How long does it take you to get ready for the holidays? A new survey finds that between planning, decorating and gift getting, the average American spends six weeks preparing for the festive season.
According to the poll of 2-thousand U.S. adults who celebrate a winter holiday, they spend about five weeks planning presents, meals and other essentials for the “perfect” holiday season, along with an entire week just decking the halls. That may be why nearly a quarter (22%) of respondents admit they spend more time planning and putting up decorations than they do actually enjoying them.
The survey also reveals:
- People start getting invitations to holiday gatherings way before the leaves change colors in fall, with 23% getting an invite in September or October, and 9% have gotten one as early as summer.
- Some people get in “holiday season mode” as soon as Halloween is over, with 9% starting their decorating as soon as November 1st and 8% starting the day before Thanksgiving, while 49% wait until the days and weeks after Turkey Day to hang theirs.
- People start feeling festive while decorating (52%), or listening to holiday music (34%) or watching seasonal movies (34%).
- Just over a third (36%) still listen to the same holiday music and watch the same festive movies they did as kids.
- Nearly two-thirds (62%) send out holiday cards, and 29% say they’d include a photo of their pet in theirs, while 25% will have matching outfits.
- Things that make people most nostalgic during the holiday season include:
- Spending time with loved ones (39%)
- Decorating the tree (38%)
- Seeing holiday lights (30%)
- Holiday music (29%)
- Holiday movies (26%)
Source: SWNS Digital