Holiday Mailing Deadline: When to Send Grandma's Parcel

I love getting parcels! Although there's very few things I can't find in the big city, my parents still regularly like to send me a parcel filled with goodies from small town BC. Having friends and family living far away, I'm always reminding myself to get that parcel in the mail.

When you're figuring out what to buy for Aunt Sue or for your cousin Dave, remember to check the deadline for when to send that parcel to friends and family.
The mailing calendar can be found at the nearest postal outlet and Canada Post has it outlined on its website, to insure you send Grandma's parcel so it can arrive before December 25th.

Canada Post has divided our planet by continent and country - Canada, US, Africa, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Central/South America, Middle East and the Caribbean - and in each category outlines the deadline for sending holiday cards and parcels, as well as the different deadlines dependent on parcel service - regular mail, air mail, Xpresspost and Priority Overnight/Worldwide.

Canada Post also provides information on their website for customs information for destination countries as well as retails stamps and shipping supplies.

For nearly all destinations outside the US and Canada, early birds had to send their parcels in October to get the most affordable rates via surface mail. But there's still plenty of options left for those of us who just started thinking about the holiday season.

For the UNited States, December 8th is the deadline for the most affordable parcel service and for Canada, December 11th is the deadline to keep you to your budget for parcels. For those wanting to send gifts to Europe, Asia, Middle East or the Caribbean, November 29th is the next mailing deadline, while those sending gifts to countries in Africa or Central/South America, November 22nd is the next mailing deadline. Except for Canada and the US, there are still affordable options for parcels going to most places on our planet if you make tracks to the post office by the first week of December.

Canada Post also has some tips for gift-givers wanting to send parcels this holiday season:

• if you're unsure about contents or costs, bring the open parcel to any postal outlet for advice
• use a padded envelope to help protect contents
• if you reuse a box, consider wrapping it in kraft paper to cover up any old addresses or labels
• use packing tape not household tape to seal envelope or box
• insure both addresses are easily read
• consider sending a parcel ahead of time, instead of having to travel with items