We quit Australia and moved to Bali with our four children. Life has never been better, cheaper or more rewarding – and we’re ignoring the trolls

A Queensland couple has discovered the secret to the ‘perfect life’ after selling up in Australia and moving to Bali for the ultimate family adventure.

Under pressure from demanding jobs and increasing expenses, Chad, 40, and Mia Dickson, 38, moved their family to Sanur, 20 minutes south-east of Bali airport, last Christmas after spending a month there in August.

The Dicksons had taken an extended holiday for Chad’s 40th birthday before falling in love with the idea of living in Bali ‘for real’ with their three sons, aged 18, 13 and nine, and seven-year-old daughter.

They have been documenting their journey as expats on social media, where they have a growing audience of followers who are inspired by their island lifestyle.

But they also have their fair share of critics who warn it’s just a matter of time before they end up back in Australia or ask for help on GoFundMe when things go awry.

The family’s remarkable story began after their Bali trip for Chad’s birthday.

Upon their return, they were halfway through a lap around Australia in a caravan when they decided to turn around and move to the Indonesian island for good. 

‘We didn’t want to go home,’ Mia told FEMAIL.

‘We came home and sold the car and caravan,’ she added. ‘The kids were already being home-schooled and we worked online so we didn’t have much else to sort out.’

Selling their home on wheels gave them a nice ‘nest egg’ to start their lives in Bali. This, in turn, helped them secure a long-term rental. 

‘You have to pay a year’s worth of rent up front, and it can be anywhere from $20,000 to $60,000 in this area for a three-bedroom villa,’ Mia said.

They also had to pay for their visas – two of the most costly elements of their move.

The Dicksons, who are on a two-year visa, are six months into their stay and are unsure if they will head home or not.

‘We don’t want to put an end date on it; we aren’t missing anything from Australia,’ she said.

‘We miss family, but most of them have already been to visit.’

The couple said living in Bali had given them the best work-life-school balance they could wish for.

‘We are getting to really know our kids,’ Mia said. ‘We are so lucky to be able to hang out with them every day.’

Home-schooling is flexible and as long as they get the work done they can skip ahead or put it on hold as needed.

‘We just did a mini lap around Bali for a week, so we didn’t do any school work then,’ Mia said.

‘And this week we will do bigger days so that we can have time off when my parents are here. We are heading to Kuala Lumpur later this week and we will do the same thing.’

Most weeks the kids and their parents end up doing school and work for two or three days and ‘hang out’ for the rest.

‘We also do lots of other things like dancing lessons, which we could never do before in our small town,’ Mia said.

Mia is also learning how to make jewellery alongside her 18-year-old son.

The family said living in Bali was certainly possible on a budget, especially if you avoid imported goods.

‘We are having a lot of fun trying the Indonesian version of all the groceries,’ Mia said.

The couple spend about $200 per week on groceries and cook at home most nights.

When they do dine out, they can feed their family-of-six for $40.

‘If we spend $100, it is a really fancy restaurant,’ Mia said.

‘We are also sober, so that helps, you could spend a lot more if you were going out.’

They also try to ‘live a local life’.

‘We remember we aren’t here on holiday – we live here. We don’t have to see every waterfall in the first week,’ Mia said.

Because they don’t drink and aren’t craving ‘Australian food’, they can be extra frugal – though they are happy to splash out on necessities.

‘We have a nice coffee every day, and that costs us $6 for two. Sometimes we have two a day,’ Mia laughed. 

The family have Indonesian motorcycle licences, so they can get around like the locals and avoid paying for drivers.

There have been some huge adjustments for the family, however.

‘It is hard to get things done or know who to contact for things. Like, if you have a problem with the electricity, plumbing or need a handyman, the same guy will come. But we will get to know these things,’ Mia said.

In Indonesia, power is pre-paid and vouchers are purchased at local convenience stores – similar to pre-paid credit for a mobile phone.

They have also all had ‘Bali belly’, but say as long as you have Gastro-Stop and probiotics on hand ‘it will be okay’.

‘The doctors come out to your villa, take your bloods, put in drips, the full service, and it costs about $120,’ Mia said.

‘It’s so affordable and they really look after you instead of seeing you for all of five minutes and charging you $180 before Medicare like in Australia.’

They haven’t had to use the dentist yet but are confident it will be fine. They say everything is just as clean as back home – only cheaper.

The couple are particularly excited their 18-year-old decided to head on the adventure with them, and want other families to know ‘how easy’ it is to live and work from Bali.

‘We have never had a better lifestyle,’ Chad said. 

‘We love the freedom of time and space, And you could move here with nothing as long as you can work online to make ends meet.

‘You don’t need a nest egg – it was just our choice to do that so we wouldn’t have to stress about money – and I can pick and choose jobs I want to do.’

People who don’t have enough cash to pay for a whole year’s rent upfront can move week-to-week or month-to-month.

‘It is so doable. and we don’t have to do the nine-to-five grind and miss out on watching our kids grow up,’ they said. 

The Dicksons are sometimes criticised for their decision to move to Bali – with some trolls claiming they will inevitably have to set up a GoFundMe at some point due to injury or illness.

These insults stem from a spate of high-profile incidents of Australian tourists and expats requiring urgent help after finding themselves in strife overseas.

In 2023, kind-hearted Aussies shelled out millions on GoFundMe campaigns set up in the wake of sudden deaths or to repatriate desperately ill people from places as far afield as Thailand, Bali and Taiwan. 

When asked about the trolling, the family told FEMAIL: ‘We ignore that. We have the right insurance and have done everything we can to avoid that.’