The holiday season is more than just a rush for Black Friday and seasonal sales; it's the year's grand finale for the beauty industry's most coveted creations: advent calendars. For many of the biggest beauty brands and retailers, the true excitement of the holidays comes from unveiling these elaborate, limited-edition calendars, which they've been meticulously planning for months—sometimes even years.
Advent calendars are some of the most powerful marketing assets that a brand produces annually. Companies invest in custom packaging featuring intricate designs and elements of surprise and delight, all with the goal of wow-ing customers and engaging with them on a deeper level. Filled with various products, often including full-sized favorites, these calendars are the ultimate gift for the beauty-obsessed—or a luxurious treat for customers to indulge in themselves.
Advent calendars grow more extravagant each year as brands continually raise the bar, vying to outdo the competition. The biggest players in the industry push the limits of creativity and luxury, testing just how much consumers are willing to invest in these limited-edition collections. Demand often outpaces supply, with many selling out almost as soon as they hit the shelves. The prestige and luxury beauty segment, in particular, has turned these calendars into something of a status symbol that consumers excitedly flaunt via social media unboxings.
As the gifting season approaches, beauty advent calendars are flying off the shelves. Below, here are some of the most extravagant we’ve seen this 2024 holiday season.
Sisley Paris Advent Calendar
The most expensive advent calendar of the year comes from Sisley Paris. It retails for $825 and contains 25 items with a total value of $1,415. The brand collaborated with British artist Fee Greening for the package illustrations, which feature her signature imaginative and intricate pen and ink designs, inspired by the city of Paris.
“We gave Fee the city of Paris as a starting point, because Sisley products were created there, and the city has been a major source of inspiration for the brand,” says Christine d’Ornano, Global Vice President of Sisley. “Fee came up with an aerial view encompassing many of its iconic monuments. You really feel like you’re in Paris during the festive season.”
The advent calendar includes three full-sized products: one Eye Contour Mask (30ml, $175 value), one Ombre Eclat Liquide N°2 in Copper (6.5 mL, $65 value), and one Phyto Rouge Shine 11 Sheer Blossom (3g, $65 value). Featuring haircare, make-up, fragrance, face and body products, and more, the advent calendar’s 25 compartments contain a generous exclusive selection of iconic Sisley and Hair Rituel by Sisley products.
La Mer Limited Edition Wonder Express Advent Calendar
La Mer’s 2024 advent calendar is filled with 12 days of the brand’s best-loved products, many of them full-sized. Retailing at $600 with a value of $821, the calendar contains everything one needs for a complete La Mer skincare routine, from The Essence Foaming Cleanser to The Regenerating Serum to The Crème de la Mer Cream. The calendar also includes delightful surprises like The Lip Balm and The Hand Treatment, which bring a much-needed dose of luxurious moisture to those often-neglected areas.
Lancôme Advent Calendar
Lancôme’s 2024 advent calendar features 24 of the brand’s best-selling products across makeup, skincare, and fragrance. The packaging was designed in an exclusive collaboration with French illustrator-artist and director Safia Ouares and features an exclusive gold Celestial Rose pattern design inspired by Paris. Priced at $190, the glittering box contains 18 travel-sized products and six full-sized products, including a new limited-edition eyeshadow palette created by Global Creative Director of Lancôme Makeup, Lisa Eldridge; two exclusive Intimatte and two existing Drama Matte shades of L’Absolu Rouge in exclusive embossed packaging; and a new, exclusive shade of the celestial L’Absolu Gloss Sheer in a high-shine finish.
Guerlain 2024 Holiday Advent Calendar
Guerlain’s ornate Advent Calendar was designed in collaboration with French jewelry designer Shourouk Rhaiem, who was given carte blanche to embellish the calendar’s outer packaging with her signature sparkling, multicolored crystals. A shimmering ribbon guided by Guerlain bees winds its coils all around a shower of stars, illuminated pine trees, and golden packages. The $720 box contains an assortment of L’Art & La Matière miniature bottles and candles, ceramics for perfuming, along with a host of miniature Abeille Royale and Orchidée Impériale skincare products. Compartment 25 is entirely covered in rhinestones and opens to reveal a Rouge G lipstick case adorned with many crystals.
