Category Archives: International parcel delivery

Christmas Gift Inspiration: DAY #4

Posted on by
Reply

On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… well, they’re probably not your true love, as today we’re thinking about your office Secret Santa. There is usually a strict spending limit on these, so we’ve split this post into sections for the most common budgets for this game.

£1: £1 might not seem like a lot of money, but the great thing is that you can get really creative. Get your craft head on and scour the house for odds and ends to make something Christmas-themed. Or, if you’re not the most creative person, head to the local pound shop. Here you will find chocolate, mini toiletry sets and novelty gifts.

£5: Here you get a little more leeway. You could get a small box of good quality chocolate, a half price bottle of wine, some nice stationery or even a little gift set for this price. Or how about a couple of miniatures of their favourite spirit?

£10: The higher the spending limit for Secret Santa for people you don’t know well, the trickier it gets to buy something good. With the extra leeway, you need to come up with something great. For this price limit, we say play it safe and go for a bottle of nice wine or a little food selection. Anything too personal is a minefield, and a novelty gift will make them feel cheated out of a good gift at this price.

Remember to use RAND’s parcel quote tool before you send your gifts this Christmas!

Christmas Gift Inspiration: DAY #3

Posted on by
Reply

It’s the middle of our week of Christmas gift information, and today we’re focusing on the kids. Many would say that Christmas is all about the children, which is why it’s so much fun looking for gifts. However, once you’ve secured this year’s big trend gift, what should be next on the list?

Jigsaw puzzle

Most children aren’t interested in clothes when they are young and would rather receive toys and games. Why not take it back to tradition and track down a jigsaw puzzle based on their favourite hobby? There are lots of sites now selling traditional wooden toys, many of which make lovely keepsakes long after your children have grown up.

Another fantastic idea is to get them a soft, cuddly version of their favourite animal. If trips to the zoo or the farm inspire a lot of enthusiasm, you could even adopt them their very own animal or buy them a season ticket to the nearest zoo so they can get their animal fix.

Chocolate is all well and good, but that sugar rush can make children hyperactive. Instead, why not get them their own gardening set complete with seeds so they can see where their food comes from? Start easy with cress and herbs and move onto fruit and vegetables when their skills develop.

Remember to send your Christmas gifts with RAND this year!

Christmas Gift Inspiration: DAY #2

Posted on by
Reply

Welcome to the second day of our Christmas gift inspiration posts, and today we’re focusing on the men in your life. Remember to use RAND’s parcel quote checker before you send your Christmas gifts this year for the best rates.

It is very easy to fall into the trap of buying novelty Christmas gear for men. Christmas cufflinks, ties and socks are generally relegated to the back of the wardrobe, never to see the light of day again, so as funny as it might be on Christmas Day, it’s a waste of money. Think instead about something that will actually be used.

You can’t go wrong with practical clothing for a man, and when in doubt play it safe with a good quality shirt or jumper in a colour you know he likes. The same applies to socks: go for something functional and wearable but good quality.

A bottle of his favourite wine or a selection of ales would most likely go down well, and this could be accompanied with a variety of snacks to keep him munching through the next few days.

Or of course, for a little peace and quiet, there’s always a DVD boxset or a shiny new videogame…

Christmas Gift Inspiration: DAY #1

Posted on by
Reply

Now we’re safely in November, the clocks have gone back and we’re all feeling the chill, it is safe for us to start talking about the C-word: Christmas! You have most probably noticed all the gifts arriving in shops over the past few weeks, and while it may seem overwhelming, we’re here to help, and we’re starting this week with the ladies.

Perfume

As a general rule, we recommend steering clear of anything too practical for the lady in your life. That means no new kettles, vacuum cleaners or blenders unless she has specifically requested it. Instead, why not make an effort and take inspiration from the things she chooses for herself? Check her perfume collection. Could you get her a matching body lotion for her favourite scent? Or the cardigan she loves in a new colour?

Chocolate can make a nice gift, but might look a little unimaginative. Instead, why not put together a little hamper of her favourite sweet treats? She’ll appreciate the effort and thought, and you can tailor it to her tastes. As a general rule, if you don’t know her size, don’t guess and get it offensively wrong – but do remember that bags and accessories are generally one size fits all, and you can never go wrong with a sparkly piece of jewellery!

Use RAND’s parcel comparison tool to send all your Christmas gifts this year.

Christmas in the US

Posted on by
Reply

We are concluding our week of US-themed blog posts with a little glance at Christmas in the US. It might seem too early for lots of you to be thinking about Christmas, but there are some interesting traditions we’d love to tell you about. If you have friends and family in the US, think about sending Christmas gifts to the US now for the best rates.

In Alaska, children carry a star on a pole from door to door to represent the star that guided the three wise men to Jesus over Bethlehem. They sing carols, and they are often invited inside to show gratitude.

In Hawaii, a US island state in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the beginning of the Christmas season is signified by the arrival of the Christmas Tree Ship, which arrives laden with Christmas products to allow the Hawaiian residents to begin their decorating.

In Arizona, they follow a Mexican tradition called Las Posadas, whereby there is a procession and play representing Mary and Joseph looking for a room at an inn. Families re-enact the event by visiting each other’s houses posturing as Mary and Joseph, and many households decorate a crib for the baby Jesus.

‘Mumming’ is a practice most commonly associated with Philadelphia, where a Mummer’s Day parade takes place over six hours. Groups will get together in amazing costumes which take many months to create, and there is music and an air of festivity all day.

