25 Adult Advent Calendar Gift Ideas

Advent Calendar Gifts for AdultsAdvent calendars have been used to mark the days until Christmas for thousands of years.

Today, they’ve become a fun way for kids and adults alike to count down the days in December — and they offer you a chance to add to the holiday excitement by providing loved ones with a small daily treat leading up to the Big Day.

Giving children chocolate advent calendars is a great holiday tradition to start; kids open a little paper door with the date on it to get a piece of chocolate candy every day — and they love it!  Calendars are widely available at major retailers and grocery stores for less than $5 each.

I first heard about chocolate advent calendars from a 27-year-old family friend whose mother gave one to him each year — and he passed his calendar on that year to my toddler son!

Although people usually give advent calendars to children, the gift-a-day concept is also ideal for adults. It’s especially thoughtful when someone moves away from home or to a new city, has a traumatic life event (breakup, job loss, illness, etc.) or isn’t able to make it home for the holidays.

Preparing an adult advent calendar for someone to open every day through Dec. 25 lets him or her know that he’s thought of and loved every day in December (and all year round).

And putting together a gift-a-day treat can be as much fun for the person giving the gift as for the one receiving it!

Last year, my son and his wife spent their first Christmas season in a new town, away from where they both grew up. So I searched on Pinterest for adult advent container ideas, and ordered several dozen white take-out boxes inexpensively on amazon.com. Then I typed and printed numbers and glued them and red sheets of paper on, decorating the boxes to match the Pinterest photos.

(You can also simply wrap gifts and number them for each day, or choose other types of containers, depending on the size and type of the gifts you plan to buy.)

I had a lot of fun shopping for items that (1) were small enough to fit partially or completely in the boxes (2) generally cost $5 or less and (3) would be useful for one or both of them. (I was a little off on estimating the box size when choosing gifts and ended up wrapping quite a few of them and tying them with a string to the boxes — so my advice would be to get the biggest take-out boxes you can find, just in case!) And I ended up buying quite a few gift cards, too — which easily fit in the boxes and were probably their favorite presents!

The photos below show my “gifts of the day” (except missing Day 13) and will hopefully give you ideas for fun and practical treats you can buy for your loved ones if you decide to do an adult advent calendar this year.

adult advent calendar gift idea #1Christmas outfit for their dog

adult advent calendar gift idea #2Christmas hat for their dog

adult advent calendar gift idea #3Thumbs-up post-it pads

Advent calendar gift idea #4Holiday kitchen towel

Advent calendar gift idea #5Chocolate banana smoothie mixes

Advent calendar gift idea #5Totes micro-umbrella

Advent calendar gift idea #7Batteries

Adult advent calendar gifts #8Goo gone Wine Out and package of Shout Wipe & Go

Adult advent calendar gifts #9Pig shaped timer

Adult advent calendar gift #10Flip-tite Plastic Storage Container

 Adult advent calendar gift #11Tote umbrella

Adult advent calendar gift #12Second of set of holiday kitchen towels

#13 is missing! Sorry…

Adult advent calendar gift #14Pumpkin pudding and a small hand tattoo

 Adult advent calendar gift #15Three Chili’s gift cards

Adult advent calendar gift #16Box of Russell Stover candy

Adult advent calendar gift #17Pfalzgraff collectible holiday salt and pepper shakers (puppies)

Adult advent calendar gift #18Plastic over-the-faucet sponge holder

Adult advent calendar gift #19Starbucks gift card

Adult advent calendar gift #20Goldfish cracker pack and a Wendy’s gift card

Adult advent calendar gift #21Chick-fil-A gift card

Adult advent calendar gift #22“Back to College” Advil 3-pack

Adult advent calendar gift #23Hot chocolate drink mixes

Adult advent calendar gift #24Pack of peanuts and a bottle of Downy wrinkle remover

Adult advent calendar gift #25Walmart gift card

Check this new blog post for 21 additional adult advent calendar gift ideas!

Holiday blog posts:

More Adults Advent Calendar Gift Ideas (21 more)

Memories of Holiday Mishaps

Record Child’s Holiday Experiences in a Christmas Memories Book

Beauty of an Eclectic Christmas Tree

December Daily – a Fun Way to Document the Holidays

Fun Christmas Gifts and Activities

Super Simple: How to Make a Pine Christmas Wreath in 45 Minutes

How to Host a Fun Girlfriends Wreath-Making Party

Money-Saving Christmas Gift #1 – Extend-your-Beauty Cosmetic Tool

Money-Saving Christmas Gift #2 – Zip-It Drain Cleaner

Christmas Jumbo Wiggle Eyes: Cute Holiday Decoration Adds Pizzazz

Make an Inexpensive Christmas Gift for Less Than $5

Favorite Childhood Christmas Memories

Inexpensive Christmas Gift for Women who Have Everything

Singing Christmas Trees: Sappy but Mesmerizing

The Joy of Blinging Out with Christmas Jewelry

Holiday Observation #1

Holiday Observation #2

Awesome Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Clothes and Accessories

Yikes! When Did Ugly Sweater Christmas Parties Start? 


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29 Responses to 25 Adult Advent Calendar Gift Ideas

  1. Carolann says:

    I used to love those advent calendars when I was a kid! What cute gifts you bought and what a great idea. I try not to do any Christmas until after Thanksgiving. It’s all too overwhelming lol.
    Carolann recently posted…CommentLuv Premium ReplyMe Settings Tutorial For WordPressMy Profile

  2. Thank you for stopping by my blog! I love the idea of doing an advent calendar for adults and using takeout container for the daily package is so cute.
    Paris at My Big Fat Happy Life recently posted…Christmas Traditions: Elf on the Shelf BreakfastMy Profile

  3. Kristin Wald says:

    Yes! Adults need fun count-downs too!
    Kristin Wald recently posted…You Cannot Change What You Refuse to ConfrontMy Profile

  4. The Real Cie says:

    What a great idea! I think I’ll make one for my adult son. I can intersperse practical things with fun stuff. 🙂
    The Real Cie recently posted…SpectrumMy Profile

    • blogqueendiane says:

      Thanks! I think that’s part of the fun — when he opens the gifts, he doesn’t know if he’ll get a $20 gift card for dinner or a package of Post-it pads!

  5. Marcy says:

    Love your ideas. I used to do one with my kids when they were small. It had tiny little boxes to open that could hold small toys or pieces of candy.
    Marcy recently posted…Pork Carnitas: Meatlovers, Prepare to Swoon (MultiMEDIA Splice #1, a new link party)My Profile

  6. Jill says:

    What a great advent idea for adults!
    Thank you for stopping by the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop this week. We hope to see you drop by our neck of the woods next week!
    Jill recently posted…US State Study of the Week Weekly Series FREE Michigan PackMy Profile

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