Christmas in
Australia
Celebrated: December 24 through December 26
Signature traditions
- 1.Christmas falls in summer — temperatures often in the 90s°F (30s°C)
- 2.Carols by Candlelight — outdoor candlelit carol concerts in parks across the country
- 3.Christmas lunch on the beach or by the pool, often a barbecue or seafood spread
- 4.Boxing Day Test cricket match watched on TV through the afternoon
- 5.Fake snow and Santa in shorts in shopping center decorations
What's on the table
Christmas seafood and pavlova
A traditional roast is too hot for the climate, so Christmas lunch is often prawns, crayfish, and cold ham. Pavlova — a meringue cake topped with cream and summer fruit — is the iconic dessert.
The iconic decoration
The Christmas bush
Australian native flora gets a Christmas role: the Christmas bush (Ceratopetalum gummiferum) blooms with bright red star-shaped flowers in December and is used in arrangements. Eucalyptus replaces holly in many homes.
How gifts are given
Santa Claus delivers gifts overnight on Christmas Eve, often arriving by surfboard, kangaroo, or boat in cultural depictions rather than a sleigh.
Did you know?
Australian Santa is sometimes shown wearing board shorts and a Hawaiian shirt instead of a fur coat — and his sleigh is occasionally depicted being pulled by six white kangaroos called 'boomers.'