12 Advent Calendars for This Year’s Christmas Countdown

If you celebrate Christmas, you know the countdown unofficially begins sometime during that stretch between Halloween and Thanksgiving. The pumpkins and gourds find their way off of the mantle and front porch and are slowly replaced with small Christmas trees and garlands dusted with fake snow.

Part of the fun that comes with counting down to Christmas is having an advent calendar to surprise you with treats every day of December leading up to the 25th. Just decide the kind of surprise you'd like to have—do you want chocolates? Tea? Gummy candies?—and make sure you have it in your hands before the first of December. Then, each day, open the slot with the corresponding number to find what the calendar has in store. (It's like a pre-Christmas gift warmup, if you ask us!) And as we inch closer to the holiday, it's time to choose the calendar for you.

Keep reading for 12 advent calendars we're excited to give (and hopefully receive) this Christmas. (Psst! They're on sale right now, too.)

1. Food52 x Maison Boissier Parisian Advent Calendar

This exclusive-to-us calendar is filled with a medley of French chocolate-coated nuts, heart-shaped gummies, gooey caramels, and more.

2. Onyx Coffee Lab Advent Calendar

If you can't start your day without a cup of coffee, consider this calendar from Arkansas-based roasters, Onyx Coffee Lab. Each drawer holds two ounces of artisan whole beans—enough to brew two 12-ounce cups.

3. Wally and Whiz Danish Gummy Advent Calendar for Two

This one's filled with a collection of Danish gummies in 12 different flavor combinations, like cherry and vanilla, elderflower and yuzu, and hibiscus and raspberry.

4. Whittard of Chelsea Tea Advent Calendar for Two

If you love to sip on a hot cup of tea, this calendar is ideal. It has 24 pull-out drawers, each one with four individually wrapped tea bags—that’s 96 bags total.

5. Whittard of Chelsea Hot Chocolate Advent Calendar for Two

Winter is the time for hot cocoa so, of course, we have to suggest this calendar filled with 24 days of hot chocolate from the United Kingdom. Each drawer has two packets, with 12 different flavors spread throughout the box.

6. Amedei Advent Calendar

This bright box has a mix of Italian bars, pralines, and snacks that you'll be excited to unwrap each day. It'll keep you guessing, too: Some drawers have two chocolates inside, while others have a small bar you can share with a friend.

7. Venchi Prestige Italian Chocolate Advent Calendar

Italian confectioner, Venchi, has been making sweets in Italy's Piedmont region for over 140 years, and you can bring a box of it home. This calendar has 24 days’ worth of handcrafted chocolates, all tucked into a fun and modern book-shaped design by artist Andrew Bannecker. It doesn't get much sweeter than this.

8. Sugarfina Santa’s Candy Shop Advent Calendar

This one's full of surprises from around the world. There are gummies, chocolates, and other sweets tucked away inside the small drawers for each day leading up to Christmas. The cherry on top? On the 25th, the shelves of Sugarfina stores will be fully stocked with all the candies you’ve tasted.

9. Lakrids by Bülow Danish Licorice Advent Calendar

This one's a little polarizing—we've found people either love or hate licorice, with very little in between—but if you're a fan of the bittersweet candy, you're in luck. This calendar has 48 confections inside, two for each December day. There’s plenty of candy-coated licorice, of course, but there are also some sweet and salty classics mixed in as an extra treat.

10. Mirzam Chocolate Spice Route Advent Calendar

This one's filled with snack-size bars from Dubai-based maker Mirzam, who sources cacao beans from places like Madagascar, India, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

11. McCrea’s Candies Handcrafted Caramel Advent Calendar

A calendar filled with 24 hand-crafted caramel candies? Yes, please. The box—which was designed by New Hampshire illustrator Cindy Hendrick—includes 12 different flavors, like Black Lava Sea Salt and Tapped Maple. Plus, they're all slow-cooked with locally sourced butter, milk, and cream.

12. Palais des Thés Parisian Tea Bag Advent Calendar

This one will give you the excuse to put your kettle on the stove and get that fireplace going at least once a day. It’s filled with blends ranging from single-estate steeps to caffeine-free herbal tisanes, and you'll get a different one each day—no repeats!

More gifting inspiration from Food52

• 11 Gifts for the Bourbon Lover in Your Life
• 30 Coffee Gifts That Baristas Actually Like
• Our 41 Best Gifts for Cocktail Lovers
• The Best Gifts for Chefs—According to Actual Chefs

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What kind of advent calendar do you want? Let us know in the comments below!