Cold, wet and windy – three words that pretty much sum up British winter. But is a bit of rain really enough to send you house hunting on the other side of the world? It is for the many Brits who dream of moving abroad.
For me, home really is where the heart is, but I might be in the minority. According to research by flight comparison website Skyscanner, 88% of Brits are dissatisfied with life in Britain and would consider moving abroad within the next five years.
One of the biggest factors is the weather, with nearly a fifth of respondents looking to head to sunnier climes.
‘Ain’t no sunshine’
Now, I’m not pretending that the good old British weather can’t be frustrating at times, but it’s certainty not enough to make me want to leave forever. Like many holidaymakers, I love a bit of sunshine on my holiday, but isn’t the novelty of being able to wear a t-shirt and shorts for more than two days in a row part of the appeal of going away?
Whilst I would definitely like to take advantage of living more of an outdoor lifestyle in milder climes, the thought of trying to function in searing heat has just as little appeal as walking to work in the freezing cold back home. And the idea of having a Christmas dinner on the beach – well, it just doesn’t seem right!
And it’s not only the weather that has people wanting to head abroad. One in five respondents were tempted by a perceived better lifestyle, while almost a third cited the appeal of cheaper property, better job opportunities and rising living costs as their motivation for wanting to quit the UK.
Heading down under
When it came to the countries us Brits would like to move to, I can’t say I was too surprised to see the long-term favourite Australia topping the list (15%). A life down under is a dream held by many in the UK, while Spain – another popular destination with Brits – wasn’t far behind (14%).
Moving stateside was the third most popular choice (13%), with Canada (8%) and New Zealand (7%) making up the top five. Personally, if I had to choose out of these five, I’d have to go with the USA, following my trip to New York last year. It’s not quite as far as Australia!
So what do you think? Am I missing something – is the grass really greener on the other side of the world? Or like me, are you quite happy staying right where you are?
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