Norfolk Island: Travel guide, visas and free housing · 2026

ДЕДарья Евдокименкоevdokimenko_dari · Jun 23, 2016Read

First things first, after leaving the island for the nearest city, Norfolk, the girls went shopping! We spent 30 minutes begging the mall security to store our suitcases. (In America, you aren't allowed to leave suitcases or any personal belongings anywhere). We complained that we had spent 4 months without shops or entertainment. In the end, they took pity on us and took our suitcases after all. By the way, Norfolk has the highest percentage of African-American population, so some almost all areas (except the city center) look like ghettos, so be careful there. To kill time before the flight, we decided to go to the port, which was across the street, and look at the snow-white yachts. Quite by accident, while we were sitting on a bench talking, the owner of one of the yachts struck up a conversation with us (I don't know how they manage to talk to a stranger so easily). It turns out that each of the yachts cost at least $2 million... Norfolk Marina - one of the largest commercial and military ports in the USA Taking a $20 taxi and loading all our purchases and luggage, we headed to the airport. We decided to start with Orlando - to visit Disneyland and just relax and sleep for a couple of days, because with two jobs we slept a maximum of 4-5 hours a night, and rest before a serious trip was simply necessary. Moreover, an American acquaintance of mine lived in Orlando, who promised to show us around. And the problem with housing and transport, naturally, disappeared. There is not much to see in Orlando. Everything is made for tourists with children - just attractions and amusement parks. There is no public transport at all. So you can't do without a car here. Our entertainment was barbecue, the pool, and all sorts of house parties. Orlando Eye - not worth its $20 ;) On the third day, we finally went to Disneyland!!! But I'll be honest, when I was at Disneyland in Paris at 14, I was much happier)) I guess I've grown up... Although it's still indescribable emotions to visit your childhood dream. Every corner is thought out there! Everything glows, sings, and dances. But I would still advise you to go to Universal park, there is more entertainment for adults, and the rides are more fun. Disney is really designed for little kids. It's impossible not to spend a ton of money on sweets, ice cream, and souvenirs. By the way, even the Starbucks in Disney is extra sweet and cute) After resting in Orlando, we are flying to LA!

ДЕДарья Евдокименкоevdokimenko_dari · May 21, 2016Read

It wasn't my first time going abroad, but I was still a bit nervous about heading to a foreign country for a full 4 months, especially to a tiny town called Avon in North Carolina (Avon, NC), which I'll try to tell you about. After googling for weeks on both Russian and American resources, I couldn't find any particularly useful information. Knowing what it's like to go alone into the complete unknown, I want to share my experience working in the small town of Avon and the Outer Banks islands in general. The first thing I did was check the island's location on Google Maps. I have to say, I wanted to cry right then and there... So much for my dreams of California or Florida! A tiny dot in the ocean—that was my home for 4 months. To get to the Outer Banks, I took a bus from New York to Washington, and then from Washington to Norfolk (the trip takes 9-12 hours). Actually, I stopped for two days in Washington to do some sightseeing, because I had 4 free days before starting work. You can take a direct bus from New York straight to Norfolk. Important: buy your bus ticket in advance (best 3-4 weeks ahead), not at the bus station. It will be twice as cheap. Greyhound.com - prices change constantly. My route New York - Washington - Norfolk cost me $32, and there is Wi-Fi. Gotobus.com - $35, takes 9 hours, but no Wi-Fi. By the way, in America, just like in Russia, buses are constantly late. And one more thing: don't be afraid of getting lost at bus stations—if anything happens, passersby will see your confused face, realize you need help, and won't leave you in trouble. Once in Norfolk, my employer met me, and then there was a 3-hour drive to Avon itself. The red dot in the ocean is that very Avon. It got worse from there. Satellite photos. Since I didn't have much of a choice with full service, I decided to keep a positive attitude. After all, it's summer, the ocean, America—what could be better? Actually, it turned out not to be so scary. The photos were likely taken in winter, and I barely remember a day without sun all summer. Of course, my worries and doubts vanished as soon as I arrived in New York :) But even upon arriving on the island, I realized from the first day what a wonderful summer awaited me! I'll say right away that if you are going to North or South Carolina or Virginia—all these states are pretty much the same. The first thing that catches your eye is the heavy Southern accent, which makes it hard to understand everything for the first week. Friendly people for whom chatting with a stranger is a rule of good manners. And an incredible number of obese people (they even have carts you can sit on and ride around the supermarket!). In general, you don't get used to that right away :) Another feature is the one-story wooden houses. Everything looks very cute and homey. Coffee shops and bakeries on the island are one cuter than the other! Towns (or villages) on the whole island are very small (with one main street)—besides the ocean, tourist cafes, and souvenir shops, there is little entertainment. No shopping or even a cinema. The last month we were counting the days and hours until departure, life on the island had become that monotonous! I biked to all the neighboring villages. The road one way takes about two hours. Now do you understand what kind of boredom I'm talking about? The definite plus in this situation is that you have nowhere to spend money except at the supermarket or on Amazon, so we saved quite a bit. Next up: about $$$, jobs, and employers.

