Best last-minute Christmas gifts to buy before 25th December

Oh dear, still not done your Christmas shopping? Good thing the RadioTimes.com is here to lend a hand.

By Olivia Garrett

Published: Wednesday, 20 December 2023 at 11:54 AM

Of course all we want for Christmas is to spend time with family, friends, and the people we love – but the truth is, presents aren’t bad either!

We know that for some of you, the Christmas shopping was done and dusted by the time you opened that first advent window, which means you’re probably now sitting by the fireside and smugly unwrapping a Celebration (Malteser of course). But for others… well that’s what we’re here for.

If you’re one of those people sitting one week out from the big day, staring at a never-ending list of shopping still to do, the first step is don’t panic. There’s still plenty of time to buy your family gifts and, while the ship may have sailed on physical presents – what with the last post dates arriving this week – you’ve got dozens of online options to choose from.

To help, the ever-faithful Christmas elves at RadioTimes.com have knocked together this list of last-minute Christmas gifts. From same-day Deliveroo hampers to online vouchers that still have the personal touch, we’ve got a workshop full of ideas for you.

So, we don’t want to rush you, but it’s probably time to get on with it, Run Run Rudolph!

For a closer look at some of our top gift ideas, here’s the best Christmas experience gifts and the best steam train experiences.

Where to buy last-minute Christmas gifts

Despite only having a few days left, there’s plenty of major retailers that offer life-saving same-day and next-day delivery.

If you’re determined to order a physical present, we’d first suggest going to Amazon, which will be running Prime next-day delivery up until the evening of the 23rd and same-day on the morning of Christmas Eve. Or, you can check out retailers like John Lewis, Marks and Spencer and Not on the Highstreet, which all have last-minute or speedy delivery sections to browse from.

Alternatively, food delivery apps like Deliveroo will be running throughout the Christmas period, so if you’ve forgotten a distant aunt or a work friend you kind of like, you can always send them a bottle of wine or bunch of flowers by using the apps’ grocery section. Then, the gift will be delivered within the hour, although remember that very few shops are open on the 25th itself.

Lastly, and as you’ll see below, we think the best kind of last-minute gift comes in the form of an experience, subscription, or tickets to an event. With these sorts of gifts, there’s no hint of them being bought at the last second as they’re still highly personalised and thoughtful, and will easily show how much you care for the receiver.

To get them on time, you’ll need to head over to experience sites like Virgin Experience Days or Buyagift or ticketing sites like Ticketmaster or Fever. Then simply select your experience and choose the e-voucher option, which means your experience or ticket will instantly be sent over in an email.