Early reminders – Five Points for Perfect Posting this Christmas
- ‘Early does it’ is An Post’s advice this year with Early Planning, Early Shopping and Early Posting all part of the mix for a happy, stress-free Christmas:The number of parcels in and out of Ireland and across the globe is rising steadily every day as shoppers chase high street and online bargains. An Post advises online shoppers and anyone planning to send presents by post this Christmas is to get organised early so as to avoid last minute panic or weather-related delays around the world.
- Make it personal: A personal message in a Christmas card or letter is the very centre of Christmas; there’s pleasure in both sending and receiving them. Colourful Christmas stamp booklets (€25 for 26 stamps) and international stamps are now on sale at all post offices. An Post handles between 3 and 7 million mail items each day during the Christmas lead-up. Mail volumes more than double as the holiday approaches with Christmas shopping, presents and greetings forming the bulk of the extra seasonal mail.
- Give yourself time: Be sure to factor in the time for any online purchases to be delivered and for posting them onwards to family and friends. With so many Irish people now living abroad, we know there’ll be parcels of all shapes and sizes carrying special Christmas wishes this year. While writing cards and addressing envelopes is the perfect time to reflect and think back over the year just passed – make sure to give yourself time to enjoy sending Christmas wishes at home and abroad.
- Don’t miss out: AddressPal.ie is the handy new service from An Post which gives shoppers their own UK or US address so that they can order from websites that don’t deliver to Ireland, or charge steep shipping fees for doing so, and your shopping will be delivered back to your local post office, your home or wherever suits you.
- Pack it properly: Make sure to wrap and seal cards and parcels well; check the address and postage and always include the sender’s details too. It means we can get the package safely back to you if it can’t be delivered. Use bubblewrap or extra paper to cover sharp corners and don’t spare the tape. Good packaging keeps your precious parcel safe all the way to its destination.
Date Alert for Far Far Away: December 7 is the latest guaranteed date for regular parcel services to far-off places such as Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.
See anpost.ie/Christmas for all you need to know about Christmas posting.
