Get ready… ‘Tis the season to start thinking about the holidays ahead! One of my favorite activities this time of year is planning out different ways to bring out the magic of the holidays. There’s travel, shopping for gifts, decorating, meal planning, and so much more that come to together to form the joy — and chaos — of the season. That being said, a holiday tradition never gets old is an advent calendar. While chocolate-filled advent calendars are a classic, there are even more unique selections out there. These days, you can go beyond candy and figurines to find advent calendars that appeal to a number of tastes.
From advent calendars with mini beauty products for the beauty aficionados to those with toys for the little ones, the choices are as diverse as the holiday spirits themselves. Whether you’re a creative, a foodie, a tech enthusiast, or a lover of all things cozy, we’ve rounded up a variety of advent calendars just for you! Browse our picks below and be sure to check back for more as we get closer to December. Happy holidays!
Prices accurate at time of publishing.
Advent Calendars for Creatives
Advent calendars for creatives put the art of creation front and center. From daily crafts to block builds, these giftable calendars ensure a little time is carved out for creativity each day. They’re especially good for those who don’t necessarily want advent calendars with food or sweets since they provide a lasting gift beyond the month. You’ll have your best bet finding creative advent calendars from dedicated arts and crafts brands like Arteza, The Woobles and Kids Crafts.
Arteza 24-Day Fine Arts
Advent Calendar
Get inspired to create each day leading up to Christmas with Arteza’s Fine Art Advent Calendar. With 24 panels, it’s packed with 26 art-related gifts that include canvas, paints, brushes, markers, gel pens, and more. You also have the chance to win a year of free art supplies by finding a golden ticket in Door #1! Pick it up for your favorite creative or grab one for yourself to practice your skills. It sold out last year, so the earlier you can snag it, the better!
Get it: Arteza, $80
A Woobly Wonderland
Advent Calendar
The Woobles are a wonderfully adorable way to get into crochet. Their kits range in difficulty and design from cuddly animals to pop culture collabs. Their 24-day advent calendar comes with everything you need to create a Wooble, including kits, sewing tools, and stickers. If you’re brand new to crochet: The brand recommends going with the Most Yarn-derful Time of the Year Bundle, which comes with two additional kits for beginners.
Get it: The Woobles, $125 $150
Kids Crafts Countdown to Christmas
Felt Craft Kit Advent Calendar
Kids can get into the holiday spirit with this advent calendar that includes 25 ornament crafts, no glue or sewing required. The kit includes self-adhesive felt stickers with step-by-step picture instructions to help children create hand-made works in the shapes of reindeer, nutcrackers, and other holiday-themed delights. The box also includes bonus activities, such as a word search, word scramble, and more.
Get it: Kids Crafts, $39.99
Arteza 24-Day Kids
Advent Calendar
Arteza’s whimsical Christmas countdown calendar for kids includes a variety of art-related gifts to inspire holiday spirit. In addition to art supplies, the advent calendar includes art tips and challenges to spark creativity. In the kit, you’ll find dual-tip color pencils, metallic crayons, clay, tempera paint, paint brushes, felt, and ornaments. It’s recommended for children ages 8 and up.
Get it: Arteza, $50
MORE:
- LEGO Advent Calendars
- Biscotte Yarns Advent Calendar for Knitters
- Diamond Painting Advent Calendar
- Crayola Christmas Countdown Calendar
- Oh Sew Bootiful Embroidery Advent Calendar
- Spellbinders Crafty Advent Calendar
- Elmer’s 10 Days of Gue Slime Variety Pack
- Play-Doh Advent Calendar
Lifestyle & Beauty Advent Calendars
For a holiday treat that lasts all season long (and longer!), look no further than lifestyle and beauty-themed advent calendars. With more and more brands launching their own advent calendars every year, there’s a high chance that many of your favorites have created one of their own. Not only will these calendars make it feel like gifting season arrived early, but they also can provide holiday wear from clothing to grooming essentials. Some even touch on niches that will capture the hearts of book lovers, pet owners, and those who make sure to carve out time for self-care.
12 Days of FabFitFun
Advent Calendar
For those who’ve never had a FabFitFun subscription that want to get a taste of the fun, this advent calendar will provide just that! From full-size beauty and skin care to cozy soft goods, this premium advent calendar includes some FabFitFun favorites from popular brands like Barefoot Dreams, Laneige, and more. It’s stuffed with over $300 worth of lifestyle products that you’ll get to reveal over the course of 12 days.
