WORKING WHILE TRAVELLING

[woolgoolgaoffroad]

Hey all,

Am very seriously contemplating putting an X on the calendar to start a lap or two.
Has or is anyone working while travelling ??
Ta much

[ozstickman]

I'm going to follow this thread.  We were thinking of doing the same at the beginning of next year but have put it on hold for a couple more years to get rid of more debt first.

[oldmate]

Hey all,

Am very seriously contemplating putting an X on the calendar to start a lap or two.
Has or is anyone working while travelling ??
Ta much

I am trying to talk the wife into the same thing. A mate of mine hit the rd last April and hasn't looked back. 

[woolgoolgaoffroad]

I did think about this 2 years ago but my daughter decided to live with me but now she has moved to sydney for uni so I have nothing holding me here. After reading matt and Jess's blog ( http://fealyfamily.wordpress.com )

last night it has sparked the flame

[oldmate]

I did think about this 2 years ago but my daughter decided to live with me but now she has moved to sydney for uni so I have nothing holding me here. After reading matt and Jess's blog ( http://fealyfamily.wordpress.com )

last night it has sparked the flame

Just go mate! Put the x on the calender and go. Seriously, or you will always kick yourself and wonder if you should. 

[edz]

G,Day Kev.. Well a mate did just that close to two years ago ... Got  a little caravan tidied it up and set off with the family, He's pretty handy and can turn a hand to most things and a diesil mech .. Doing a big loop out through central QLD / Darwin and down  into WA ..
Every where he has stopped  work has found him or he's found it when he wanted it ... was recommended to other people to call in on  further along on their trip if he needed  work ... There are a couple of others I know that are out traveling and are getting work when they want to ..
He's not long returned for family commitments and his last boss is realy trying hard to lure him back to WA, so theres a chance he'll be pushing off again soon ..
Go for it mate ... just drop into the pub after knock off and ask around or dont be afraid to ask who ever you talk to if they know of any work going .... just be honest and upfront and willing to have a go .. Seems to work best ..

[Brumbypt]

Plenty of ppl have written books on the topic, including where to look for work etc..

well worth reading and studying them.


Peter,
sent by telegram stop

[chester ver2.0]

Yes i have done it and am still doing it i found a bit of work in Alice, Darwin and have been in resources here in Perth for 4 years so am still kind of travelling

Couple of tips i found
1. Caravan parks wont pay cash but will often give 2 or 3 nights accomodation for a bit of help
2. Fruit picking gardening etc is hard to find as you are often undercut by the backpackers.
3. Unless you are good on the tools or a professional like me i found the larger cities to have the most work i.e work at one for 2 or 3 months and then move on. the city caravan parks are quiet nice.
4. Kev last time i met you years ago you were doing some work at BCF and also gardening work this is a good mix as you could do retail in the larger cities (i worked at BIAS boating in Darwin) and help out at caravan parks ( i mowed lawns and cleaned pools for accomodation)
5. The small resorts are really hard and clicky to get work as they usually have the same people back every year

You will still need a bit of coin behind you as i found the work sporadic and the wages more extended the trip than covered it for example i saved enough money for 3 months away without working and managed to extend this to 5 month on the road before i hit Perth for a semi permanant break

My obeservations apply to NT and WA only is i did a half lap up the middle and did not look for work in SA

[Brumbypt]

yeah we got a couple of free nights for just cutting off old palm prongs with the chainsaw.

it was good to get the old girl and and fire her up.
otherwise it was a waste of time taking a big chainsaw with us..


maybe a cheap small one is great to have but not a big husky with 20 inch blade..

but could have used it on the creb track as there was a sizeable tree across the track but the saw was in the camper back in cairns.
always the way.


Peter,
sent by telegram stop

[chester ver2.0]

G,Day Kev.. Well a mate did just that close to two years ago ... Got  a little caravan tidied it up and set off with the family, He's pretty handy and can turn a hand to most things and a diesil mech .. Doing a big loop out through central QLD / Darwin and down  into WA ..
Every where he has stopped  work has found him or he's found it when he wanted it ... was recommended to other people to call in on  further along on their trip if he needed  work ... There are a couple of others I know that are out traveling and are getting work when they want to ..
He's not long returned for family commitments and his last boss is realy trying hard to lure him back to WA, so theres a chance he'll be pushing off again soon ..
Go for it mate ... just drop into the pub after knock off and ask around or dont be afraid to ask who ever you talk to if they know of any work going .... just be honest and upfront and willing to have a go .. Seems to work best ..

