This 30-Year-Old TJ’s Holiday Gem Is Finally Back (for Only $1.29!)

I believe that it’s never too early to start preparing for the holiday season, and so does Trader Joe’s. The brand’s 2024 Advent calendars have officially arrived in stores, and better yet, they only cost $1.29 apiece.

“We’ve sold Chocolate Advent Calendars since at least the 1990s,” the official Trader Joe’s product description reads. “Each year, you’ll find a number of new whimsical, wintry designs, designed by our very own, very talented package designers.”

As the product page notes, each of these Trader Joe’s Advent calendars comes with 24 ready-to-be-opened windows, each of which feature a seasonally shaped milk chocolate that’s made with “a generous amount of melt-in-your-mouth cocoa butter.”

There are several different Advent calendar designs, so you can gift them to your loved ones or enjoy them yourself without using repeat calendars!

There’s a “Holiday Baking Crew” calendar that features Santa and a polar bear making their own holiday goodies and another centered on the “T’Jays,” a fictional nutcracker band. Another titled “Holiday Kick Off” shows a polar bear and cardinal decorating an outdoor tree. Meanwhile, the “Merry & Bright” calendar is full of pink and red holiday illustrations, from a cozy sweater to ornaments and stockings, and the “24 Days ’Til Christmas” calendar is bedecked with adorable cartoon sloths. 

Don’t worry, pet parents: Your fur babies don’t have to miss out on Advent calendars, either. Trader Joe’s also offers 24-day cat and dog treat calendars. The cat Advent calendar comes with salmon and dried seaweed recipe cat treats, while the dog Advent calendar comes with salmon and sweet potato dog treats. They’ll cost you a bit more — $7.99, to be exact — but imagine your pet’s excitement!

Beauty lovers, keep your eyes peeled for Trader Joe’s “12 Days of Beauty” collection. Retailing at $19.99, it features 12 windows with one-of-a-kind beauty products that make for perfect stocking stuffers, from Lavender Bath Salts to a Brown Sugar Carob Lip Scrub.
If you don’t have a Trader Joe’s nearby, but you do live near an Aldi, you can find even more delicious and fun Advent calendars (and mini-Advent calendars) at your nearest store. Aldi is selling fun Advent calendars that feature all different kinds of wine, cider, cheese, dog treats and, yes, chocolate.