NZNatalia Zhilinanataliazhilina · Jan 31, 2015Read

The next stop was Norfolk. I was so surprised when I got off in an unfamiliar place, all by myself... it felt like I had landed on a deserted island after the noisy city. The most interesting and terrible thing for me was that I didn't see a single bus stop, even though they were marked on the Internet. I almost burst into tears. No one was there to meet me, and I had to get there on my own or follow a specific plan. According to that plan, a taxi was supposed to be waiting for me in Virginia Beach, along with another girl, Ilona, who was heading to the same place. I found out about the taxi when I was already on the bus, halfway to Norfolk; getting off wasn't an option. Finally, pulling myself together, I asked a woman at the bus station for advice, and she kindly gave me a business card with a taxi phone number. Luckily, I had some change in my pocket. I had never done anything like that before; calling from a payphone felt wild when you have a mobile, but alas, I had a Russian SIM card. Done deal, I managed it; most importantly, I had conversational English now, having learned a bit in New York. A yellow taxi came for me—great service, they even pronounced my name correctly, which is rare since Americans often struggle with Russian names. I only paid 22 dollars for the taxi. It was very hot outside; after Russia's +15°C, it was hard to get used to +30°C in May! But that didn't scare me because I had arrived! The first person I met was the administrator at TownePlace Suites, Wyatt, a middle-aged man whom I liked immediately because of his smile. He was the only person, my American friend, who pronounced my name correctly! The man and his assistant explained that my employer wouldn't arrive until Monday, and it was Thursday when I arrived. In principle, I could start working on Friday. They showed me to my room, and I was thrilled. The room matched the pictures on the Internet perfectly, which is rare these days! Usually, websites upload only the best photos of rooms, but this was such a pleasant surprise. The room had everything, even a dishwasher. I was immensely happy since I could cook for myself.

