Best Christmas advent calendars 2022: Boots, Body Shop, Peppa Pig, LEGO, Hotel Chocolat, M&S, Amazon and Lindt

Many people may have already started their Christmas countdown, but we all know that the festive season is well and truly upon us when 1 December dawns and it’s time to open the first door of an advent calendar.

Advent calendars are a fun way to build Yuletide excitement through every day of December, as the big day of 25 December gets closer and closer. The tradition of advent calendars can be traced as far back as the 19th century - although back then they were much more simplistic than the ones we see today and each door was opened to reveal a festive-themed image.

In more modern times, advent calendars are themed around various things, and the doors are opened to reveal mini products. From chocolate to gin, and toys to beauty, there’s an advent calendar to suit people of all ages and all interests now.

The launch of the most popular advent calendars are eagerly anticipated months in advance, and for some the delivery of an advent calendar - and then finally being able to open all of those doors - is like having 24 Christmas Eve days in a row before Christmas Day finally dawns.

So, if you’re on the lookout for an advent calendar for yourself, your children, or other loved ones you’ll be pleased to know there is plenty of choice on the market so you’re guaranteed to find something perfect. Below you’ll find our round-up of some of the best advent calendars you can buy for everyone right now.

What are the best advent calendars for adults and children 2022?

These are some of the top advent calendars which will be loved by adults or adults (and both in some cases).

For beauty lovers

Boots offer a wide range of beauty advent calendars to choose from, but our three favourites are:

• Ted Baker 2022 Advent Calendar - Filled to the brim with exquisite indulgent bathing and beauty treats, as well as some limited edition festive surprises, including violet and bergamot body soufflé, raspberry and orange blossom moisturising sheet mask and glittering rose gold eyeshadow, to indulge in from Ted to toe. Price: £40.50.

• Soap & Glory 24 Days To Treat Yule-Self Advent Calendar - Open up the calendar and discover a scent-sational Soap & Glory surprise each day with something to match your every mood. This amazing advent calendar is bursting with pleasing skincare, body-loving treats, including righteous butter body butter, call of fruity hand cream and face soap and clarity face wash. Price: £40.50.
• Macmillan 24 Days of Beauty Advent Calendar - Not only is this calendar full of pampering and beautifying treats, it does good too as £2 from every one of these beauty calendars is going to Macmillan Cancer Support. The calendar includes mini products such as Liz Earle instant boost skin tonic, No7 gel finish nail colour in rose gold and Boots extracts mango hand cream. Price £43.

The Body Shop also have three beauty advent calendars to choose from, but our favourite is:

Box of Wishes & Wonders Ultimate Advent Calendar - There are 25 seriously good head-to-toe treats for keeping you pampered all season in this advent calendar. There’s even a few full-sized favourites and bestsellers to make this calendar extra-special. Products include mini himalayan charcoal and british rose face masks and new, full-sized moringa shampoo and conditioner, and bestselling sleep pillow mist. There’s also a beautiful pop up picture design included in the calendar so it could even double as a festive decoration. Price: £145.

For even more amazing beauty advent calendars, be sure to check out our detailed guide to the best beauty advent calendars 2022.

For chocolate lovers

Hotel Chocolat is a market leader when it comes to top chocolate providers, and as Christmas is one of the times of year when we consume the most of the sweet stuff it’s no surprise that the company offer 10 delicious advent calendars. Here are three of our favourites:

• The Advent Calendar For Two - Christmas is a time for joy, sharing and love, so Hotel Chocolat have created an advent calendar especially for two to share, be it lovers, friends or family members. Along with an uplifting message for each day, this calendar features a variety of flavour-filled truffles including salted caramel cream, gingerbread praline, madagascan vanilla and raspberry rush. Price: £27.50.

• The Everything Advent Calendar - Whether you like dark, milk, or white chocolate, there’s a treat to cover every type of chocolate in this decadent calander. Chocolates included are hazelnut praline, caramel cheesecake, chocolate orange pot, champagne truffle and mousse au chocolat. Price £27.50.
• Unbelievably Vegan Up To Snow Good Advent - Chocolate is for all to enjoy, and so Hotel Chocolat have created this advent calendar especially for vegans. ehind each of the 24 doors, you’ll find an adorable Nutmilk character — including an extra-big chocolate for Christmas Eve. Price £8.50.

