The Bulgarians were spending BGN 6 M per hour in preparation for the Christmas holidays, shows preliminary data of the National Revenue Agency (NAP), quoted by the Nova TV national channel.

It is expected that this year the households will spend more on celebrations and shopping, compared to last year.

According to a survey, quoted by the TV channel, around 80% of the Bulgarians will celebrate New Year at home. Barely 720 000 people said they will travel, with the majority travelling to their home towns or will visit friends.

Only 160 000 Bulgarians said they will travel abroad, most often to Greece, Turkey, Serbia and Macedonia.

Meanwhile, on Christmas Eve the BTA wire service reported that 1.5 million Bulgarians will celebrate the holidays with less than BGN 10 per day.