Long distance Christmas gift ideas that arrive on time

Christmas gifts to order near them

The parcel that doesn't cross a border can't be stuck at one. Before you buy anything at home, look at what you can order for delivery in their city. It arrives in a day or two, there's nothing to declare, and you can still choose every detail from your phone.

• Breakfast from their nearest bakery. Pastries or a loaf delivered on the morning of the 24th, so Christmas Eve starts with something from you.
• A small tree or a wreath for their door. Many florists and plant shops deliver locally in December. Ask for it early, as they sell out.
• A table at the place they keep talking about. Book it for the week after Christmas and send the confirmation inside a card.
• Tickets for something in their town. A concert, a show, an evening at the ice rink. Book two if you'll be there by then.
• A box of their groceries from home. If they've moved abroad, many cities have a shop that sells food from their country and delivers.

What to send, and by when

International parcels slow down sharply in December, and the postal services' last dates for sending abroad come well before the ones for sending at home, often in the first half of December. The simple rule: look up your carrier's international Christmas dates in mid-November, then send by the end of November anyway. Tracked is worth paying for, and so is a few days of slack for customs. If you're in the same country, the last dates come later, usually in the second half of December, but sending in the first week of December still leaves room for the rush.

Pick things that travel well. A box that survives a week in transit and a customs check is light, flat or soft, and has nothing that leaks:

• A handwritten card, sent first. It's the cheapest thing to send and the one they'll keep. Send it in mid-November, before the box, so it gets there even if the rest is late. If it grows into a letter, here's what to write in a Christmas letter to your boyfriend.
• One decoration for each of you. Two of the same ornament, one for their tree and one for yours. Wood or fabric, not glass.
• Something soft and warm. A scarf, a blanket, thick socks. Nothing in a size you have to guess.
• Printed photos from the year. Light, flat and hard to break. On the back of each, write where you were and one line.
• A box with one label: "Open on the call." Small things wrapped separately, a sealed, shop-bought snack you both like (if their country allows it), and a note on top, to unwrap together on the day.

Work out their Christmas morning

The 25th doesn't start at the same moment for both of you, and with a big gap your Christmas morning can be their Christmas evening. Work it out before you plan anything. A few common pairs in late December:

Pick one moment that works at both ends: their breakfast and your lunch, or your morning and their evening. That's when the box gets opened and the call starts. If you're far apart, an early alarm for one of you once a year is a small price for opening presents at the same time. For the call itself, there are more ideas in our virtual date ideas for long distance couples.

Gifts that are about the next visit

For a lot of couples apart at Christmas, the gift that matters most is the date you'll see each other next. If you can, make that the present:

• The ticket itself. Booked, printed or as a screenshot, folded into the card. Don't hide it inside something else that might get lost.
• A visit plan. One page with the dates, what you'll do on the first evening and the place you'll eat on the last.
• Something for the trip. A luggage tag with your address on one side and theirs on the other, or a travel adapter for your country, so they can charge their phone the night they land.
• A calendar of the weeks until then. Printed or drawn, with a line for each Sunday call and the arrival date circled.

What to skip

• Anything fragile. Glass ornaments, ceramics and framed prints with glass rarely survive a week of December transit.
• Electronics from your country. Plugs and voltages differ, and an adapter is a poor surprise.
• Big, heavy boxes. Postage climbs with weight and size. Send the light half of the idea and order the heavy half from a shop near them.
• Leaving it to the last week. By then the only thing that reliably arrives on the day is something that doesn't need a van.

A digital gift timed to their morning

Something that arrives without a parcel can still be the thing they open first. A digital gift is a link with your photos, a song and your words, and with a premium template you can use "Schedule the reveal" to set it to open at a time you choose in their time zone, such as 8:00 on the 25th. These three suit a Christmas apart. For more, see the Christmas gifts and the long-distance relationship gifts, or the ones for your boyfriend and for your girlfriend.