Advent literally means coming, or arrival and the season of Advent celebrates the birth of Jesus, the arrival of Christmas and the season of love, compassion and caring. An Advent calendar is a wonderful way to make those anxious days leading up to the holiday filled with a little bit of Christmas magic.
Whether you’re looking for one for your toddler or older children, or you’re buying one to reignite your own excitement for the holidays, Christmas Advent calendars will quickly become one of your favorite traditions to be treasured. With 24 hidden doors or pockets for chocolates or treats, small notes or other tiny gifts, they create a journey that makes the season real.
So slip on your best ugly Christmas sweater to get into the spirit, and get shopping for the Top 20 Best Advent Calendars for 2018, because Advent is almost here and supplies often run short as the holiday season nears.
What better way to count down to Christmas than with this Disney Tsum Tsum Countdown to Christmas Advent Calendar? Whether your kids collect Disney Tsum Tsum figures, or you are looking to kick-start their collection, this gingerbread house-themed calendar is sure to spark their holiday spirit, and yours. Each day, your kids can open the window with the corresponding date to reveal either one of 18 Tsum Tsum figures, or a surprise accessory.
As their collection grows, they can use the accessories to stack their large, medium and small Tsum Tsum figures for a perfect holiday decoration. Great for creating Christmas anticipation, this cute advent calendar will be a daily adventure your kids will look forward to. If you have more than one child, double the excitement with a different, but related calendar filled with Tsum Tsum collectibles. The Tsum Tsum Disney Countdown to Christmas Advent Calendar Playset would be a super fun option.
Christmas on the Island of Sodor is the most festive time of all, and now children can celebrate the holiday with this special Thomas the Train Minis-themed Advent Calendar. There’s a different “minis gift” inside every door, including six exclusive minis with holiday-themed decorations.
Your kids will love counting the days to Christmas and receiving a special gift for each day. This fun Advent calendar features 24 Thomas & Friends adorable minis characters in brilliantly colored designs to cherish and enjoy in the days leading up to Christmas, and all the days afterward.
Fisher Price toys are cherished by kids of all ages. To find more Fisher Price Christmas gift ideas, look here.
There’s no better way to keep the kids from going a little bit Christmas crazy than to keep their minds and hands busy. You can help them celebrate the holiday season creatively with the Crayola Christmas Countdown Activity Advent Calendar. Inspired by traditional Advent calendars, this 24-day calendar is filled with surprises. It offers kids a unique, artistic way to prepare for Christmas.
Each day on the calendar features a different craft or coloring project, giving kids a positive way to channel their abundant holiday enthusiasm. With tree ornaments, finger puppets, handmade gifts, and more, this kit also helps kids create their own lasting keepsakes that they can display on the tree or in their room for many Christmases to come.
Keep the artistic inspiration going during the rest of the year with a Crayola Inspiration Art Case filled with crayons, pencils, washable markers and more.
With this fun and colorful LEGO City Advent Calendar, your kids can reveal a new mini-build for every day in December leading up to Christmas. The kit includes 24 separate builds, and a play mat to display the sweet Christmas scene. Every day brings a new mini-model to build, as your child constructs a realistic LEGO City Christmas.
This advent calendar is a great way to get your little builder into the holiday spirit (as if they need any help with that.) It’s an affordable early Christmas gift or a fun present for a child with a birthday around the holiday season. The Force can be with you during the busy Christmas season if you get your kids the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar Building Kit.
With deep space play scenes and more than ten buildable vehicles, it’s a great way to keep little hands and minds occupied. Furry friends and their homes, Christmas tree, gifts and all sorts of surprises are a part of the super cute LEGO Friends Advent Calendar Building Kit, that also comes with a Stephanie mini-doll figure in a festive outfit.
If you’ve got a toddler, their little hands will keep busy and minds can master learning with this cute Fisher-Price Little People Advent calendar. Little ones will love opening the door to find a new Little People friend or fun, holiday-themed accessory each day as Christmas comes closer.
By December 24th, they’ll have a whole new set of holiday toys to “make merry” with, plus you can even use the Little People Advent Calendar to practice numbers and counting skills with your toddler. Every day will bring a new adventure in holiday play and imagination building.
