When I moved to America, I was shocked by the advent calendar situation. Or rather, the lack of one. Sure, you can find them in stores. But they're treated like cute optional decorations. Something you might get for your kids if you remember. In Britain? Advent calendars are mandatory. Everyone has one. Even adults. Especially adults.
My coworkers thought it was funny when I bought myself an advent calendar that first December. They asked if it was for my kids. I told them I don't have kids. The calendar was for me. They looked at me like I'd just admitted to sleeping with a teddy bear. But in Britain, having your own advent calendar as an adult is completely normal. Expected, even.
What Makes British Advent Calendars Different
American advent calendars tend to be basic. Cheap chocolate behind cardboard doors. Or sometimes just pictures. They're considered kids' stuff. British advent calendars are a whole industry. There are calendars for every interest, every price point, and every age group.
Yes, there are traditional chocolate calendars for kids. But there are also luxury chocolate calendars with expensive Belgian chocolates. Tea advent calendars where you get a different tea flavor each day. Cheese calendars. Gin calendars. Beer calendars. Wine calendars. Beauty product calendars. Candle calendars. Even sock calendars where you get a new pair of socks every day leading up to Christmas.
British people take advent calendars seriously because they mark the countdown to Christmas. Each day you open a door, you're one day closer to the big day. It builds anticipation. It makes December feel special. And it gives you something small to look forward to every single morning.
The tradition started with simple paper calendars in the 1800s. German families would mark off days with chalk or light candles. Eventually someone had the genius idea to put chocolate behind little cardboard doors, and the modern advent calendar was born. Britain embraced this tradition and ran with it.
The Chocolate Calendar Wars
Walk into any British supermarket in November and you'll see an entire aisle dedicated to advent calendars. The chocolate ones dominate. But not all chocolate calendars are created equal.
Cadbury makes the classic chocolate advent calendar that most British kids grew up with. Small pieces of Dairy Milk chocolate behind each door. Simple, reliable, nostalgic. The calendar usually has a winter scene on the front with Santa or snowmen or reindeer. Nothing fancy, but it gets the job done.
The problem with basic Cadbury calendars is the chocolate pieces are tiny. Like, one bite tiny. You open your door and think, "That's it?" But that's kind of the point. It's meant to be a small daily treat, not a full chocolate bar.
Lindt makes fancier chocolate calendars with their premium chocolates. These cost more but the chocolate is much better quality. You get a mix of different Lindt chocolate types. Some days you get a truffle. Other days you get a praline. The variety makes it more exciting than getting the same chocolate every day.
Hotel Chocolat takes it even further with luxury calendars that cost serious money. But you get proper chocolates. The kind you'd buy in a fancy chocolate shop. These calendars are for adults who want to treat themselves. Opening each door feels like an event.
Then there are the cheap supermarket brand calendars that cost three dollars. The chocolate tastes like brown wax. But kids don't care. Chocolate is chocolate when you're six years old. And honestly, the excitement of opening a door matters more than the quality of what's inside.
The Rise of Non-Chocolate Calendars
The last few years have seen an explosion of alternative advent calendars in Britain. Companies realized that adults want advent calendars too, but adults have different interests than kids.
Tea Advent Calendars are perfect for tea lovers. You get 24 or 25 different tea varieties to try. Maybe it's Yorkshire Tea one day, then Earl Grey the next, then some exotic herbal blend. It's a fun way to explore different teas throughout December. And unlike chocolate, tea doesn't feel like cheating on your diet.
These calendars usually come in nice packaging that you can reuse after. The little compartments are perfect for storing other small items once December is over. I've used old tea calendar boxes to organize craft supplies and office stuff.
Cheese Advent Calendars are exactly what they sound like. 24 days of different cheeses. British people love cheese almost as much as they love tea, so this makes sense. The cheeses are usually small portions of different varieties. Cheddar one day, brie the next, maybe some blue cheese or gouda.
The only downside is cheese doesn't keep as well as chocolate. You need to eat your daily cheese within a reasonable time or it goes bad. But most people who buy cheese calendars are excited enough about cheese to not let that be a problem.
Alcohol Advent Calendars have become huge. Beer calendars with 24 different craft beers. Gin calendars with mini bottles of different gins. Wine calendars with small bottles or pouches of different wines. Even whisky calendars for the serious drinkers.
These calendars are expensive. A good beer or gin calendar can cost fifty dollars or more. But people buy them anyway because trying 24 different varieties of something is fun. It's like a tasting journey throughout December.
Beauty Product Calendars from companies like The Body Shop or various makeup brands contain small beauty items. Lotions, lip balms, small perfumes, nail polish. These are massively popular with women and teenage girls. Some of the fancy ones cost over a hundred dollars but contain full size products.
The Rules and Etiquette of Advent Calendars
British people have unwritten rules about advent calendars that everyone somehow knows.
You can only open one door per day. This seems obvious but it needs to be said. Opening multiple doors at once is cheating. You're supposed to savor the anticipation. Make it last. Kids especially struggle with this rule and need constant reminding.
You must open the correct door for the correct date. Each door is numbered. On December 1st, you open door number one. On December 2nd, you open door number two. You can't just open doors randomly. That defeats the whole purpose.
If you forget a day, you can catch up. Say you forget to open your calendar on December 5th. The next day you can open both the 5th and 6th doors. This is acceptable. But you can't open future doors early. Only past doors that you missed.
Don't shake the calendar to figure out what's inside. Some people do this anyway, but it's frowned upon. The surprise is part of the fun. If you know exactly what you're getting before you open the door, it's less exciting.