Get it: FabFitFun, $89.99
Sephora Collection
Advent Calendar
Beauty giant Sephora has more than a few advent calendars to pick from if you’re looking for a self-care kick. While many are dedicated makeup sets, this Sephora Collection kit has a little of everything from skin care products to beauty tools. You’ll get 24 days worth of surprises that include sheet masks, bath essentials, and accessories that will make you feel your best throughout the month.
Get it: Sephora, $49
The Book Lover’s
Advent Calendar
What better time to cozy up with a stack of good reads than fall and winter? To make the experience even more serene and special, grab The Book Lover’s Advent Calendar from Uncommon Goods! It contains 25 book-related gifts from bookmarks to stickers. There are even some ornaments that bibliophiles are sure to love. Each gift is neatly packed into a paper envelope with a holiday-themed illustration that embodies the warm and fuzzy feeling of the season.
Get it: Uncommon Goods, $30
LUSH Christmas Buds
Advent Calendar
I don’t know about you, but one of my favorite stops at the mall is the LUSH store. Their offerings of soaps, bath bombs, and lotions easily draw attention — if not to the scents, than to the eyecatching colors and designs. LUSH has three advent calendars this year, including this adorable Christmas Buds set that has 25 bath gifts, including melts, bubble bars, and exclusive holiday-themed bath bombs.
Get it: LUSH, $210
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- LOOKFANTASTIC Men’s Grooming Advent Calendar
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Food & Drink Advent Calendars
You can’t deny that some of the best things about the holiday season are the specialty foods that are available. From sweets to savory snacks and beverages, it’s hard to go wrong with advent calendars that are packed with edible delights. While many holiday countdown calendars house chocolates, you can find many more diverse flavors and foods than ever before! There are calendars for coffee and tea lovers, cookie enthusiasts, charcuterie pros, and so much more. All it takes is knowing where to look. Bon appétit!
Compartés Gourmet Chocolate
Advent Calendar
This limited edition advent calendar from Compartés features 24 handcrafted gourmet chocolates. The ornate box features an enchanting garden design of flora and fauna that’s almost too gorgeous to open up. But then you’d miss the chocolates inside that are almost too beautiful to eat! Strikingly on theme, these chocolates have tastes exclusive to this countdown calendar. Flavors include honey lavender (a personal favorite), passionfruit, lemon poppyseed, and raspberry rose.
Get it: Compartés, 109.95
DAVIDsTEA 24 Trips with Tea
Advent Calendar
As an avid tea drinker, I’m always looking out for tea advent calendars. They’re a great way to get introduced to new flavors as well as reacquainted with old favorites. Give the tea lover in your life a 24 Trips with Tea Advent Calendar from DAVIDsTEA, so they can take a global journey without leaving the comfort of home. Each decorative panel holds a two-serving pouch of loose leaf tea from around the world that’s organic and vegan. Countries include India, Korea, Brazil, Germany, and more.
Get it: DAVIDsTEA, $55
Bonne Maman
2023 Advent Calendar
Whether you love a good charcuterie spread or simple bread and jam, this advent calendar from Bonne Maman will fulfill those delicious wishes. The limited edition 2023 calendar includes 23 spreads and 1 honey that can easily serve as a treat for yourself or someone you love. The latter is especially true since you get free shipping if you order two! Featuring a jovial illustration of the North Pole and Santa’s Workshop, the Bonne Maman advent calendar includes flavors like Lemon Yuzu, Raspberry Chocolate, and Caramel with Cinnamon.
Get it: Bonne Maman, $44.99
XO Marshmallow
2023 Advent Calendar
One advent calendar I’m super excited about is from XO Marshmallow. This is the 5th annual advent calendar from the gourmet marshmallow brand, and based on looks alone, it’s sure to be a treat! The cookie-themed calendar is packed with a mix of XO Marshmallow’s bestsellers as well as flavors exclusive to this set, such as Sugar Plum. The box features an embossed snowflake cookie design, and each panel gives a hint to the flavor inside. However, if you want to be spoiled, each flavor is printed on the back. Be sure to order this one as soon as you can because once they’re sold out, they’re sold out for the season!
Get it: XO Marshmallow, $54.99
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- sugarfina Candy Carousel Advent Calendar
- waterdrop Advent Calendar
- Hickory Farms 12 Days of Charcuterie Advent Calendar
- Sips by – Holiday Tea Advent Calendar
- Vienna Cookie Company Advent Calendar
- Beanbox – 12 Mornings of Coffee
- Williams-Sonoma Peppermint Bark Advent Calendar
Advent Calendars with Holiday Spirits
In case you missed it, drink-themed advent calendars don’t stop at coffee, tea, and flavored water. Channel your inner oenophile or mixologist with an advent calendar that includes wine, liquor, and cocktail mixers.
in good taste
Wine Advent Calendar
Drink around the world with this bestselling wine advent calendar from in good taste that’s sold out three years in a row. For 24 days, explore a variety of wine in reds, whites, and rosé from France, Italy, California, and more. The 187ml bottles provides the equivalent of one-fourth of a standard wine bottle. Every wine advent calendar is shipped free, and a gift note can be attached at checkout.
