The best baby advent calendars for your child’s first Christmas

A countdown of the best baby advent calendars.

best-baby-advent-calendars-christmas-2023

by Lily Anderson |
Updated on

With Christmas around the corner, it's your chance to introduce your baby to the best baby advent calendars. The festive holiday is an exciting time for new and expanding families, as it's a chance for everyone to come together and spend time with your new baby.

A newborn means a lot of first milestones for parents, including smiling, rolling over and trying solid foods. Along with first visits from family and friends, their first Christmas is another one of these milestones. So, why not make this magical season one that you'll treasure with their first advent calendar?

Credit: Getty Images

Best baby advent calendars at a glance...

Editor's Choice: Personalised Christmas Advent Calendar House, £51 on My 1st Years

Best picture book baby advent calendar: The Christmas Advent Collection: 24 Kids Picture Books Bundle, £24 on The Works

Best fill-your-own baby advent calendar: Baby's First Christmas Advent Calendar, £19.95 on Not On The High Street

Best activity-based baby advent calendar: The Gruffalo and Friends Advent Calendar Book Collection 2023, £13.99 on Amazon

Best keepsake baby advent calendar: Keepsake Personalised Baby's First Advent Calendar, £20 on Not On The High Street

When choosing the best baby advent calendar or the best children's advent calendar, it's essential that you check whether or not the contents are age-appropriate. Before buying, make sure to check the recommended age for the advent calendar. Alternatively, you can choose a fill-your-own advent calendar, which you can personalise and use for years to come.

Having said that, here are the best baby advent calendars to make their first Christmas really special. Whether you spend the festive season cuddled up close reading with them, or you have your own ideas on how to make their advent calendar something that they can enjoy, we've got them all.

SHOP: The best baby advent calendars to shop for Christmas 2023

Editor's Choice: best baby advent calendar

Personalised Christmas Advent Calendar Housemy 1st years

From My 1st Years, this Personalised Christmas Advent Calendar House would make an ideal calendar which you can reuse for years to come. Ready to be filled with all of their favourite things, My 1st Years have loads of personalised options to choose from for their very first Christmas.

Customer review: "Great gift, an advent calendar that will last for years."

Best picture book baby advent calendar

The Christmas Advent Collection: 24 Kids Picture Books Bundlethe works

At fab value for money (saving £119 overall), The Christmas Advent Collection from The Works features a 24 kids picture book bundle featuring some on-theme festive stories. There's a potential bedtime story for every night in December on the run-up to Christmas Day.

Customer review: "The quality of the books is excellent and the pictures are fantastic. I love reading a story a day to my three-month-old girl and she loves looking at beautiful and colourful pictures. I'm very satisfied and happy with the purchase."

Best fill-your-own baby advent calendar

Baby's First Christmas Advent Calendarnot on the high street

From Not On The High Street, this Baby's First Christmas Advent Calendar is made from soft fabric and patchwork pockets for little hands to explore. This fill-your-own calendar can be enjoyed year after year, and you can even add miniature knitted stocking baubles to your order to hang on your tree.

Customer review: "Ordered this before for my grandson and now for my granddaughter really great service and product. Thank you."

Best activity-based baby advent calendar

The Gruffalo and Friends Advent Calendar Book Collection 2023amazon
Price: £38.53

Is your child a fan of The Gruffalo and Friends? Take them on a Christmas adventure with this The Gruffalo and Friends Advent Calendar: 24 Book Collection. It even includes activity books with fun songs and rhymes to enjoy together, as well as colouring and recipes - encouraging their learning and development.

Customer review: "I received this quickly and it is brilliant! Much bigger than I was expecting and beautifully presented - it’s one of the best things I have bought and can’t wait to give it to my granddaughter! Would highly recommend it! FANTASTIC!"

Best keepsake baby advent calendar

Keepsake Personalised Baby's First Advent Calendarnot on the high street

Write down all of your family's festive firsts on this incredible Keepsake Personalised Baby's First Advent Calendar. Designed to be one you can revisit in the future, you'll love looking back on this in years to come to reminisce on baby's very first Christmas.

Customer review: "Adorable! I love completing this every day. The print was well packaged and arrived in good time."

Best sizeable keepsake baby advent calendar

Christmas Keepsake Advent Calendar - Baby First Christmasetsy
Price: £5.99 - 22

www.etsy.com

Another lovely keepsake, the Baby's First Christmas Keepsake Advent Calendar from Etsy allows you to keep a record of all of the things that they enjoyed over the holiday season and look back on it together in years to come. You can customise the size from A5 to A2.

