World

Dating in Australia? Head for the country

If you want a man in Australia, get out of the city

What’s a single city girl have to do to find love these days? If she’s in Australia, her best bet is to head for the country. Late last month, the first “Thank Goodness He’s A Country Boy” tour brought 50 single ladies looking for love to Tamworth, New South Wales, a town of 58,000 midway between Brisbane and Sydney. After arriving late Friday night, the girls spent Saturday brunching, shopping and primping before a night of mingling at a Tamworth hot spot, where a “man auction” benefiting a local charity was held. “The best part of the night was watching the guys strut their stuff,” says tour organizer Brie Peters. (The gents had spent the afternoon gearing up by lunching at a local grill and watching a rugby match.)

Demographic data backs up what women in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne already know—there’s a drought of available men in Australia’s cities. With more and more young women moving to metropolitan areas, and young men seeking success abroad in greater numbers, prospects for a love connection are dim. The Tamworth tour had an “85 per cent success rate,” says Peters, who is planning a second tour to Wagga Wagga, N.S.W., in July. “Seeing such genuine country men and knowing so many lovely city girls who want to find love—what better way?”

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