NZNatalia Zhilinanataliazhilina · Jan 31, 2015Read

Our first day of work arrived. I was very nervous because, to some extent, this was my first work experience, and in America of all places. I never even thought such a thing was possible! The hotel team welcomed us; everyone turned out to be friendly and tried to teach us everything they knew. Housekeeping work is hard, let me tell you. You can get tired easily! And they demand speed from you! We handled that easily. Our first paycheck, as our employer said, was supposed to be exactly in a week. We forgot all about it, immersing ourselves in American life. We also arrived just in time, as we were told later. Throughout the following week, our employer hosted various barbecues for the hotel team. That way, we got to know everyone better, and it wasn't in vain—now we knew who could be trusted and who couldn't. During that week, we spent time with the team, eating fried bacon, delicious ice cream, and we even had a pizza day. One day we went to a cafe where we ordered a bunch of American goodies; luckily, we didn't have to pay for it, although we wouldn't have minded. We didn't live in a very crowded place, that's a fact, but we weren't disappointed at all. Yes, living on the coast is cool and fun; we saw all of that. Dancing, magic tricks, singing at bars—it's all wonderful, a huge plus. But we had a plus too. Not far away, in Norfolk, we went shopping at a mall; it has everything, absolutely! There was no need to wait for a big city to buy clothes or souvenirs. Moreover, the state tax in Virginia is lower than, for example, in New York. On our days off, we usually went to the beach to swim or to Norfolk. Soon, another girl from China joined us. And it was with her that I discovered American movie theaters. Going to the movies for $7 to see the new Transformers? Why not! I was in America, I could do whatever I wanted. Especially since I was earning money and could afford such a pleasure. By the way, we didn't find assigned seats in the theater; we just walked in and chose a comfortable spot in the hall ourselves. I like this better than in Russia; I was even a little surprised by such a difference. Sometimes in Russia, you pay more for a comfortable seat in a cinema, but here... everyone is equal. And also, for some reason, I didn't see sweet popcorn in their theaters, which is very strange. Every day we discovered new horizons. This included supermarkets like Walmart. Ours was a forty-minute walk away. And honestly, it was our physical exercise. We walked there and back with backpacks and hands full of bags, returning to the hotel. Sometimes even with a cart—yes, that happened too! We could spend hours in that supermarket. They sell so much stuff, even bicycles. By the way, a bicycle would be a budget-friendly means of transport if you didn't bring your driver's license, as I did. Sometimes we heard Russian speech in that same supermarket. In Virginia Beach, there are actually a lot of Russian speakers. These are students, tourists, and those who moved there a long time ago. You can spot tourists right away, for example, on the beach. They talk very loudly in Russian and think that no one understands them; I witnessed it myself. And if you are really afraid to speak English, there will always be someone who understands you and will help. A significant holiday for Americans was approaching—Independence Day. Oh, how I waited for this day. I desperately wanted to feel the atmosphere of the holiday, the general joy. But this holiday was slightly overshadowed. All festive events were moved to July 5th because of Hurricane Arthur, which hit the East Coast. Since we didn't live on the coast, we were luckier. We were only hit by heavy rain and gusty winds, but by evening, the weather improved, and the mood lifted again. The next day we went to watch the fireworks; of course, it didn't go without a couple of purchases and pizza. A huge number of people went out to the embankment to dance and witness the holiday with their own eyes. An a

VMValeriya Matyukhinalera.matyukhina · Jan 31, 2015Read

That's exactly what we did. For a whole month, we were booking tickets and deciding what to visit in each city; in short, preparations were in full swing. It wasn't without a lump in our throats that we said goodbye to our Virginia Beach, to all the people we met and befriended, and headed to Washington (that's where our flight to San Francisco was departing from). We actually missed our bus from Norfolk (a city near Virginia Beach) because saying goodbye to the city or just wanting to hang out didn't let us get to sleep on time. As a result, after sleeping for an hour or two, we were woken up by a loud knock on the door from a Russian guy who had agreed to drive us to the bus station. Throwing our last unpacked things and some food into our suitcases, we bolted out of the house and took off. We arrived at the bus station five minutes late, but that was enough for the Greyhound bus, which rarely left on time, to pull away right from under our noses. After paying our "taxi driver" extra, we caught up with it in Hampton, the neighboring city. We spent two days in Washington, the capital of the USA. To our surprise, the weather was warmer, or maybe we were just lucky, because Virginia saw us off with rain despite such a southern climate all summer. What can I say about Washington? It might be a stretch, but if you compare it to Russia, Washington is like Saint Petersburg: a capital city, but with a less hectic atmosphere, beautiful architecture, and a more measured pace of life. And New York reminds me of Moscow with its scale, noise, fun, and traffic. If they say that a person prefers either Moscow or Saint Petersburg, I can say the same about Washington and New York. I liked the American capital more. We didn't make it to the museums (we ran out of time), although most of them are free in Washington. But we managed to walk around plenty, saw the Capitol, the Washington Monument, and the White House itself! And we just strolled through the cozy streets of the capital. By the evening of the second day, we headed to the train station with all our suitcases (and their number exceeded the number of people), stood there blankly in front of the terminal for a bit, but still managed to handle such a "difficult" task as buying a train ticket and went to the airport in Baltimore. We sat there hungry and freezing all night. All that was left of our food was an open jar of peanut butter and some tea bags. I went up to different cafes every time and asked for "some boiling water" with a pitiful look. In the same waiting area, there were scales to check if your suitcase was overweight. We couldn't think of anything better than to weigh ourselves instead :)