Your kids from four to ten can head outdoors into the winter wonderland for some holiday festivities with the Christmas on the Farm Advent calendar from PLAYMOBIL. It features a barnyard full of animals, and of course it has twenty-four surprise items, one for each day leading up to Christmas. Once all the pieces are revealed, your kids can create a festive animal gathering with Santa and you can share with them how baby Jesus was born in a manger, while you all play together.
This fun set includes a backdrop, Santa, angel, and child figure, a tractor, playful barnyard cats, a dog, cows, sheep, goats, a hen with chicks, birds, watering trough, and lots of other fun accessories.
Your one to five year old’s eyes will light up when they begin the countdown to Christmas with the Go! Go! Smart Animals® Advent Calendar by VTech®. This interactive Advent calendar features a snowy scene with 24 doors, gifts and Rudy the SmartPoint® Reindeer.
When your little one opens a door each day as Christmas approaches, a surprise gift will be revealed. Flip down the front of the box, and the scene on the box can be used as a backdrop for added more make believe fun.
The first gift is Rudy the SmartPoint® Reindeer and a platform with a SmartPoint® location. Place Rudy on the included SmartPoint® location, (or SmartPoint® locations on other Go! Go! Smart Animals® playsets,) and hear unique, fun responses. Rudy the Reindeer features a light-up button, motion recognition, songs and more. Other surprise gifts include a baby reindeer, ornaments and more.
Melissa & Doug wooden creations are a worldwide favorite of kids and kids at heart. Their festive, Christmas tree-shaped, wooden Advent calendar is an extra special creation because it becomes part of a beloved holiday tradition with your kids. The painted tree with sparkling accents stands in a sturdy wooden base that doubles as a box to hold the adorable ornament decorations.
Each ornament is decorated differently in holiday patterns and Christmas themes. Your kids can take turns choosing a special one each day leading up to Christmas morning. This cool art piece helps to promote and reinforce many developmental skills as children grow from year to year.
You can use the numbers on the tree to help young children learn to count both forwards and backwards. You can also play games with your kids using the ornaments to help develop color recognition and memory skills. This special Advent calendar helps kids build both patience and anticipation for the upcoming holiday celebration.
What could be a more fun holiday tradition than building a very special Advent calendar, especially one you and your child assembled together? This sweet as sugar little gingerbread house features 24 compartments that open and close.
It is packaged with detailed, step-by-step assembly instructions that allow you to customize this cutie with your child’s name, plus it’s a holiday treasure that will be loved for years to come. Once it’s built, you can secretly fill each little compartment with tiny toys, chocolates and special surprises for your child.
If you’ve got a little car nut in the house, why not rev up their pre-Christmas season with some holiday Hot Wheels? The Hot Wheels Advent calendar features individual windows that reveal a new surprise every day leading up to Christmas.
It comes with twenty-four surprises, including eight Hot Wheels vehicles and 16 accessories to convert the cars into Christmas themed vehicles. From reindeer and skis, to a snow plow, your little one can enjoy the magic of the season, along with getting the Hot Wheels cars they love.
Kids of all ages will love this beautifully made wooden Christmas tree Advent calendar. It is thoughtfully designed with 24 numbered doors, behind which many delightful small surprises can be hidden. Each day leading up to Christmas becomes a treasure hunt for tiny toys, treats and other delights that you can change from year to year.
This beautiful Christmas keepsake comes in sturdy box for storage after the holidays. It’s made of high quality wood which makes this Advent calendar durable enough to last for many Christmases to come. Because this does contain many small pieces, it isn’t suitable for children under three years of age. There are many more styles of wooden Advent calendars from Christmas houses to Santa’s house.
The nativity is a precious scene at the holidays, and this beautiful wooden Advent calendar by Kurt Adler allows children to design their own nativity during the 24 days leading up to Christmas. Kids can be creative and use their imaginations with this beautiful set that includes magnetic animals and people that can be hidden behind each of the nativity’s 24 doors.
In addition, there is room to hide some small candy coins, notes from Santa and other surprises of your choice. Made out of natural wood, this nativity is painted in the beautiful color of the nighttime sky. Kurt Adler has designed lots of beautiful Christmas decorations for your tree and every room in your home.
If you’re specifically in search of nativity themed Advent calendars, you’ll find lots of options here.
