Women in Salzburg will this year again be able to pursue their shopping with abandon over the Christmas period, free from sourpuss boyfriends and husbands.

For the second year in a row, a 'creche' will be set up in the town centre where women can leave their partners for a few hours so that they can hunt down all those last-minute presents, without a bored and whingeing spouse.

In a large white tent set up on Salzburg's central Herbert-von-Karajan square, the men will be able to play computer games, leaf through newspapers or magazines such as Playboy, or simply have a drink at the bar with co-suffering "shopping widowers".

Between December 13-23, women can "surrender" their partners at the tent's entrance free of charge between 4:00 pm-10:00 pm.

They are given a numbered ticket which they then have to present on their return to collect their spouse.

Salzburg toymaker Andreas Stadlbauer came up with the idea of a so-called "Maennerhort" or "men's creche" last year.

It proved such a success -- around 1,500 men found refuge there from the shopaholic tendencies of their 'better half' -- that he decided to repeat the venture again this year.

Indeed, Stadlbauer has even patented the name "Maennerhort". And with big-name sponsors such as the German luxury sports car maker Porsche, Playboy magazine and Nintendo, he is planning to set up similar creches in Vienna, Hamburg and Munich.

In Germany, where men have a reputation of being particularly averse to shopping, the creches might even operate all year round, the entrepreneur suggested.

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