Will you be sending Christmas cards this year?

It’s set to be a very different Christmas than what we’re used to – will you be sticking with the old tradition of sending cards in the post this year?

Will you be sending Christmas cards to your family and friends this year?

A YouGov survey commissioned by Royal Mail has shown 55% of people think that it’s more important than ever amid the pandemic. The survey says this will result in an increase of 10 more cards sent than usual.

With the Christmas period drawing nearer, the strain on Royal Mail is already evident: a number of parcels and greeting cards are taking longer to arrive.

Are cards still a Christmas necessity?

I have a small family, so I’m going to opt for delivering cards locally where I can this year. For the parts of my family who live overseas, we generally do cards and messages online, and catch up via video calls.

I asked around at Which? if people would be sending cards this year, Sneha told me:

“I’m pretty useless! I don’t tend to send Christmas cards and I don’t think that the pandemic will change that either way. I’m not hugely fussed about Christmas cards myself, but if I do ever get them they are a nice surprise.

If anything I just tend to send texts or WhatsApp messages on the day itself. If I’m honest I’m just not organised enough to send cards and I’m not sure they’re always wise expense. If I am going to do cards this year it’ll just be for some of my neighbours around where I live”

But Katie thinks they’re essential, especially for those who may feel isolated due to the hardships this year has brought on us all:

“My personal opinion is that because it’s been a difficult year we need to ensure the nice things, like Christmas cards in the post, don’t disappear. Now more than ever some loved ones might feel isolated and may not have access to a computer.

So I would encourage people to send cards but to take a second thought on whether they could say: ‘Seasons Greetings’ another way!”

If you are sending cards this year, Royal Mail has recommended people get them in the post early – the last posting date for second class mail is December 18, and December 23 for first class.

So how do you feel about Christmas cards in 2020? Will you be sending them in the post, or are you tending to opt or sending your festive greetings online?

How will you be sending Christmas greetings this year?

In the post (76%, 50 Votes)

Virtual greeting card (9%, 6 Votes)

WhatsApp/text message (6%, 4 Votes)

I won't be sending Christmas greetings this year (6%, 4 Votes)

Other (let us know!) (3%, 2 Votes)

Total Voters: 66

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Kristina Sarkisyan says:

14 December 2020

I love to receive cards from close friends or family members, but I must say when it comes to posting one myself I am usually too late/have no time and prefer to text & call someone. This year I am not doing cards, and don’t expect to get many either due to the current situation.

However, I did manage to organise a proper parcel for my sister who lives abroad (some very typical touristy gifts from the UK: mince pies, fudge, tea etc.. shame I can’t send fish & chips 😉 ).

malcolm r says:

Close friends and family will, as usual, be sent Christmas cards. They might be expensive – single ones can cost a fiver so you need to choose carefully but multiple packs can be relatively inexpensive – and post isn’t cheap – 65p second class – so if you are impecunious then online greetings are the sensible option. But it’s Christmas, and I think it is nice to send a physical card with a handwritten message that can be displayed. Particularly in these difficult times when you may not have seen your friends and family for a long time.

A nice way to show you care is to make your own cards, incorporating family photos maybe. I hope alfa is managing to do that despite the frustrations with a rebellious printer.

alfa says:

Thanks malcolm. 🙂

Ian’s suggestion of a guillotine was very therapeutic and I could actually laugh at the damn thing again (for a while at least).

Through much trial and error, most of the cards are printed, more trial, error, missing postcodes and screwed up envelopes, now most of the envelopes are printed. I no longer print labels as a few years ago, they fell off the next day and most of them had been posted !!!

I never thought I would say this, but THEY WILL BE GOING IN THE POST BOX THIS AFTERNOON. Now that is something to shout about.😀

Jacki Kelly says:

only close family whom I can give cards to. The rest will get an email/ecard. I am trying to do my bit for the planet. Its such a waste of time, money and energy otherwise as well.

John Ward says:

I shall be sending cards as usual. The list gets shorter each year but some new folk have joined our family circle some of the older ones will be getting bigger and better cards than previously. Thankfully the ‘friends’ list has not decreased over the years. Yes, postage is a bit of a wallop, but I have saved a fortune over the year through using e-mails and telephone calls instead of sending letters by post, and by paying bills on-line or by bank transfer, so I think the balance is in my favour.

I also send out about a hundred cards on behalf of a local organisation to members and supporters
and these are more than ever necessary this year because we have not been able to run the sort of events and activities that bring us together. One or two volunteers help with delivering these as part of their dog walking routines.

I don’t have much time for those who can’t be faffed to send greetings cards but it’s their choice and gets duly noted.

While I share Jacki’s concern for the planet, I feel my all-year-round contribution to its continued existence gives me some tolerance to send greetings of happiness to our family and friends in a way that is tangible and visible and not entombed in a digital device.

Anticipating difficulties with buying cards this year I ordered all ours on-line from a leading charity and they have turned out to be very attractive designs, well-made and economical overall. The supply service also was excellent.

With not seeing most friends and relatives for nearly a year, I think sending and receiving cards is more important this year especially for people who might live on their own just to let them know they are not forgotten about. Not travelling anywhere for 9 months more than offsets the carbon footprint.

I have made ours this year but the charity we usually buy them from will still get a donation.

wavechange says:

I send about 40 cards by post each year. There will be more this year because I had forgotten that some of my cards are normally exchanged at meetings.

Since the first lockdown in March I have been making many phone calls. I’ve been exchanging cards with an old university friend since a group of us went on holiday in 1980 but thanks to coronavirus we are meeting up on WhatsApp once a week. I will carry on sending a card.

I’ve just deposited my cards in the village post box. This was nearly full to overflowing so I guess lots of cards are still being sent by post.

Beryl says:

Thanks for the timely comment Malcolm, I was going to post cards this afternoon but had to delay as the engineer, who should have turned up this morning to service the boiler arrived at 4 pm and has just left, so I will leave them until early tomorrow before the post box gets too full.
I think the last day for posting second class is 18th December and 20th for first class.

Ours are on the way to the 6pm collection box. 🙂 Slight panic when hubby found his car battery flat so gone out in my car.

Crusader says:

19 December 2020

I never send any cards any Christmas and only ever receive very few. And there’s so much talk in the news at the moment about spending the period alone as if that was so serious and such a problem. Well I spend EVERY Christmas alone and I’m alone all the time now because of the pandemic but I don’t get lonely, I’m usually far too wound up and infuriated to get lonely. Being alone is something a lot of folk out there will have to get used to now and they’ll get a taste of what I have all the time, but not to anything like the same extent.

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