MAC Cosmetics 24K Holiday Advent Calendar
MAC Cosmetics’ 24K Holiday Advent Calendar is dripping in gilded glamour, featuring iconic colors, shimmering textures, and never-before-seen products. The gold outer packaging opens to reveal 24 full- and mini-sized products, including three shades of Lustreglass Sheer-Shine Lipstick, two mini lip pencils in Spice and Whirl, deluxe samples of Hyper Real Skincanvas Balm and Fix+, and much more. Priced at $224, this festive collection offers a value of over $480.
Benefit’s Gorgeous Grocer Advent Calendar
While grocery prices may be climbing, Benefit’s 2024 Advent Calendar is a true steal. Retailing for $164 with a total value of $319, Benefit’s Gorgeous Grocer Advent Calendar Contains an assortment of the brand’s best-selling products including The POREfessional Primer, BADgal BANG! Mascara, 24-HR Brow Setter, Hoola Bronzer, Benetint, Roller Lash Mascara, Fan Fest Mascara, Precisely My Brow Pencil and more.
Dr. Barbara Sturm 2024 Advent Skincare Calendar
Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Advent Calendar features a selection of Dr. Sturm’s skincare essentials in full, deluxe, and miniature sizes, including the brand’s Enzyme Cleanser, Balancing Toner, a sampling of serums, and more. The products are housed within a beautiful red gift box that opens to reveal three compartments, each containing individually numbered skincare surprises for the 24 days leading up to Christmas. Worth $1,863, Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Advent Calendar retails for $560.
Baobab Collection 2024 Advent Calendar
Known for its selection of luxury scented candles and home fragrances, Baobab Collection’s 2024 Advent Calendar is priced at the high end of the market at $850. A Neiman Marcus exclusive, the calendar includes 12 mini candles, six soaps, and six hand creams in assorted scents. The box is so enormous that it resembles a large book, with a cover “reminiscent of the illustrations present in Jules Verne novels,” according to the brand. It’s decorated with hot air balloons on both the outside and the inside and features small glasses decorated with precious silk-screen prints inspired by places like Mykonos, Manhattan, Paris, Mexico, and Miami, among others.
Acqua Di Parma Holiday Advent Calendar
Created in collaboration with celebrated architect and designer India Mahdavi, Acqua di Parma’s Holiday Advent Calendar comes in at $650 and features 25 luxurious items. The glittering gold box showcases a curated selection from the brand’s beloved collections, including Colonia, Blu Mediterraneo, and the opulent Signatures of the Sun. Inside is an array of eau de parfums, eau de colognes, and eau de toilettes, as well as bodycare products, candles, and even a decorative ornament for the Christmas tree.
Jo Malone London 25 Day Advent Calendar
Few brands capture the spirit of the holidays quite like Jo Malone London. Every year the brand puts out a coveted advent calendar filled with fragrances and candles inspired by the cozy warmth of the holiday season. This year’s advent calendar, priced at $495, offers 25 scented surprises tucked behind its decorative doors. The luxurious collection includes travel-sized candles, bath and body favorites, and pocket-sized colognes, making it the ultimate countdown to Christmas. Highlights include a 30 mL Orange Bitters Cologne and a travel candle, along with a range of beloved scents like Blackberry and Bay, English Pear and Freesia, and Wood Sage and Sea Salt.