Get it: in good taste, $139.99
Woodford Reserve
8-Day Cocktail Advent Calendar
If you want a boozy advent calendar that’s a bit more interactive, look no further. Woodford Reserve’s Cocktail Advent Calendar lasts for eight days, has four cocktail mixers, and all you have to provide is the actual liquor. It includes orange, spiced cherry, chocolate, and aromatic bitters to level up your cocktails from Whiskey Sours to Manhattans.
Get it: Williams-Sonoma, $145.95
The Lost Art of Distillation
The Amber Kingdom
For the adventurous types, it doesn’t get much cooler than the Flaviar whiskey advent calendar. Themed after thrilling explorations, this giftable set takes you on a trip through 24 curated whiskey samples and that’s not where it ends. In addition to the whiskey, this advent calendar bundle includes two exclusive Glencairn glasses, a tasting journal with more information about the whiskeys, and a one-year Flaviar Black Membership.
Get it: Flaviar, $250
VINEBOX 24 Nights of Wine
Advent Calendar
Vinebox is one of offcultured’s favorite fine wine-tasting boxes. You can try different flavors from well-known wine regions in France, Spain, Italy, and more. Orders can be placed for a set of tasting bottles or a whole bottle of wine if you find one — or some — that you enjoy. For the holidays, they’ve dropped a series of advent calendars. You can select 12 Nights of Cozy Wines (reds), 12 Nights of Chill Wines (mostly whites), or get the best of both worlds with the 24 Nights of Wine that includes them all.
Get it: VINEBOX, $199
Pop Culture Advent Calendars
One of the fun mash-ups of this time of year is pop culture icons getting a holiday makeover. Films, TV shows, animated characters and series, and more are being transformed into advent calendar greatness. These advent calendars can give you a slice of the action seen in these universes from Disney to Harry Potter and everything in between. (No really, just go look and you’ll be surprised at what you can find!)
Harry Potter Hogwarts Express
Advent Calendar
So, you got your acceptance letter from Hogwarts, now what? It’s time to get ready to board the Hogwarts Express! This 24-day advent calendar is themed after the most coveted trip in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Each panel holds an imaginative treat worthy of the Honeydukes Express trolley on the train for a daily dose of magical fun. It includes Every Flavor Beans, Rainbow Bites, Pink Cadillac Gummy Cars, Harry Potter gummies, and more.
Get it: Williams-Sonoma, $39.95
Pokémon Deluxe Battle Figure
Holiday Calendar
While Ash Ketchum’s adventure may have ended in the world of Pokémon, but you still have time to catch ’em all! This Pokémon Deluxe advent calendar contains 24 holiday-themed figures and diorama accessories that collectors will love. Inside, you’ll find some Pokémon favorites like Pikachu, Eevee, Ditto, Charmander, and Squirtle. Plus, each figure has a red finish exclusive to the holiday calendar to make it extra special.
Get it: Target, $59.99
Disney Princess
Pop-Up Advent Calendar
Get 25 days of Disney Princess goodies with this pop-up advent calendar that becomes a festive tree. Featuring Cinderella, Tiana, Rapunzel, and more, it comes with envelopes that hold a new paper ornament to hang each day leading up to Christmas.
Get it: Amazon, $19.95
Pocket Pop! Star Wars
24-Day Advent Calendar
If you’re a fan of Star Wars and a Funko collector, you’re in luck with this Pocket Pop! advent calendar themed after the beloved franchise. For 24 days, you can reveal a new holiday-themed Star Wars character that will fit right in the rest of your holiday decorations. Pocket Pop! figures include Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, a surprisingly festive Darth Vader, and many more.
Get it: Funko, $50
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Advent Calendars for Pets
Believe it or not, advent calendars aren’t limited to people. Get your pets in on the fun of the holidays with countdown calendars tailored for toys and treats — and sometimes, both!
Sugarwish
12 Days of Dog Treats
Sugarwish is one of our favorite gifting companies, and while they don’t have an official advent calendar, you can certainly create your own! Their dog treat boxes are perfectly sized for gifting your favorite canine for the holidays. Just pick the preferred size of the Sugarwish and select the type of treats you want packed inside. The dog treats include flavors such as Peanut Butter and Blueberry Tiny Bones, Cheezy Chewies, Soft Pork and Apple Ducks, Pink and Purple Drizzle Hearts, and more.