This adorable wooden box style Advent calendar from Primitives by Kathy gives you the opportunity to build years of Christmas memories for your family. Made of sturdy wood, with a fun chalkboard style finish, this Advent calendar perfectly captures the spirit of the season.
The vintage theme means it will match perfectly with all different kinds of holiday decor. Your kids will love all the individual compartments with doors, which are big enough to hold candy, small ornaments, tiny toys or other special treasures.
You can count on watching their faces light up as they count down the days until Christmas. This sweet Advent calendar features two wall mounting hooks enabling you to hang it on a wall or door, or you can stand it upright on any flat surface.
This adorable wooden Advent calendar is a piece destined to become an enchanting family heirloom that you’ll be excited to bring out every Christmas. Inside the workshop are Santa, his sleigh, elves, a fireplace, furniture, presents and more. Beneath Santa’s workshop are 24 numbered drawers for the 24 days before Christmas.
You might fill them with small gifts, or more untraditional surprises each year. As your kids grow, the selection can evolve to suit their ages. Just flip the switch on the back and the workshop lights up with LED lights. For a different take on Santa’s workshop, check out this animated advent calendar.
This stunning Advent calendar is resplendent with Christmas themes that will delight your kids, or the kid in you. LED lights shine brightly on a snowy church, a warm family house, and a group of carolers standing by a spinning angels Christmas tree.
This lovely Christmas village is the perfect addition to your holiday decor, with 24 fillable drawers for lots of goodies and tiny presents, and the vintage design brings forth the spirit of Christmas memories past.
You can almost see the misty London fog and hear the church bells tolling in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol when you look at this beautiful Tudor Christmas house advent calendar. Thoughtfully designed with 24 numbered doors, behind which small surprises can be hidden for each day.
Made of high quality wood, this beautiful Advent calendar will be a holiday tradition as your family grows. Once the kids are gone, you can fill it with grown up treats, thoughtful notes, and more, to make every holiday season bright.
This beautifully crafted fabric advent calendar comes with velcro-affixed stuffed figures that are removed from the pockets each day leading up to Christmas and added to the nativity scene. The final Nativity beautifully depicts the birth of Jesus as the Star of Bethlehem guides your family closer to the holy day.
You might also choose to include a piece of Christmas candy or tiny tree ornaments in each pocket for twice the enjoyment. The high quality craftsmanship of this holiday treasure ensures this calendar can be used year after year.
This beautifully crafted advent calendar brings with it the message of love and acceptance of all the peoples of the world. Little angels from all over the planet are used to celebrate and count down the days toward Christmas. Each day becomes and adventure of acceptance, an opportunity for learning and a way to build conversation about our global community and love of others.
The velcro-affixed stuffed figures are removed from the pockets and added to the scene each day of advent, promoting peace on earth and good will towards all people. Add to your family conversation about diversity with some toys and books that promote understanding at this wonderful time of year.
Add to your Christmas story telling time with this fun Noah’s Ark advent calendar. As you count down to Christmas, the animals, two by two, are revealed hiding in the fabric pockets. It’s a fun way to share another bible story with your children, and a great way to talk about all the different animals and trees on the earth.
Each velcro-backed animal fits on the ark, and as the days move closer to Christmas, Noah and his wife save the animals from the floods. There are many books about Noah’s Ark that are age appropriate so it’s easy to pick one to share with your kids through the season. You could create the advent calendar and reading time as a nightly ritual throughout the month.
This advent calendar would be a super sweet Christmas gift for a family with a new baby, especially if you included a soft Noah’s Ark baby blanket.
Let the magical mischief unfold as you and your children experience the fun and adventure of the countdown to Christmas. Year after year, children and adults alike are baffled by the mystery of how Santa really knows who’s been naughty or nice. After much urging by the elves and Mrs. Claus, Santa has allowed his biggest secret to be revealed by The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition.
At the start of each Christmas season, the elf appears to serve as Santa’s eyes and ears, traveling back to the North Pole each and every night to make a detailed report of the day’s activities. This keepsake gift set includes all you’ll need to make ornaments, a stocking and an Advent calendar all celebrating the hijinx of everyone’s favorite jokey elf.
Advent is a season of anticipation. An Advent calendar is the perfect way for you and your family to have fun while you're counting down the days until Christmas.
