'Best' beach suburb for young family?

[Guest Dr Scotland]

Hope this isn't a repeat question. I've read a bit on individual suburbs but find it difficult to get an overview. My wife and I are moving over in August with our 7-month old daughter. I will be working and Eva will be looking after the little one. We will be renting and want to settle by the beach, at least initially. Out of Glenelg, Brighton, Seacliff, Hallet Cove, Christie's Beach, and Port Noarlunga, does anyone have a feel for which offers the best combination of: a sense of community; plenty for a mum and baby to do (mums and toddlers groups, parks, etc); a selection of cafes; a few restaurants; and, less importantly, a tennis club?

We don't want to be any further north than Glenelg as I will be working at Flinders MC.

 

Thanks for your advice. And I understand it will ultimately depend on how we feel when we visit the areas.

Simon

[Guest Jo&Phil]

Don't have children personally .........but several of my work colleagues/friends have them and live in Somerton Park/Brighton which is good for both Flinders and city and Brighton has nice cafes etc

[Guest Rochesdownunder]

Glenelg is great the tram is there that brings you into the center of the city,bus and train not to far away either We are in Henley Beach and Its is great for families Lots of playgroups Good schools cafes restaurants Good luck with the move

 

S xxx

[Guest Dr Scotland]

Thanks for info. Rochesdownunder, do you have a feel if Glenelg has much of a sense of community? I wondered if it could be a bit soul-less as the nearest beach suburb to the CBD.

[Guest Squareman]

Mmmmm I would advise against making any sort of decision until you get here, if at all possible. A sense of community' means different things to different people. I live in Glenelg and I love it here. It ticks all of my boxes but it might not tick all of yours. As a fellow member of the master race, I could show you around when you arrive if you like. Nae bother.....;-)

[Guest Dr Scotland]

Ha! Thanks Squareman. What do you love about Glenelg? Cycled 8 miles to work this morning through some typically Edinburgh-esque grey, windy, rainy conditions. Not fun.

[Guest Squareman]

Glenelg is Adelaide's answer to Blackpool, except its beautiful and not half as tacky! Lol. The beach area is a very popular tourist spot and there are dozens of restaurants, shops and pubs within walking distance of my house. Its a very 'outdoorsy' place too. Lots of organised sport as well as recreational stuff like kayaking, fishing, cycling (amazing cycle trails) etc. The tram also starts at Glenelg and takes you right into the city, should you want a night on the town and dont want to drive in

 

Glenelg has everything! Lol

[catherine.c]

I have lived in Glenelg (Moseley street) and loved its nightlife and proximity to shops, cafes and the beach but it does have its bad points. There is a lot of drunkenness due to all the bars in jetty road, especially on public holidays when the sun is shining and there are many brawls and incidents of unsocial behaviour. It seems to have a fairly elderly population with young visitors coming from all over. We have moved to a quieter area but miss that easy access to cafes etc.

If I had small children and wanted to be near the beach I would be looking at Somerton Park (expensive), Hove, Brighton, brighton north, brighton south and seacliff (quite expensive west of Brighton Rd (beachside)), or south of Hallet Cove - my daughter and young family live in Hallet Cove and she has made many friends there and is very happy but there is not much of a beach if this is what you are after. It is cheaper to live further south and there are many young families on poms living there and it seems a very relaxed lifestyle if this is what you are after.

I would also look for somewhere on the train line which takes you to the city in a reasonable time (quicker than tram that does not seem to have any priority at traffic lights) as you will find that there is not that many places to go in the evening in the suburbs and there are some great places to see in the city with the children such as the museum, zoo and botanical gardens.

Australians have advised me that it is a good idea to live in the catchment area of a good public school as although the house will be more expensive it will still be cheaper than paying for private school - not sure if that is an option for you? Incidentally Marryatville school seems to have the best reputation of the public schools which is not a western suburb, is near the city but still reasonable access to Flinders? Especially as you would be going the opposite direction of the heavy traffic into the city?

** I have just reread your post and seen your daughter is 7 months so school not really needed at the moment!

Good luck and dont worry too much about deciding before you are here, have a good look round and I would advise rent before you buy!

Catherine

[Guest Squareman]

I hear what you are saying about the occasional loutish behaviour, but I think you would only really experience that if you lived within a stone's throw from Moseley Square and/or you were running about at 3am with all of the other muppets. I live in Glenelg North, so its an easy walk down to the square and when we come home, we are well removed from any 'action' that may go down. I think you'll find these problems anywhere where there are a few pubs/nightspots. We like to go our for a pint or to a restaurant for a meal, and having engaged in this activity at least twice a week for the past year, we haven't seen any unsavioury incidents whatsoever. I'm not saying it doesn't happen - because it definitely does, but there are ways and means of enjoying life in Glenelg without experiencing the 'down side.'

