their pros & cons. Melbourne is closer to the snow in Winter and has a great restaurant and theatre culture. Sydney has the beautiful harbour, more sunny days but also more rain (when it rains it pours!). How long will you be studying? 3 years? If so, you will get ample opportunity to travel and experience other places anyway. <BR><BR>Lucinda, please tell us where you are from. If you come from a cold climate, I'd go for something different, ie Sydney. If you come from a warmer area, I'd go for Melbourne to experience a change in seasons. You'll have a great time no matter where you end up.