Each family member gets their own calendar. You don't share an advent calendar. That's weird. Everyone has their own. Parents buy calendars for their kids, but they also buy calendars for themselves. In a family of four, there are four advent calendars on display throughout December.
Why Adults Love Them Too
The rise of adult advent calendars shows something interesting about modern life. Adults need small moments of joy just as much as kids do. Maybe more, because adult life is stressful and boring.
Opening an advent calendar door takes ten seconds. But those ten seconds are purely about enjoyment. You're not checking email or worrying about bills or thinking about your to do list. You're just experiencing a tiny moment of happiness.
December is a stressful month for adults. Shopping, cooking, cleaning, hosting, traveling. So much pressure to make everything perfect for Christmas. Having your own advent calendar gives you something that's just for you. Something small and selfish that nobody can judge you for.
There's also something satisfying about the routine. Every morning, you open a door. It's predictable and comforting. In a month full of chaos, that small daily ritual provides structure.
And honestly? Getting a small gift every day feels good. Even if you bought the calendar for yourself. Even if you know exactly what's inside. The act of opening a door and finding something is inherently pleasurable.
Making Your Own Advent Calendar
Some crafty British families make their own advent calendars. This is a whole project involving small boxes or bags, ribbon, numbers, and 24 small gifts or treats.
The advantage of a DIY calendar is customization. You can include whatever you want. Candy, small toys, notes, tea bags, chocolates, little bottles of alcohol, whatever makes sense for the person receiving it. If you're making one for your partner or best friend, you can personalize it with inside jokes or meaningful items.
Reusable advent calendars are popular for this. You buy or make a calendar structure with little pockets or drawers. Then each year you fill it with new items. It's more sustainable than buying a new disposable calendar every year. And the calendar itself becomes a family heirloom that you bring out every December.
The disadvantage is that making an advent calendar takes time and effort. You need to find or buy 24 small items. Wrap or package them. Number everything correctly. Set it up attractively. For busy people, buying a ready made calendar is just easier.
The Weird and Wonderful Calendar Options
British companies have gotten creative with advent calendars. Some of them are brilliant. Others are just weird.
There are puzzle advent calendars where you get one puzzle piece each day and slowly build a complete puzzle by Christmas. There are Lego advent calendars where you build a new small Lego model each day. There are book advent calendars with 24 different children's books.
Someone makes a pork scratching advent calendar which is exactly what it sounds like. 24 days of pork rinds. I don't know who this is for, but apparently there's a market for it.
There are hot sauce advent calendars for people who like spicy food. Coffee advent calendars for coffee lovers. Jam and preserve calendars for the kind of person who gets excited about artisanal condiments.
The weirdest one I've seen was a beef jerky advent calendar. Twenty four different flavors of beef jerky. Who needs this? Apparently enough people that someone thought manufacturing it was worthwhile.
When Calendars Cause Drama
Believe it or not, advent calendars can cause family arguments. Mostly between parents and kids, but sometimes between couples too.
Kids opening doors early is the biggest issue. Parents hide the calendar. Kids find it and sneak chocolate. Parents get mad. Kids cry. It's a whole thing. Some families lock the advent calendar in a cupboard and only bring it out in the morning.
There's also competition between kids. One kid gets a fancier calendar than their sibling. Tears and accusations of favoritism follow. Smart parents buy identical calendars for all children to avoid this problem.
Couples sometimes argue about who gets which calendar. If you bought a nice gin calendar and a basic chocolate calendar, who gets which? Do you share the good one? Do you alternate days? These are legitimate relationship challenges.
And every year, there are people who forget to buy advent calendars until December 1st. Then they go to the store and everything good is sold out. They end up with a calendar featuring some random brand of chocolate they've never heard of. Their kids are disappointed. They feel like bad parents. The guilt is real.
The Future of Advent Calendars
Advent calendars aren't going anywhere. If anything, they're getting bigger and more elaborate. Companies keep coming up with new ideas because the market keeps buying them.
I predict we'll see more experience based calendars. Like a calendar that gives you daily challenges or activities instead of physical items. Or calendars that connect to apps and unlock digital content each day.
Subscription based calendars are also growing. You sign up for a service and they send you a new luxury advent calendar every year. You don't have to remember to buy one because it just shows up at your door in November.
There's also a trend toward more sustainable calendars. Less plastic packaging, more recyclable materials, reusable structures. As people become more environmentally conscious, they want calendars that don't create tons of trash.
But the basic concept will stay the same. Twenty four or twenty five days of small surprises leading up to Christmas. Because that simple idea brings joy to millions of people every December.
Should You Get An Advent Calendar
If you've never had an advent calendar, or you think they're just for kids, I encourage you to try one. Get yourself a calendar with something you actually enjoy. Tea if you like tea. Beer if you like beer. Chocolate if you like chocolate.
Use it throughout December. Every morning, open a door. Take a moment to enjoy whatever is inside. Let yourself feel that small burst of happiness. See if it doesn't make December a bit more bearable.
You're not too old for advent calendars. Nobody is. The British have figured this out. It's time for everyone else to catch up.
December is stressful enough. You deserve 24 tiny moments of joy to get you through it. That's what advent calendars are for. Not just for counting down to Christmas, but for making the journey there a little bit sweeter.
Ready to start your own advent calendar tradition? Visit Ocanao British Shop to browse our collection of British teas, chocolates, and treats perfect for creating your own personalized advent calendar experience. Make this December special with authentic British favorites that bring a smile to your face every day.