Keith Urban and his family, including wife Nicole Kidman and daughters Sunday and Faith, usually head Down Under for the holiday, visiting family and hitting the beach, which is what he did on Christmas Day when he was a kid.

“We had great Christmases growing up. I really, really enjoyed them,” says Keith. “Mostly, we’d go to the beach, you know, ’cause there it’s summertime. Load up the station wagon and head off to the beach.”

He and his family still love to do that when they’re in Australia since it’s summer there. “We still love going to the beach at Christmas time, as long as we’re in Australia, because it’s like the Fourth of July. It’s huge. Everybody’s out. It feels very celebratory. It’s in the ‘90s. It’s crazy, but having grown up with that, it feels very natural to me. Albeit it, we still had all of the same Christmas songs, so we’re in like 90-degree heat with shorts and tank tops singing ‘Walking in a Winter Wonderland,’ and I remember getting Christmas cards of like Santa on a surfboard, so that probably explains a lot.”

Keith also enjoys a holiday movie or two. “I love A Christmas Story, that’s a good one, and It’s a Wonderful Life, of course. I have one of my main guitars is called Clarence, and it’s named after the angel (in It’s a Wonderful Life), and then for some reason, I swear, no matter what you’re doing flicking around the TV, but you’re gonna land on Charlie Brown (Christmas). I don’t know how that happens, but it happens every year.”

One of his favorite Christmas gifts as a child was a toy that was not easy to tear up. “I got a yellow Tonka truck when I was about 6, I think, and it’s probably still (one of) my favorite Christmas gift ever. Those things last forever, too.”

Keith released his first Christmas song, “I’ll Be Your Santa Tonight,” a couple of years ago (see video below), and he’s climbing the country charts with his latest single, “Brown Eyes Baby.”