Getting ready for Christmas 'mostly a woman's job' - survey

Kiwi actor Will Hall dressed as Santa's helper for his 7-month-old son Freddie's playgroup Christmas celebration. Photo / Supplied.

At actor Will Hall's Kaukapakapa home he and his wife Sarah have both been working hard to prepare for the Christmas festivities.

But according to a survey of more than 4000 New Zealanders, Will's hard work embracing the festive season isn't shared by all Kiwi blokes.

Getting ready for Christmas is mostly a woman's job, it seems, with many Kiwi blokes slacking off when it comes to festive activities - including present shopping and decorating the tree.

When Kiwi Property commissioned Nielsen to speak to 4240 Kiwis about what they do at Christmas time, it found that women do the lion's share of preparation and also do more on the day itself.

One of the few areas where men outshone women was on being couch potatoes; 32 per cent of males watched TV on Christmas, compared to 22 per cent of women.

Nearly nine out of 10 women respondents said they adorned their homes with ornaments, compared to only 70 per cent of men.

Will said he usually loved to decorate the Christmas tree. But this year Sarah and her sister Michelle were in charge because he was suffering from the "worst hayfever I've ever had" and couldn't go anywhere near the pine.

"They went down and they cut it down themselves out here in Kaukapakapa and decorated it really nicely. They did a theme. They did gold and red. They've colour-coded it, it looks beautiful."

Women were also more likely to dedicate time to searching for the perfect gifts for their loved ones than men, the survey found, with 73 per cent of women planning a special trip to the shops.

Only 57 per cent of men said they did the same and almost a fifth admitted to leaving their shopping to the last few days before Christmas.

However, in the Hall household Will is the chief shopper because Sarah "really can't stand consumerism".

"She really doesn't like going into a shopping mall at the best of times and trying to get her to go in before Christmas, it's a no-go zone. She's not into it, whereas I get a little bit carried away. I'm a sucker for Christmas - the magic of Father Christmas and all that."

This Christmas the Halls have an extra reason to celebrate - it is their baby boy Freddie's first Christmas.

And Will - who also dressed up as Santa's helper at his nephews' playgroup Christmas celebration this month - definitely didn't need any help with the shopping.

"I have gone a little OTT and gotten his Santa sack and I've already filled it to the brim and wrapped all the stuff," Will said.

But for those who did need a bit of help, Kiwi Property launched "Super Shoppers" in the lead-up to Christmas: a 50-strong army of workers recruited across the company's six malls - Sylvia Park and LynnMall in Auckland, Centre Place in Hamilton, The Plaza in Palmerston North, North City in Porirua and Northlands in Christchurch - to help make buying presents less onerous.

The Nielsen survey also found that women tended to lead the charge on the day itself.

Eighty-two percent of women said they spent Christmas eating and drinking, but only 65 per cent of men said they indulged in a festive feast.

Hall said he was looking forward to helping out in the kitchen this Christmas.

"My sister does a pretty mean honey-glazed ham and my wife is a bit of a trifle connoisseur," he said.

"I will be attempting a gingerbread house this year. I've bought all the lollies - the licorice allsorts and the jellybeans and the candy canes - to put up all around the house."