Skin Pharm’s 12 Days of Skin Pharm Advent Calendar
Skin Pharm’s beauty advent calendar offers a curated selection of 12 products, featuring full-sized bestsellers, essential minis, beauty tools, and a secret gift card redeemable at any of the brand’s aesthetic skincare clinics or online. Priced at $150, this festive set includes three full-sized products: Crystal Clear, High Beam, and Eye Sculpt, as well as a pair of reusable eye patches and a mini-sized of the Gentle Rinse and Power Wash. Rounding out the collection are a tortoiseshell hair clip, a 4-oz Skin Pharm candle, and advent calendar exclusives like dermaplaning razors, a gua sha comb, and a dry brush.
Beekman 1802 There's No Place Like Home Advent Calendar
Beekman 1802’s advent calendar looks straight out of a fairytale. The $179 box opens up like a book to display 24 individual goat milk skincare and body products. Worth over $400, this oversized book of beauty products contains 16 full-sized products, including new launches for the face and body, and even includes a keepsake holiday storybook starring the brand’s mascot, Goatie.
Charlotte Tilbury’s Treasure Chest of Love
Charlotte Tilbury has developed a reputation for creating some of the most extravagant advent calendars, and this year is no different. This 12-drawer beauty advent calendar comes in an oversized heart box with jeweled drawer handles, doubling as a jewelry box or a magic keepsake once the holiday season ends. Three of the drawers contain full-sized products, including the viral Beauty Light Wand in Pinkgasm. The other drawers feature some of the brand’s best-selling products, including a travel-sized AIRbrush Flawless Setting Spray, travel-sized Pillow Talk lipstick and matching lip liner, and a travel-sized Glow Toner and Magic Cream. The entire collection is worth $300 when sold separately but retails for $220 in this limited-edition packaging.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s Countdown Calendar
Inspired by the joyful anticipation of holiday celebrations, Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s co-founder and perfumer, Francis Kurkdjian, created the brand’s luxurious Countdown Calendar. Priced at $995, this advent calendar offers a daily surprise from Christmas through New Year’s Eve, extending the festive spirit well beyond December 25th. Highlights include the coveted Baccarat Rouge 540 extrait de parfum paired with a matching scented body oil, a trio of 724 precious elixirs, and scented candles like Es Cap, Au 17, and Rue des Groseilliers. The calendar also includes a selection of indulgent bath and home products, perfect for extending the joy of the holiday season.
Eve Lom Holiday Advent Calendar
Enter the golden gates of Eve Lom’s holiday advent calendar and you’ll find 12 of the brand’s most popular winter skin saviors, including the brand’s cult-favorite cleanser and Rescue Mask. A $585 Value, the set retails for $290 and contains an array of gold-embossed drawers, each hiding a cleanser, serum, oil, cream, or mask.
Elemis The Ultimate Skincare Advent Calendar
This limited-edition collection includes 25 of the brand’s most-loved face and body products, valued at $777 but available for just $300. It features a full-sized Pro-Collagen Marine Cream (retail value $140) and three versions of the viral Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm, along with other skincare treasures tucked into its various compartments. Housed in a fully recyclable, colorful keepsake box, this collection offers enough luxurious products to last well into the next holiday season.
Lancer Holiday Glow 12-Piece Luxury Advent Calendar
Inspired by Beverly Hills during the holiday season, the outer packaging of Lancer Skincare’s advent calendar showcases a charming depiction of Dr. Lancer’s original office, complete with iconic palm trees. Priced at $125 with a total value of $351, this calendar features mostly mini-sized products along with one full-size of the brand’s bestseller, The Method Polish. It includes all the essentials needed for The Lancer Method, making it the perfect way to experience the brand’s iconic skincare regimen.
Augustinus Bader
Augustinus Bader’s first-ever advent calendar is a luxurious celebration of the brand's most coveted skincare products, all powered by Professor Bader's TFC8 technology. This limited-edition calendar features a curated selection of 12 bestsellers, including a full-sized version of The Rich Cream, The Cream Cleansing Gel, and The Essence. Retailing for $585, the package contains everything you need to build your own personalized Augustinus Bader skincare regimen.
