Country Hospitality- Geraldton
Country Hospitality is a program in which international students travel to visit an Australian family in the country and stay with them for a weekend. The aim of Country Hospitality is to give international students an opportunity to see another part of WA and to enable Australian families and international students to meet and enjoy time together.
This year on Friday 7th September twelve international students will be traveling by bus to Geraldton where they will be greeted by their host families who are active members of APEX Geraldton. Over the course of the weekend these international students will be experiencing the ins and outs of an Australian family’s life whilst also taking in some of the tourist sites in and around Geraldton.
If you’re an international student studying at a CISWA Member institution and are interested in participating in the next Country Hospitality weekend away please complete the application form below.
CISWA in conjunction with APEX Geraldton invite international students to share in a unique opportunity to spend a weekend in Geraldton with an Australian host family!
Approx 6 hours north of Perth is Geraldton- perched on a spectacular coastline, to the west rolling hills, to the east breakaway ranges and is framed, north and south by the Chapman and Greenough Rivers. Geraldton’s superb positioning and Mediterranean climate make it a great place to visit.
Accommodation is FREE
Students are responsible for booking and paying for their transport (via bus) to and from Geraldton (cost is approx $69 each and further information regarding this will be provided if your application is successful)
Proposed Itinerary
Friday: Students depart Perth via TRANSWA bus terminal early morning and arrive in Geraldton in the afternoon (approx 6 hr bus trip). At the meeting point students will be introduced to their host families.
Saturday: Proposed activities with your host family include visiting the HMAS Sydney II Memorial, The Moore Point Lighthouse, four wheel driving on the beach, sandboarding and you may even have the opportunity to pat a kangaroo! Students will cook for host families in the evening at the International Food night.
Sunday: Spend the morning relaxing with your host family before departing Geraldton and arriving in Perth late afternoon.
Important Notes:
- Participants must be over 18 years of age to participate
- Participants must be a student from a CISWA Member institution
- Participants are responsible for themselves in case of injury or accident.
- Participants are responsible for booking and paying for their transport, via bus, to and from Geraldton through www.transwa.wa.gov.au (further information regarding this will be provided if your application is successful)
- Participants must inform CISWA of any medical/health issues that may impact their trip.
APPLICATIONS FOR THE COUNTRY HOSPITALITY WEEKEND AWAY ARE CLOSED.
New applications will be considered in the future.
Please complete the fields below and only click the ‘register’ button ONCE, to register.
Past Student Testimonials
“First of all I wish to thank you for such a priceless opportunity to see the family life in Australia instead of just the student aspect. I have lived in Perth for two years and it was my first time traveling outside of Perth to the country side.
Geraldton is a beautiful town with lots of natural attractions and important historic ship wreckage stories. By now you would have seen the front page of the newspaper in Geraldton about what my thoughts were regarding the people of Geraldton beyond our host families. I wish to state it again, it takes alot more than mere curiosity for a person to welcome a stranger into their home. Besides that this has helped my overcome the fear of snakes such that I held one in my hands and around my neck.
Though this was a free event, I don’t think I could afford to pay for such a wonderful experience-it was priceless. That is how much value I attach to my experience. I hope future students would take such a golden opportunity of a lifetime as part of their internal experience. Thanks once again for the opportunity to experience family life in Australia.”
– Elijah, Master of Health Information Management, Curtin University, 2015 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“Couldn’t agree more with what Elijah has mentioned above. Every aspect of the trip was just amazing. The trip has given me some experiences for the first time in my life. Of all the activities we have done, holding a live snake was my “greatest achievement”, never ever appears in my mind that I would be brave enough to ‘play” with a snake, the animal I hate the most. Thanks to the lady at the zoo that has convinced me to do such things.
Communicating with my host family’s dogs, Cooper and Brady, also amazed me, I never thought that I could “Speak” to a dog before. Our hosts have two big dogs that scared me at first but I found them so friendly later on.
The games on Saturday night were great as well, all them sound very new to me although I have been in Australia for quite sometimes, and now I’m thinking of introducing such games to our Indonesian community. Thanks for Claire and Emma for preparing the Games.
A big thanks to all APEX members and friends for organising our stay in Geraldton and for the special Birthday party on Sunday morning, it is greatly appreciated. Also a huge thanks to the host families for a very warm welcome. I will definitely suggest other student to join this program next year.”
-Reliana, PhD Environmental Engineering, UWA, 2015 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“First of all, thank you very much to all of you who organized the trip and volunteered for the trip.
As international students, we live in a shared house with fellow students and only few of us have contact with domestic people. Joining this trip, we can get the opportunity to see parts of Australia in addition to Perth, stay with host families and experience their culture.
The striking experience is that they were very kind and they welcomed us very warmly. They gave their time, especially their precious weekends for us. They took us to memorial places, let us enjoy the unique sport in Geraldton that is sand boarding. Moreover, the beauty of nature of that land- colourful wildflowers, and very blue ocean and sky, is unforgettable.
I believe that it must be a great opportunity for other international students to join this trip. And in my view, the trip is already more than perfect.- Thank you again.
-Nang, Public Health, Curtin University, 2015 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“Made some incredible friends. Would definitely recommend this trip for international students interested”
– Raj, Engineering, The University of Western Australia, 2014 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“Just want to thank CISWA for organising the weekend trip. Geraldton is a beautiful city and the people are lovely.
My host, the Sherwood family made me feel at home and part of their family. The highlight of the trip was the 4 wheel drive on the sand dunes and the sand boarding. I also enjoyed our dinner together, where international students cooked for all host families to enjoy.
I think this is an experience all international students should have and will recommend to friends as well.”
– Fidelia, Curtin University Student, 2014 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“Once again thank you a million times for affording me the opportunity of a life time!! I had a blast in Gero did things I have never done before-like sand boarding”
– Boineelo, Master of Commerce, Curtin University, 2014 Country Hospitality – Geraldton
“Our stay in Geraldton was nothing less than amazing. There were a lot of highlights for this trip, but one of most memorable moments was when we got to go to the wild life park. There, we had the chance to feed the animals, cuddle a joey and handle a snake. It was a truly memorable experience that we will never forget.”
– Alex, Diploma in Management, Stanley College, Country Hospitality – Geraldton