Customer review: "So glad I found this - a perfect way to remember baby’s first Christmas! "

Best firsts baby advent calendar

Personalised Baby's First Advent Calendar Tinnot on the high street

Inside this Personalised Baby's First Advent Calendar Tin, you'll find a card for each day until Christmas, where you can write down your family's festive firsts. From watching their first Christmas film to seeing a magical light display, these are memories that you can cherish forever.

Best CoComelon-themed baby advent calendar

CoComelon Advent Calendar (With Songbooks, Stories, Colouring, and Learning)amazon
Price: £25.50

It's true, we can hear the CoComelon theme song in our heads as we speak. As we all know, babies love CoComelon, so this Advent Calendar with books, songs and activity cards is perfect for new babies to encourage their learning while keeping them engaged.

Customer review: "A better, healthier alternative to chocolate. My daughter loved it and you can keep the books forever!"

Best Disney-themed baby advent calendar

Disney: Storybook Collection Advent Calendaramazon
Price: £35.31

Introduce your child to the magic of Disney with this Storybook Collection Advent Calendar that will become a go-to in their book collection for years. Unwrap 24 books in the run-up to Christmas, and enjoy tales with them that we all know and love.

Customer review: "Gorgeous item that is much better than chocolate every day! This is an exciting and lasting calendar that has brought lots of enjoyment. Would recommend it!"

Best Duggee-themed baby advent calendar

Hey Duggee: Advent Calendar Book Collectionamazon
Price: £40.09

This Advent Calendar Book Collection from Hey Duggee is packed full of stories for them to enjoy. Find a mini storybook behind each door, including a special Christmas story for Christmas Eve. Your baby will love reading Hey Duggee with you.

Customer review: "These are perfect for little ones who love to listen to books. My little one is only 3 months so not old enough for chocolate and this has helped us get into a routine of a book every night which we will carry on doing even after the Christmas countdown. Great quality and will be keeping the books to read in the future."

Best Mr.Men-themed baby advent calendar

Mr. Men Little Miss Advent Calendaramazon
Price: £34.37

Countdown to Christmas with a different book each day so that every night before your bubba goes to sleep, you can read them a tale from the Mr. Men Little Miss Advent Calendar adventure storybook collection. An absolute classic.

Customer review: "My 8-year-old daughter is obsessed with everything Mr Men and Little Miss related so an advent calendar is an awesome idea. A new book for every day. Laid out like a big book. All new stories are Christmas-related. 24 in total so a lovely selection for the run-up to Christmas. Excellent stories and quality. Great price. Better than chocolate or toys they never play with. Anything to keep the little ones reading! Would recommend."

Best Peppa Pig-themed advent calendar

Peppa Pig: Advent Calendar Book Collectionamazon
Price: £27.50

It's Peppa Pig bringing the festive cheer, with her Peppa Pig Advent Calendar Book Collection. Make it a tradition each year by reading a storybook to your little ones to get them excited for Christmas. It's the perfect bedtime collection for fans of Peppa.

Customer review: "Brought this for my 1-year-old as an alternative and I’m so happy I did. 24 great little books to open each day, my little one really enjoyed it and the doors were easy enough to open. We’ve now got 24 stories to read again and again."

FAQs

What is an advent calendar?

According to Parenta.com, advent calendars can be traced back to the 19th century. Families would mark every day in December until Christmas Eve with chalk. Instead of chalk, we prepare by opening chocolate advent calendars or options with small gifts today.

How do advent calendars work?

Every advent calendar is different. In mainstream options, you'll find a surprise hidden behind a window. These can range from beauty advent calendars to tea advent calendars and more. However, more traditional options include toys or chocolate.

However, if you're looking for non-chocolate advent calendars, we've got them, too.

When are advent calendars released?

Advent calendars can go on sale as early as August (we know, we couldn't believe it either). But, most of the industry's favourite brands put theirs on sale between September and October. Be sure to sign up for waitlists or mailing lists, and don't forget to keep an eye on those emails.

Lily Anderson is a contributing writer for Closer. When she isn’t trying out the latest kitchen appliances, garden furniture and home essentials, Lily is pushing forward health products for women, educational toys and the latest fashion collaborations.

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