General Chat

Last posting dates for Christmas

Surface mail
Monday 30 September Africa, Asia, Australia, Caribbean, Central & South America,
New Zealand
Tuesday 1 October Far and Middle East (except Hong Kong and Singapore)
Tuesday 15 October Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa, USA
Tuesday 5 November Cyprus, Eastern Europe, Greece, Iceland, Malta, Turkey
Tuesday 19 November Western Europe

International Airmail including
Airsure® and International Signed For™
Wednesday 4 December Asia, Far East (including Japan), New Zealand
Thursday 5 December Australia
Friday 6 December Africa, Caribbean, Central & South America, Middle East
Monday 9 December Cyprus, Eastern Europe
Tuesday 10 December Canada, France, Greece, Poland
Friday 13 December USA
Saturday 14 December Western Europe (excluding France, Greece, Poland)

HM Forces Mail - British Forces Post Office
(BFPO)
Friday 29 November Airmail to Operational BFPOs
Friday 13 December Airmail to Static BFPOs

UK Services
Inland Services
Wednesday 18 December 2nd Class and Royal Mail Signed For™
Friday 20 December 1st Class and Royal Mail Signed For™
Monday 23 December Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed™

Tristan Da Cunha and Vanuatu have long gone!!!!


However, do your cards early and post well before the last posting dates.

I would always suggest you get your cards (for UK) posted at least a week before the last date. Too many people leave it to the last few days before and thus the Royal Mail is inundated at the last minute.

As the Post says: Post Early to avoid disappointment

And remember if you are posting any presents. WRAP them securely

I remember one year seeing Christmas presents going through the post in just the Wrapping paper and a little bit of tape to hold the ends down!!!! And one year a lady came into our office at the last minute on Christmas Eve and wanted her letter to get to the W. Indies by express for Christmas Day!!!! (I kid you not).

Thank you for the reminder Ann

Also be aware that your surface postal dates for Canada and the US are ridiculous!


This may also apply to other countries as well .....................


They go by AIRMAIL!

we get start getting Christmas cards at the end of flippin' September, most arrive in mid-October to early-November!


By the time Christmas rolls around .................. I can't find those early cards 'cos I put in a safe place, so they wouldn't get lost :-D


You might as well put surface postage on, and mail them at the end of November.

They'll still get here in time 99% of the time



One thing to remember is that we in Canada do NOT have any surface post .................. so letters, cards and parcels are usually shipped across Canada by plane once they arrive.

And I don't think we have that many ships delivering them to Halifax or Montreal either

I have often wondered about that Sylvia because when I go to the post office to post overseas mail they never ask and always send it air mail. I think in years past mail did go by sea but I am pretty sure it doesn't now.

I usually send by air later anyway.

My sister is in Turkey and I think there is only one date for Turkey. Maybe it goes by camel :-D Frompast experience it takes about 3 weeks to Turkey.

All Foreign Surface mail from the UK goes by sea to the country it is posted to, then it depends on how that country deals with it.

So it is surface from UK to Canada, then once in Canada it is then up to the Canadian post as to how they will deal with it, ie fly to remote parts or train/road to others.

DC .................


IF that is the case, then Royal Mail finds some of the fastest ships in the world!


We have honestly received Christmas cards from the UK that were posted only 3 and 4 days before we received them!

That's how we manage to get such very early arrivals.