COMMENT: The best deal in the sales is the one you don't buy.

Five Kiwis are $200,000 richer after winning Lotto First Division, but no one got tonight's big Powerball prize.

Shopping centres were packed with shoppers today as the scramble to buy last-minute Christmas presents intensifies.

A chef was outraged when a customer left a note on the back of a receipt complaining about his restaurant's Christmas music.

Pet owners are spending up to $250 to get special photos of their pets with Santa Claus.

Is this the most extreme Christmas present of 2016?

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will spend a private Christmas with the Middleton family this year, instead of joining the rest of the Queen.

While most of the country is awash with the Christmas spirit, it appears Nelson forgot about the festivities.

You know you're in Northland when Santa arrives by waka ama with a United Tribes flag flying proudly from the back of his canoe.

COMMENT: New tectonic plates for Kaikoura would be a great way to start 2017 but if not world peace will do nicely.

The Salvation Army says a gift appeal is further behind its target than at any other point in the appeal's 23 year history.

Christmases after the age of 40: There are simply no surprises left in your stocking, no fun to be had under the mistletoe - this guide will fix your Christmas blues.

How does it feel to share your birthday with Jesus Christ? Herald reporter Tess Nichol finds out in our Holiday Babies series.

A Wellington MyLotto player won $5million in Wednesday's Lotto Powerball after his friend joked about sending "good vibes out to the Lotto gods".

Rain may be on the way for Christmas day, but this far out it is hard to say for certain.

There's a solitary doll hidden among the teddies, dinosaurs, trains, cars and spaceships in this image. Can you find it?

From twerking to gossiping to trying to keep the party going afterwards, these are the biggest office Christmas party blunders you'll want to avoid.

Every week a group of up to 40 adults with physical disabilities or special needs let their hair down.

Join Laura McGoldrick as she goes Christmas shopping with Super Shopper, Sue Devonshire.

A women filmed a squirrel's repeated theft of her Christmas light bulbs - one by one, the "Bulb Bandit" made off with 150 in 24 hours.

Woolworths has been promising a cheap Christmas - but one customer thinks this wasn't what they had in mind.

Christmas shopping is in full swing across the country and while children are the main focus for this, fur babies are also getting spoilt.

The day after his Christmas party, driver was still three times over the drink-drive limit.

A child playing with a lighter is believed to have started the fire that destroyed a house in Otumoetai yesterday. The fire service

Often it's the first time a Kiwi girl from Morrinsville or Te Awamutu has hung out with a refugee from Somalia or Afghanistan, but in most cases it won't be her last.

Now that Gisborne is out of the unexpected chaos and back to the usual Christmas mayhem, locals are reflecting on how it all started. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle look to be planning a Christmas together, after being spotted shopping for a festive tree in south London.

Last year she received widespread condemnation for showering her three children with 87 presents each. This year is no different.

Needy families wanting to give their kids a decent Christmas are queueing up for help from the Auckland City Mission.

Businesses are getting into the Christmas spirit, offering giveaways, discounts and donations to charity in the lead-up to Christmas.