Spaniards are surprisingly big festive spenders: Here's where the money goes

YOU probably won't be surprised to hear the UK is the biggest household spender ahead of Christmas – if you've lived there or visited in December (or, some might argue, any time after August), it's pretty clear from the widespread pomp and promotions on the streets that this is the biggest (and, publicly, the only) collective celebration of the year. And after the UK, the countries which shell out the most on the festivities are likely to be in central and northern Europe, where they go in for this winter holiday in a big way.

Actually, no – it's Spain.

According to accountancy firm Deloitte, Spain will be, probably, by the end of 2020, the highest-spending country in the EU, is already the nation that parts with the most Christmas cash in continental Europe, and shifts the second-largest amount per household in Europe as a whole.

This is likely to be partly because Spain takes full advantage of the whole 12 days of Christmas and, in fact, traditionally, presents were given on the night of January 5 and children believed the 'Three Kings', or Wise Men from the East in Anglo-Saxon parlance, were the gift-bearers.

Santa Claus has only really become a 'thing' in Spain in the last 10 to 15 years, and many of those Spaniards who are resistant to change and 'modern' influences continue to believe Father Christmas was invented by Coca-Cola.

Nowadays, even when the children are old enough to stop believing in Father Christmas and the Three Kings, and even where families are non-practising Catholics or openly atheist, both occasions serve as gift-giving moments, meaning many Spaniards receive two lots of presents.

In practice, the €241 per family spent on Christmas presents – more than a third of the €600 each household will part with these holidays – still, largely, finds itself in children's hands; households without children nearly always have nieces or nephews or second or third cousins, who typically live close enough for everyone to be heavily involved in their lives. Adults do not spend much on each other, with maybe a small token gift given to closest family members.

In Spain, the crucial part of Christmas is the food rather than what's inside the wrapping paper. The main festive meal is on Christmas Eve night, or Nochebuena, when the King's speech is televised and the whole family gathers together. Christmas Day is more like Boxing Day for Spain, and actual Boxing Day is not a national holiday.

Given that supermarkets shut early on Christmas Eve – normally at around 19.30 – and most workers will be able to get off a few hours before the close of their shift, a lot of the food eaten that night is freshly-bought. There is no 'typical' Christmas dinner food, like turkey and plum pudding in the Anglo-Saxon world, but it tends to be luxury and vary by region.

In coastal areas, especially on the Mediterranean, seafood is the dish of the day and Christmas Eve often just turns into a prawn-peeling festival. At least three types, sold by the boxload, and frequently including top-of-the-range versions such as Dénia red prawns (retailing at an average of €60 a kilo) find their way into most southern and eastern Spanish kitchens.

Further inland, Serrano ham, especially the top-quality type, will likely be present on most dinner tables on Christmas Eve.

And festive confectionery is fairly standard throughout the country – turrón (read all about that here), polvorones, made from powdered almonds and which are basically dust wrapped in paper, but which you're supposed to squash in your hand before unwrapping to give it a raw-pastry-like consistency, and marzipan and chocolate.

For drinks, cava is usually present, at least for raising a toast.

So it's easy to see how the average Spanish household spends €173 on food at Christmas.

This said, Deloitte reveals that more and more families are opting to meet up in restaurants on Christmas Eve night and for lunch on Christmas Day, especially where they live farther apart.

Christmas is largely seen in Spain as a break from routine and a chance for families to spend time with each other, so it stands to reason that they want to reduce the weload it involves, and to do something different to make it feel like proper down-time – and restaurant meals, mini-breaks or even family holidays fit the bill.

In fact, despite how Spanish families are only just starting to migrate away from the nest for study, work and adventure and, in general, still live fairly close to each other, the average household spends €105 on travelling over Christmas, says Deloitte.

This is likely to be the case among younger households, where adults in the early stages of their careers may have had to move elsewhere in the country or even abroad for work – in fact, one of the busiest and most expensive times to fly to Spain from London airports is just ahead of the Three Kings on January 5 and 6, when young workers head back to their birth towns to join their families of origin.

Otherwise, weekend getaways, days out, trips into their nearest town or city for shopping, and short breaks elsewhere in the country or abroad for New Year's Eve – which are becoming more popular – are all included in the one-sixth of the average household festive budget shelled out on travel.

In this context, hotel fees, hire of country cottages, skiing trips and similar all come within the average of €82 per household which will be spent on leisure activities this Christmas. Also included in 'leisure' are nights out with friends and colleagues, and of course, the national El Gordo lottery, which is always drawn on December 22 and is one of the most eagerly-awaited dates of the year.

It is followed on January 6 by the El Niño lottery, and each of these costs €20 for a tenth of a ticket or décimo – few individuals buy a full ticket for €200, although entire syndicates of friends or family do so.

Deloitte concludes that the long-running tradition of company Christmas hampers or staff meals out is very much alive and well in Spain, even among those firms which have yet to recover from the financial crisis, and small family-run outfits. During times of greater prosperity, corporations would hand out lavish luxury hampers and bottles of quality wine to all staff, take them for a meal and add an extra few hundred euros to their pay packets, but in the last 12 years or so of collective belt-tightening, even the biggest firms tend to choose between the hamper or the meal out.

Deloitte approves of the latter especially, saying it is 'crucial to retaining talent' within the organisation by 'making everyone feel part of a team' and 'rewarded' and 'appreciated' by their bosses at Christmas, as well as being a time for employees at every level to meet each other in off-duty mode, more relaxed and informal, and get to know each other better.

In this way, Deloitte says, the office Christmas dinner is, in reality, an intangible investment rather than a cost.