Target, World Market, Sephora: Here are the hottest advent calendars this holiday season

Samantha Neely, Fort Myers News-Press
·5 min read

Halloween is officially over, which means the holiday season is here and the Advent calendars are out.

Advent calendars are a beloved Christmas ritual in many households. Traditionally filled with chocolate treats, retailers have recently stepped up their Advent calendar game to include everything from tubes of makeup to tiny bottles of wine.

What is an advent calendar?

Modern Advent calendars are a way of marking off the days leading up to Christmas or Santa's arrival. They usually start on Dec. 1 and continue up to Dec. 25, thought there are alternatives such as the 12 Days of Christmas countdown calendars.

The most common type of calendars you'll find in stores typically has paper calendar doors and a little piece of chocolate hiding behind each door.

Looking for cheap Christmas decorations? Here's the best time to buy holiday decor.

What is the history behind the Advent Calendar?

The calendars date back thousands of years and have roots in Germany. According to NPR, the concept of advent calendars goes back to the 19th century, with German families marking their doors or walls with a tally mark in chalk to count the days until Christmas.

A German printer named Gerhard Lang is credited with the idea of the Advent Calendar itself, designing cardboard calendars around the turn of the century with the idea of cutting out little doors that could be opened each day. Each door would have either a Bible verse or a treat.

The popularity of the Advent calendar didn't really take off in the United States until 1954, when a photo of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's grandchildren holding one was published in newspapers.

Here are some Advent calendars to consider grabbing before they sell out:

Florida-inspired Advent Calendars

Looking for a calendar for the Floridian in your life? Whether they're a theme park junkie or prefer to spend their days out on the beach, here's some Sunshine State Advent calendars that they will love:

Top Advent Calendars from Amazon

If there's ever a place to hunt down a specific Advent calendar, it's Amazon. From holiday Funko Pops to Legos, it has every calendar you could desire. As of Nov. 2, here are the top Advent calendars on the e-commerce site:

Makeup Advents from Sephora, Ulta

Got make-up lover on your list? Ulta and Sephora are offering several Advent calendars that features some of the hottest products of 2023 and their own house products, such as:

Top Advent calendars from Target

If you're already heading to Target to take a peek at their holiday decorations and $5 section, might as plan out what calendar to grab. The retailers has multiple Advent calendars for all age groups, including:

For more Advent calendars, visit Target's website.

Chocolate Advent calendars from Trader Joes

The store's 2023 Advent calendars have officially arrived in store and they’re retailing for just $1.29 apiece. They have 10 different designs for consumers to choose from, all with 24 pieces of Trader Joe’s milk chocolate candy.

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Top Advent calendars from Walmart

Similarly to Amazon and Target, Walmart has an Advent calendar for every person on your Christmas list. Here's some of the top selling calendars to snatch whether you're in stores or shopping online:

For more Advent calendars, visit Walmart's website.

New Advent calendars from World Market

The retailer is known for its more unique Advent calendars, shaking things up from the usual chocolate calendars. Here are some options to pick out this year for your loved ones or yourself:

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Advent calendars 2023: What are they, where to buy? For Florida, too