You have managed to make the move down under. Your belongings have finally arrived by ship from the UK and you’ve started to really make your house your home. How long before family and friends decide to pop over to stay with you? Given that you are probably a good ten thousand miles from the life you left behind, it will be a while before family make the day-long journey to Oz. That said, if you are a young family then chances are you will have friends who are ‘travelling’.

If you have travelling friends then the likelihood is that they may take the opportunity to ‘crash’ at your house for a few days whilst they travel through a particular area or country; this would be the perfect opportunity to test the waters of having visitors in your home, as well as catch up with old friends. Australia is a vast and diverse country and there is so much to do and see, why not plan a few excursions with your visitors to places that neither of you have been before. This will also help to take focus away from your home and help you feel a little less stressed at the thought of constant entertaining.

Your guests should be aware that whilst they are staying there on holiday, it is your permanent home and they should respect your things and your privacy just as they would if they were staying with you in the UK. The excitement that your friends and family will feel at you having moved to another country can sometimes overcome the fact that your new home should be treated with respect and not like a hotel. Guests can sometimes be overbearing and it might not be a bad idea to suggest they stay at your home for part of their visit, and in a hotel for the rest. It’s important that visitors work around you and your life rather than the other way around.

Family who are coming over especially to see you are likely to stay for more than a week, given that Australia is so far away and plane tickets are not cheap. Be sure to find suitable accommodation for them, if you can’t fit them all into your house. Perhaps explain to them how stressful it is having them there all the time, especially if you have a young family to look after too.

If there is a hotel or holiday home to rent nearby to your house then that may be the ideal solution, as your family can still join you for evenings and mealtimes, as well as doing various things with you throughout the day. No matter how hard it may be for you to welcome a houseful of guests, think how it is likely to affect you emotionally and mentally.