VViktormorfeus929 · Nov 4, 2010Read

My brother and I decided to go where I spent last summer - the Outer Banks, North Carolina. It's not that I liked it that much, there just wasn't much choice left – we were arriving in America at the end of June, in the middle of the season, both without job offers. And we needed to earn money. According to our plans, we were supposed to work for ourselves and not depend on anyone. More about our money-making schemes later. And on the Outer Banks, I had quite a few acquaintances who could help me with something (or so I thought at the time). So, on June 24th, we landed in Boston. In general, landing in the States is an indescribable excitement for me and a feeling of some kind of freedom and joy. It really is. I don't even know why. Maybe because I was in love with this country back then. A night in Boston, then two more flights – Boston to Philadelphia and Philadelphia to Norfolk. By the way, flying in the USA is sometimes cheaper than taking a bus. If you buy tickets on a site like cheaptickets.com in advance, you can save quite a bit. And one more thing – there is a rule in air travel in the USA – if you arrive on a flight from Europe and your suitcases have airline stickers, you do NOT have to pay for baggage to American airlines. It is considered a layover. But American airline managers don't always tell you about this. You have to know it. Otherwise, they will make you pay 45-50 dollars per suitcase due to your ignorance. So, we arrived in Norfolk on the morning of June 24th. Honestly, a little tired after 30 hours without sleep and 4 planes. In Norfolk, my acquaintances met us by car and took us to the Outer Banks, to the house where I lived last year. How I loved that house back then. How many times I dreamed about it throughout the year. How many good things I had associated with that house. Sigh... a lyrical digression. So, we arrived, unpacked our suitcases, and immediately started thinking about earning money and our money-making schemes. We decided that to bring our schemes to life, we would need a car, and we decided to buy one immediately. More on that later... As I already said, we went to America with very bold goals to earn a decent amount of cash and then travel. Our goal was a trip to California by car at the end of the summer.

AAlexanderSpree · Oct 27, 2009Read

July 16, 2009 After arriving in New York, I spent two nights in a hostel in Harlem and only on the third day did I find a place to stay and move into Brooklyn. We are now living with another guy in a basement that we rent for 475 a month for both of us. I have to say, this basement is actually pretty decent, and there is a toilet, shower, and kitchen in the adjacent room. We cleaned up, and all in all, it's livable. However, that's not what I want to talk about yet. We spent 4 days looking for work and, having found nothing, we walked up to a rickshaw stand one evening, again in search of a job. Imagine my surprise when, as I was leaving, I ran into a guy I had lived with in Norfolk. He and three other students had left for New York about 10 days before us. They had been looking for work for a week, and eventually, three of them were hired at McDonald's for 7.5 an hour. But Yura (that same guy) didn't get the job. He never found other work, and his money ran out pretty quickly (New York is a very expensive city). Naturally, when he ran out of money, he was evicted from where he was staying and ended up on the street. With five dollars in his pocket. That was exactly the situation he was in when we met him. He told us he had spent one night sleeping in a park. He wanted to do the same the next night, but he ran into Jehovah's Witnesses (what the hell are they doing in NY? I have no idea) and they took him to a homeless shelter. The place turned out to be so lousy that these Witnesses didn't even leave him there for the night; they took pity on him, drove him to a hotel, and paid for the night. Later, though, they disappeared. And he was left in the morning with those same five bucks and no home. He spent the next night in the subway. Upon hearing this, I took him in with us because we at least had a mattress for him to sleep on. In the morning, I talked to the landlord and asked him to let a third person move in with us. Naturally, he asked for more money - 550 for the three of us per month. We gave him 25 - everything we could scrape together - and still owed 50. Where to get it, nobody knows yet. Meanwhile, I started working as a rickshaw driver to get at least some money for food. However, if things go well, it should be enough for everything else. All I want right now is to buy a blanket because it's terribly cold here at night. That's how things are. What makes me happy is that for the next three weeks, at least I have a place to live. P.S. To those writing to me: I'm having some internet issues right now, I can't find a decent connection. Sorry if I disappear from ICQ or don't reply to your messages. The best way to reach me right now is by email. Have a nice day, guys.