10 Last Minute Advent Calendar Ideas

Advent calendars are a huge family tradition in our house, but this year I am behind on my shopping and just realized I haven’t gotten 2019 advent calendars. In my panicked search, I found a bunch of great options that you can have quickly. So don’t despair, there is still time to order those advent calendars!

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24 Day Advent Calendars

Although no one in my family would turn down a chocolate-a-day advent calendar, we are big fans of advent calendars with small gifts. We open our advent calendars each night as a family so we can oh and ah over what each person received. Some years even mom and dad get advent calendars!

For Toddlers

The Fisher-Price Little People Nativity advent calendar is perfect for little hands. We own an older version of this Nativity from when my oldest was a toddler, but back then it wasn’t an Advent. This is a perfect way to countdown to Christmas with little ones.

For Little Kids

The PLAYMOBIL Christmas Balladvent calendar is perfectly pink for princesses like mine who love all things pink. Best suited for ages 4+ because of all the little pieces, we love PLAYMOBIL advents because they are wonderful to play with all season long.

The PLAYMOBIL Santa’s Workshop is another great Christmas-themed advent calendar. We had a similar one a couple of years ago, and my kids loved receiving Santa on Christmas Eve. In the mean time they spent many hours building scenes within Santa’s workshop awaiting his arrival.

For Big Kids

The Charm Bracelet advent calendar feels like a “big kid” gift with a new charm to fill a charm bracelet and necklace each day. My jewlery-loving daughter would love this one that features Christmas charms to celebrate all season long.

The Fluffy Slime advent calendar is sure to result in squeals of delight. This advent includes 12 slimes and 12 mixins so kids can customize their slime. A great advent to keep tweens entertained during the Christmas break without the mess of creating their slimes.

The LEGO City advent calendar is a great addition for all LEGO fans. The little Christmas scene can be added to other LEGOs to create hours of entertainment.

For All Ages

A Fill Your Own advent calendar is perfect for those who want to create a completely customized advent. I love these little sacks because they are flexible in size so you can put a variety of items in there without being restricted to a tiny box. Fill them with small gifts, daily activities, sweet treats and more, the possibilities are endless. (Bonus, the bags can be used again and again and become part of your family tradition.)

12 Day Advent Calendars

Let’s call this one plan b! An alternative to the 24-day advent calendars leading up to Christmas are 12-day advent calendars. While the 12 days of Christmas are from December 25 – January 5, you could also use these 12-day advent calendars to countdown the last 12 days before Christmas. Or, of course, you can give them as a Christmas gift and count off the 12 days of Christmas. Either way, these shorter advent calendars give you more time to get in these last-minute gifts.

The12 Days of Bath Bombs advent calendar is a relaxing way to enjoy the holiday season. From elementary kids to adults, bath bombs are all the rage and these cute shapes are sure to be a hit.

The Frozen 2 Lipsmackers advent calendar checks off lots of boxes. 12 fun flavors of lip balms for those with a touch of Frozen fever.

12 Days of Socks advent calendars a fun way of giving a practical gift. We’ve done various socks advents several times, and our kids love getting a new pair each day in their favorite characters. I’ve featured Christmas socks here, but you will find tons of options for sock advent calendars on Amazon (in both kids and adults sizes).