You have hit the one important difference qualified tradies mechanics especially have no issues with the work. I found it more of a struggle as an average joe

[HEM19X]

As an average Joe, I have found that mining towns can be good for work, was offered 2 jobs in Weipa a few years ago with no qualifications... If you have your RSA & Gambling cert, that helps.

Also if you don't mind staying in the tropics during the wet season, there are lots of places that want caretakers. For that matter, we have friends who "House sit" rural properties for a few weeks at a time to allow their owners to have a holiday.

Kev, just do it as the ad says.

Regards

Mark

[speewa158]

l did a lap that took 3 1/2 years to complete . Working & looking & enjoying the surrounds . lts not hard really , get to town , then beat the feet , knock on doors , door to door . Ask the questions each No is closer to a Yes .
l found Pubs , Hardware , Farm supplies , Machinery dealers , Caravan parks all a good start & take any thing . They will establish you as a Doer the rest will follow .
Work of mouth in a small town is worth more than a box of references from some bloke nobody knows . Most of all its being there that counts . l look at as a road house situation . Some drive past , some call in , as you arrive somebody leaves . there is always an empty fuel pump for you to slide up to .
                                         The longest journey starts with the 1st step  .   Gandy ...

[HerGU]

Yep we are half way through our 2 years off plan. Checkout our facebook page "Touring before Maturing" for our travels so far. We've worked in Carnarvon WA, Darwin, Gladstone Qld. We average work 3 months then travel for 3 months.  We are not fussy with work and take just about anything.  Good luck. Its a great lifestyle but I warn you, once you start it will be very difficult to go back to "normal" life.

[speewa158]

HerGU   You will never believe the BS of " You must live a Normal Life " after you settle . The feet never really get scratched enough to stop you wandering off again . We both know the pleasures of the road . That's really hard to beat .
                                         Enjoy 

[slowhilux]

This is our 7th straight year of doing it. Alot more work in inland oz than on the coast. Just do it. Best thing we ever did both financially and lifestyle wise. Will never go back to sydney or the old ways.

[oldmate]

This is our 7th straight year of doing it. Alot more work in inland oz than on the coast. Just do it. Best thing we ever did both financially and lifestyle wise. Will never go back to sydney or the old ways.

Awesome work mate. 

[FZJ]

Gday,

I spent many years working around oz, if you want work and are willing to have a go you will find it.The tropics are great.

I started off doing my trade(spray painting,) fruit picking then eventually got into tourism and hospitality then 4x4 tours and eventually skippered boats in kakadu.
The islands resorts (like the whitsundays)  and places like Port Douglas need loads of workers in the dry to fill positions.Everything from barstaff,waiters,groundsman, maintenance,trades,cleaners,housekeepers,receptionists.

Not the most glamourous jobs at times but the rewards are in the fine print.Live on an island or in a resort like cooinda in kakadu and its cheap  food and rent so you can save up fast. High turn over of staff means there is the opportunity to go up the ladder fast.I started on one island as a cleaner then snagged a job running a bar for the staff.   cushy
Most of the resorts offer famils( heavily discounted tours etc) for staff,We used to go reef fishing and diving for next to nothing.

I did the fruit picking thing and its ok but for me its not as good as resort work.

Any questions ask away
Pete

[Ozsnowman]

The wife and I are thinking of 2-3 months later next year, wandering up the East Coast. She is a professional cleaner, and we will be throwing a carpet machine or 2 in the back of the ute for the trip up, and see if there is any small jobs we can pick up for petrol money as we go...that is if anyone has carpets further north?? (Don't know how carpets go in Qld weather!)

[GROB]

We left home on the 31 jan this year[THE LONG BIG LAP] .had three months looking around and are now in Darwin .went to look for some work had a job at the 4 door I knock on .so much work up here .the wife has been inundated with cleaning jobs .but gone into warehousing position JUST DO IT