Summer Holidays in Australia

Summer in Australia. It is a time when people celebrate a range of holidays from Christmas to Lunar New Year to Australia Day. It is a time when people travel, have picnics and go to the beach.

For International Students, Summer in Australia provides students with the chance to experience so many firsts. For those who celebrate or want to experience an Australian Christmas, Deakin Residential Services hosts a range of Christmas events and activities such as gingerbread house decorating, a Christmas day lunch and even a Christmas movie marathon for students looking to get into the Christmas spirit.

Anne a Deakin student from Mauritius who lives at our Melbourne Burwood Campus. Tells us ‘It’s not my first Christmas in Australia, but the first one without my family.’ Anne noted that ‘Christmas is a very traditional day for me. I intend to start the day by going to church and then having lunch with other Resis. The rest of the day will be spent at my besties’, probably watching cheesy Christmas movies and exchanging gifts!’

Nessa who is Melbourne for the summer lives at our Geelong Waurn Ponds Campus and is excited to be here noting, ‘This is my first time seeing the Christmas festival in Australia.’ She is also excited that 'I will spend 2 weeks during Christmas break with my husband and son who are coming from Malaysia!

For international students, the break over Christmas and New Year also provides an opportunity to explore their surroundings. Whether it is spending time in the city or travelling to the coast, it is time they can spend with friends. Residents get to go on excursions to beaches, art galleries and even a theme park. There are barbeques and special lunches, so students can make the most of their holidays. For the more adventurous, there will be opportunities to learn paddle boarding. Other students might feel more comfortable playing mini golf or picking strawberries!

When we asked Anne what she is looking forward to she said 'Road trips are definitely on the list and potentially a longer trip interstate. Other than that, I will hang out with my friends in the city quite often exploring new restaurants and going on shopping sprees!'

Nessa notes 'We are planning to cover CBD Melbourne, and a road trip at Great Ocean Road. Wuhoooo'

International students also get the chance to tick an item or two off their bucket list. Anne hopes to get to the Gold Coast so she can experience more of Australias amazing beaches, whilst Nessa notes 'I can't wait to experience snow , playing ski, doing snow angel, build a snowman probably at Mt. Buller!'