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas in the US without the giant Christmas dinner, which is often very similar to the Thanksgiving dinner enjoyed on the fourth Thursday in November. Adults may enjoy mulled wine or eggnog, and there is a strong focus on creamy puddings.

Black Friday

Posted on by
Reply

Black Friday is actually a whole lot less horrible than it might sound. There is nothing sinister about Black Friday at all, though if you don’t like crowds or spending money it might be a pretty scary prospect.

Black Friday takes place the day after Thanksgiving in America, and is generally thought to mark the start of the Christmas shopping season. While the day isn’t a federal holiday, it is often given as a day off to workers and schoolchildren to allow them to make the most of the full Thanksgiving weekend.

It is a day which signifies a huge spike in spending, as many shops slash prices vastly to encourage a spending frenzy, and many promotional offers will run, including free gifts, giant discounts and extra savings for the first 100 customers, meaning people start queuing hours before shops open.

It gives shoppers the chance to buy electronics, clothing, homeware and many other typically premium products at significantly reduced prices, meaning it is the biggest spending day in the US.

The day following Thanksgiving weekend has been known as Cyber Monday for some years, and refers to the spike in online shopping that takes place. Those who didn’t find what they were looking for in the Black Friday sales or who were busy with family over the weekend take to the internet to scour the sales instead.

If you have asked your friends and relatives in the US to look out for bargains for you, make sure they use the RAND quote finder to send their parcels to the UK.

Thanksgiving Day

Posted on by
Reply

It might seem a little early to be thinking about Thanksgiving Day, but the most organised among us will want to take advantage of the benefits of sending a parcel early. The day is traditionally celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the US, and this year falls on 28th November.

Thanksgiving generally marks the start of the American holiday season, and many families decide to put up their Christmas decorations around Thanksgiving. The day is most famous for its family feasts, which often resemble the traditional British Christmas dinner, with a turkey and all the trimmings and abundant displays of desserts, including pumpkin pie.

The day is all about showing thanks for all that you have and the people in your life, along with a religious element, and was started by Abraham Lincoln in 1863.

Many of the major cities hold parades, and these will involve spectacular displays of marching bands, music, dancing and floats. This gives families a chance to reunite in a family-friendly activity and get together with the other members of their community to join in with the festivities.

There are also special sports games to celebrate Thanksgiving, including American football games on Thanksgiving (the Thanksgiving Classic), and televised games from sports such as ice hockey, golf and auto racing around Thanksgiving.

If you have friends or relatives in the US, why not send them a Thanksgiving gift with RAND?

5 Unusual Things the USPS Can and Can’t Send

Posted on by
Reply

The second day of our week dedicated to the US is all about the stranger things people have tried – and sometimes failed – to send to or within the US. If you know any of your own, please let us know in the comments!

  1. A man building a house in Alaska tried to send his materials brick by brick through the postal system, finding this the cheapest way to transport everything. This prompted the USPS to outlaw the sending of construction materials.
  2. Several civilians have attempted to post themselves in the US mail, but to date nobody has been successful.
  3. You may or may not be familiar with the black and white custom FedEx planes. Did you know that these planes have transported many pandas between zoos in China and America?
  4. If you’re going to send any poisonous creatures through the US mail, it can only be live scorpions for research purposes only. Be sure to label the box to let the post handlers know what they’re dealing with.
  5. FedEx and UPS will ship human body parts for medical purposes.

If you’re sending something a little more normal than these items, check our quote finder now to discover how much it will cost to send your parcel to America.

5 Interesting USPS Facts

Posted on by
Reply

We’re starting off a rather chilly Monday morning with some fun facts about the thing we know best – packages. We’re going to be focusing on the US postal system today, looking at all the weird and wonderful things package-related.

  1. Did you know… that the US Postal Service parcel delivery Chevrolet Long Life Vehicles have a right-hand drive as opposed to the usual left-hand drive in the US? This helps the delivery drivers, who don’t need to leave their seats to deliver mail.
  2. Did you know… that in Loma Linda, California, mail is delivered on Sundays, but not on Saturdays? This is because there is a large population of Seventh-Day Adventists who observe the Sabbath day on Saturday rather than Sunday.
  3. Did you know… that the American equivalent of the postcode, the ZIP code, was implemented in 1963 in order to help postmen find the right address? The numerical value of the zip code increases from the East coast (starting in New York) to the West coast (ending in Alaska).
  4. Did you know… that the most remote US Post Office is the Anaktuvuk Pass Post Office in northern Alaska? Everything has to be flown in and out, meaning the residents could be waiting for some time for their packages.
  5. Did you know… that after Walmart, the USPS is the largest employer in the country with more than 650,000 employees?

To send a parcel to the US, use our parcel quote finder today.

Halloween!

Posted on by
Reply

Halloween

We’re rounding off our week of celebrations around the world with a much-loved celebration in many Western countries – Halloween! The holiday is particularly popular in the US, and the day is celebrated by taking part in all sorts of spooky activities, such as dressing up in costumes, decorating the house with scary decorations and trick or treating. The day has Pagan and Christian origins, and it is a way for us to celebrate the dead and other living beings. Traditionally, this may have included fairies, spirits, vampires and other mythical creatures, when the doors of the current realm were opened to welcome everyone and everything back in for a day. Now we consider Halloween more of a fun occasion, with pumpkin carving, Halloween parties for children and horror films all being normal elements of the day. If you want to send a Halloween gift to relatives in the US or elsewhere in the world, RAND offers excellent rates on international parcel delivery, so use our parcel quote comparison finder for the best prices on your Halloween gift sending.