[catherine.c]

Yes, we lived by the church on moseley street and we would regularly wake to drunks shouting, there would often be smashed glass all along the road, bottles in the garden, people climbing over our fence etc. I was never out at 3am but have seen my share of fights in the square, especially on Adelaide cup day when people had been drinking all day - even had to give CPR once! Not a pleasant experience I can tell you.

There is however a 'vibe' about Glenelg and apart from these episodes enjoyed living there, just do not think I would if I had a young family.

[Guest Peachie]

I have kids and would chose Somerton Park, Hove, Brighton, brighton north from your list, My daughters friend lives in Somerton Park so only know the areas from visiting others we live in grange which is a bit north for you but great for work for both of us and a great suburb for the kids !!!

[Guest LoisBirch22]

Hi,

We've only just moved, currently live in the Adelaide hills, but are looking to move close to the beach, so we've been exploring for a nice area.

We don't have any children, but Glenelg seems a really nice area, we been a few times.

[Guest Dr Scotland]

Great, thanks for the info. Looking forward to spending a week or so driving up and down the coast to see all these places. Less than 6 months now :-)

[Kingpin]

I have kids and would chose Somerton Park, Hove, Brighton, brighton north from your list, My daughters friend lives in Somerton Park so only know the areas from visiting others we live in grange which is a bit north for you but great for work for both of us and a great suburb for the kids !!!

 

If money was no object I would choose Brighton or Somerton Park too. Good schools, cafes, restaurants lovely beaches and less of the crowds!!

 

Sarah

[Guest Jp1]

Glenelg = mega expensive

 

Christies = trash

 

Seaford or port noarlunga = affordable and nice

[sueoc]

Glenelg = mega expensive

 

Christies = trash

 

Seaford or port noarlunga = affordable and nice

Christies is not trash!I know quite a few lovely people from Christies Beach and Christie downs,who live in lovely houses,with lovely neighbours,and right by a lovely Beach!

[minty]

Christies beach is great. Find it funny someone can say Christies is trash but port n is good when they are right next to and run into each other. There must be some magical dividing line that keeps the trash to one side.

 

Good and bad in all areas, and probably a few snobby poms spread all over aswell.

[soo_the_panda]

I'd say they're all great areas! To me, i wouldn't want to live further south than South Brighton - it'd feel too far from the city (if that's important to you). I live in Glenelg and the tram and bus routes are sooo convenient (as would be living walking distance to a train station). I live a 3 min walk from Moseley Sq and 2 mins from the beach and hardly experience any drunken/loud behaviour - as somebody else said, unless you're just off Moseley Square, that won't affect you (I've been in Glenelg over 4 years in 3 different streets). As well as the convenience of restaurants etc it's also useful for day to day conveniences - I love being able to walk to shops for quick grocery runs, post office, all the major banks ATMs, hairdressers, vet, DIY shop etc. To be honest though I don't think you can go wrong with any of those beach areas - obviously some are pretty expensive though (to me - they're worth it). Also remember suburbs here aren't like towns in the UK - some suburbs are pretty tiny, you can walk from example from Glenelg North to Brighton in less than an hour - so don't get hung up on exactly which suburb - as two different suburbs will overlap a lot in terms of the pros and cons of the area. Just get a feel of the overall areas and make a list of what's important to you. For example, I love the beach at West Beach, but the lack of shops and bars etc is offputting to me (though it's much cheaper than Glenelg to buy or rent). Feel free to PM or call me if you want to ask anything in detail about the area =) Oh, I've also started noticing the whole of Glenelg North down to Brighton have fantastic parks for little people.

[Diane]

Also have a look around Semaphore - I think that's a great beach for families, and there seems to be a real community feel to Semaphore whenver we go there. Nice cafes, restaurants, pubs, little shops etc, a lovely safe beach (which is really clean - I have been to some beaches mentioned on here which I won't mention again because it causes upset - that have had a lot of uncleared up dog mess on them which put me right off!) and a nice grassed area on the foreshore to picnic on. Plus excellently located for access to the city.

[Hutchy]

I agree, Semaphore is lovely. We live five minutes away, and spend quite a lot of time there. It's nice, clean and safe too....

[Guest Squareman]

Semaphore is nice, I like it there, but I wouldn't never live there, especially considering where Dr. Scotland will be working. It's pretty isolated and way too 'Port Power' for me....LOL

[jtct]

..... a few snobby poms spread all over aswell.

 

No, we're up in the Hills :biglaugh:as we can't quite afford to buy a beachfront property in Marino, Brighton, Seacliff, or Kingston Park

[coolerking]

We live way south in Sellicks Beach and my wife works at the RAH. I would go for Brighton if we could afford to live that way and the surf life saving club are a good bunch - well, the Nippers certainly are.

 

Cooler

[Guest Dr Scotland]

Excellent, thanks. Is it easy to join a surf lifesaving club, as an adult? Very keen to try the surf boat racing, and generally transferring as much exercise as possible to the beach. Might start a new thread for that...

[Guest RobJ1978]

Whats the public transport like to get to Flinders Medical centre from the places mentioned?