Get it: Sugarwish, $79
Midlee
Cat Advent Calendar
Your feline friends can get in on the advent calendar action with this 12-day cat toy calendar that’s sure to get them in the spirit. The holiday set includes a Christmas-themed assortment of stuffed mice, balls that crinkle and jingle, and other surprises. Each plush toy includes catnip, which will really get your cat into a partying mood!
Get it: Target, $32.99
Fancy Feast Feastivities
Advent Calendar
Trust me when I say that the 24-day Feastivities Advent Calendar is a MASSIVE treat for any cat, especially if they enjoy Fancy Feast. The calendar is decorated with a cozy illustration for cat lovers, and includes a variety of gourmet cat food and treats. Inside, you’ll find 16 different cans of wet cat food, break-apart cat treats, broth recipes, and Fancy Feast Savory Puree Naturals.
Get it: Walmart, $32.99
Merry Makings
Dog Chew Advent Calendar
Gift your pup with 25 days of adorable dog treats found in this Merry Makings advent calendar from Petco. As you open each panel, you’ll find gingerbread men, Christmas trees, snowmen, and rawhide-free bones. As a special bonus gift, the doors lift to create a pop-up holiday diorama to display after tossing your pet the treats from inside.
Get it: Petco, $14.99
Reusable Advent Calendars
For a keepsake to put on display year after year, these reusuable advent calendars are the way to go. They come in many different colors and types that you can mix or match with your home decor. There are wooden, linen, felt styles and more that hang or sit on flat surfaces. It all comes down to what you feel is the right fit for your home. These advent calendars also give you the opportunity to get creative and decide what type of holiday surprises everyone can find each day from tiny trickets to tasty treats.
Christmas Countdown
Wall Hanging
This woven Christmas wall-hanging is set at an apartment building and features 25 homes preparing for the holidays. It comes with a cloth Santa to move from window to window from December 1st up to December 25th.
Get it: Paper Source, $36.50
Byers’ Choice
Wooden Advent Calendar
Add advent calendar charm to your holiday decor with this wooden house that has 24 doors for 24 holiday surprises. It features a lively home that’s all decked out for Christmas with wreaths, ornaments and lights. All that’s left for you to add are the daily gifts behind each door.
Get it: Williams-Sonoma, $110
Ethel Wooden
Advent Calendar
This gorgeous advent advent calendar from Anthropologie features a cozy cabin diorama to get you in a holiday mood. The snowy nature scene sits on top of a stack of 24 drawers where you can place little treats and gifts to be discovered each day.
Get it: Anthropologie, $62.40 $78
Pink Reindeer
Advent Calendar
Mon Ami’s cuddly pink reindeer advent calendar is a sweet way to countdown to Christmas. It has 24 pockets where you can move the golden star accent from day to day. Plus, it’s on a string so you don’t lose it. If you’re looking for a similar linen advent calendar in a different style, this brand has a variety to pick from.
Get it: Mon Ami, $43.20 $54
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Luxury Advent Calendars
Priced $500 and up, these luxury advent calendars are long-lasting gifts in themselves! They’re packed with beauty products, precious stones, jewelry, and more that can be used beyond December.
Disney100
Advent Calendar
Disney and Swarowski have partnered to form this exquisite advent calendar with timeless gifts inside. In celebration of Disney’s 100th anniversary, the set includes crystal ornaments, jewelry and stickers — all of which are exclusive to this calendar — featuring Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, and more.
Get it: Swarovski, $1,300
Dior Le 30 Montaigne
Advent Calendar
The 2023 holiday advent calendar from Dior is a recreation of the luxury brand’s historic flagship boutique at 30 Avenue Montaigne in Paris. The decoration inside the calendar, created by Italian artist Pietro Ruffo, showcases the majestic wrought-iron gate and statues in gold. The set includes 24 Dior miniatures in makeup, skin care, and fragrances.
Get it: Dior, $750
Diptyque
Advent Calendar
For you or another scented candle lover in your life, this Diptyque advent calendar is not only beautiful but smells great, too. In addition to candles, the set includes fragrances, soaps, body lotion and oil as well as special holiday decorations to enjoy.
Get it: Diptyque, $510
Penhaligon
Toy Chest Advent Calendar
I immediately fell in love with this advent calendar as soon as I saw it! It’s a holiday toy chest-themed calendar from British perfumers, Penhaligon. The capsule opens to reveal 24 compartments that house fragrances, candles, soap, hand cream, lip balm, and more.
Get it: Neiman Marcus, $545
Header: Elena Mozhvilo
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