Another favourite brand for chocolate lovers in Lindt, and they have also created 10 moreish advent calendars to give people a little treat every day. Some include Lindt’s famous Christmas teddy bear. Here are three of the best:

• Lindt Gold Teddy Sleigh Advent Calendar - Hidden in this adorable 3D christmas sleigh advent calendar is an irresistible selection of Swiss chocolates, from the Lindor chocolate truffles to the brand’s signature chocolate gold teddy. Price £15.

• Lindt Lindor Advent Calendar Bundle (4 pack) - This is the best value for high quality chocolate advent calendars if you would like to buy for four people (or perhaps yourself and three others). Individually, these advent calendars - which are all full of Lindor’s heavenly truffles in a varity of flavours, cost £11 each, so you’re saving £14 with this pack. Price £30.
• Lindt Lindor Milk Chocolate Advent Calendar - Filled with Lindor’s iconic delicious milk chocolate truffles, this advent calendar is sure to be an all-round crowd pleaser. Price £11.

For children

LEGO has been the top of kids’ christmas lists for generations, and so the company have produced five different advent calendars for children to play with and help keep them entertained in the run up to the big day. The calendars are available with five different themes, but each one includes plenty of pieces and characters for your little ones to create their own scenes to play with. An easy-to-follow construction guide is printed inside each calendar door, ensuring a fun and easy building experience. Here are three of our favourites:

• LEGO City Advent Calendar - This festive-themed advent calendar features 287 pieces, including a Santa character, a Christmas tree and more. Price £21.99.
• LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar - There are £329 Star Wars themed pieces in this set, and it’s an ideal early Christmas gift for the Star Wars fanatic in your life. The set includes five LEGO Star Wars minifigures, three LEGO droid figures and 16 mini builds. Price £29.99.

• LEGO Harry Potter Advent Calendar - Little ones will know all of 334 pieces in this advent calendar from all eight Harry Potter films. The first three toys make a scene from the first film, the next three days make a scene from the second film – and so on. There are seven minifigures including Harry Potter, Sirius Black, Moaning Myrtle and more. Price £29.99.

Another much loved character for children is Peppa Pig, and a wide range of merchandise for the friendly and sweet pig is available all year round. At Christmas-time, you can find different Peppa Pig themed advent calendars on Amazon. Here are two of the best:

• Peppa Pig: 2022 Advent Calendar Book Collection - This is a magical and educational advent calendar all in one. Little ones will find a surprise mini storybook behind each door, plus a special Christmas story for Christmas Eve. Stories include: Hide and Seek, Daddy Pig’s Birthday, School Play, Bedtime Stories, New Shoes and Peppa’s Perfect Christmas. If you wish, you can even put the books back inside the windows, so you can reuse the calendar every year. Price £10.

• Peppa Pig Advent Calendar Creative Art and Craft Stationery Set - This advent calendar is ideal because it gives children something to do during those long December days before Santa finally visits. They get a variety of crafting items including colouring pencils, crayons, glitter glues, erasers, sharpener, mini stamps, EVA Stamps, a memopad and more - everything they need to create Christmas themed pictures as they patiently wait.

For creative people

There are plenty of ready-made advent calendars on the market, as we all know, but for people who are a bit more creative and would like a more personal advent calendar there are ways you can make your own.

Marks and Spencer offer two different types of wall hanging advent calendars which feature 24 pockets you can stuff yourself. The great thing about this, of course, is that you can choose the exact products you want to put in it, so you can really tailor it to the person you are giving it for and be sure they are going to like everything they unveil.

Another advantage to this is that you can reuse the advent calendar year after year. You can choose from the velvet wall hanging advent calendar, available in silver or red, for £15 or a personalised wall hanging advent calendar for £19.50 which can have a name added at the top, just to make the recipient feel extra special and extra excited.