If you’re a parent then the chances are at some point or another you will need to hide some Christmas presents. As your kids get older, it can get harder to find places they won’t sneakily find out! So we’ve put our heads together and come up with the best places to hide Christmas presents to keep the element of surprise!
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One of my daughters was always completely oblivious – I remember one year having a big stack of presents sitting on top of a dresser and her walking by lots of times and not even noticing! On the other hand, our other daughter was super sharp and eagle-eyed. “What’s that box?”, she would ask as soon as she came into the house, spotting a new thing that had arrived.
Regardless of your child’s “noticing” capabilities it’s good to have some places to stash gifts, so here are some ideas for places to hide Christmas presents.
Keeping Presents a Surprise!
Be Mindful When You Shop
If you’re planning to buy gifts at shops or a shopping centre/mall then it’s a good idea to plan this for when the kids are somewhere else, but also to allow some hiding time when you get home. Many’s the time I have dashed in the door on my return and run up the stairs to hide something quickly!
If you’re buying online, quickly open the parcels when they arrive by courier or post, check they are the right thing in case you need to return them, and then stow them away.
If your kids are the sneaky sorts then you could have a separate email that you only use for online shopping to make sure they can’t accidentally spot an order confirmation if they happen to be on your phone. It’s a good way of keeping partner gifts a surprise too!
My husband and I also have an agreement not to check the bank account closely in the two weeks before Christmas in case one of us notices a purchase in a particular store.
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What Are the Best Places to Hide Christmas Presents?
Here are 34 different spots to hide Christmas presents – I can vouch for many of them, and we haven’t had any serious present discovery dramas yet!
#1. Wardrobe
Yes it’s the classic spot for hiding presents, I know. I usually put smaller gifts at the back of my wardrobe. It does mean my wardrobe gets very stuffed by the 24th of December though! I use some of my handbags to store stocking fillers, or pop them into shoe boxes.
#2. Top of Wardrobe
Another classic hiding place, the top of the wardrobe. You’re best to put the item into another bag or an old box so it doesn’t look like anything has changed up there.
#3. The Garden Shed
We have hidden bigger items in the garden shed, like new bikes. None of our kids ever bothered to look out there, thanks to too many spiders!
#4. The Attic
If using the attic, then be creative with how you store the presents, e.g. use an old box labelled “Videos” to throw them off the track. Or store them in storage bags or boxes that look like old things that have been there for ages.
One mum told me her child came home from school saying that she had heard that parents keep presents in the attic, so she was able to march her child up and show her there was nothing out of the ordinary (as she had them tucked away in misleading boxes!).
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#5. Suitcases
Use empty suitcases to store presents and zip them back up again.
#6. The Pantry
For small gifts wrap them in a towel and put them at the back of your pantry or in cupboards or drawers hidden amongst your pantry goods.
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#7. Underwear Drawer
I usually tuck a few things underneath my pants and socks in the dresser.
#8. Under the Tree
You may as well wrap some things and get them under the tree! Just with a warning of no poking, prodding or shaking! Probably not advisable with inquisitive toddlers…
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#9. Other People’s Houses
Call in some favours from friends and family to store some Christmas presents, you could do same for them.
Just make arrangements for a good time for collection so you can bring the gifts back. One mum told me how a new bike for her daughter was kept at Nana and Papa’s house 25 miles away but her daughter didn’t go to sleep until late requiring a midnight drive on Christmas Eve to collect!
#10. The Garage
If you have a garage, then this is a great place for storing presents, as the chances are you’ve lots of storage options in there. Again you may need to disguise them a bit, e.g. in black trash bags or old boxes.
#11. Mislabelled Boxes
“Old Tax Returns” is a good label to use, and one of the most ingenious places to hide Christmas presents!
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#12. Filing Cabinet
If you have a filing cabinet with a lock, you can slip some gifts and lock them away from prying eyes.
#13. Bottom of the Laundry Basket
I like this one! Stick the gifts in a bag (to keep them from getting messed up by the dirty laundry) and pop them in the bottom of the laundry basket. Very few kids will voluntarily look there!
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#14. The Car
I know one mum who has kept presents in the back of the car, and some small ones tucked into the glove compartment. She just needs to make sure no one has an excuse to open the boot!
#15. At Your Office
If you work outside the home, then the office can be a good place to keep some gifts. Check your office’s policy on delivery there as some companies can get annoyed about online deliveries arriving and taking up staff time.
#16. Shoe Boxes
If you store your shoes in boxes, then make use of the space to tuck some presents into.
#17. The Washing Machine or Clothes Dryer
This will obviously only work if you plan your laundry timings well!
#18. Christmas Storage Bins
This is a great idea, as you put up your decorations and empty out your storage bins or boxes you can use them to hide presents in.
#19. Their Room!
I love this as it’s right under their nose, but it might not work for every child. One mum said she just put gifts into a box she keeps in her son’s room labelled “Hand me down clothes” as he never thinks to look in there.
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#20. The Fridge
Yes! You could store things in the fridge if they aren’t going to be affected by the temperature. Or hide chocolate stocking fillers in salad leaves bags!
#21. The Trash
Well not literally in the actual trash but you could get a separate new trash can, maybe it’s a new one for “Recycling” or “Compost”, and stash some gifts at the bottom of it.
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#22. Pots and Pans
If you’ve got some big pots and pans in your kitchen you could stick some gifts in them, just make sure they are ones you aren’t planning to use soon!
#23. Your Socks
I love this idea! Socks are a great hiding spot for smaller items, things like stocking fillers and smaller gifts.
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#24. The Cleaning Cupboard
Do you have a cupboard where you keep all your cleaning stuff, vacuum, etc? Then chances are kids won’t be in a hurry to go there, making it a good spot to hide some things.
#25. Airing Cupboard
Another good cupboard to hide stuff in amongst sheets and towels. Again most kids wouldn’t be in a hurry to change their bedsheets!
#26. Chairs
Some chairs have a zippered dust cover on the bottom of them and you can tuck things in underneath.
#27. Ottomans and Blanket Boxes
We have a blanket box in our bedroom where I keep duvet covers, blankets etc. When it’s winter, I swap out the heavy blankets etc and put in the thinner summer quilts. So I can tuck in some gifts in there.
#28. Above the Kitchen Cabinets
Most kitchen cabinets have space above them that you could use to put some gifts up high.
#29. Kids Closets or Wardrobes
Take advantage of the fact that if your child is going to go on the hunt for presents they are never going to think to look in their own room!
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#30. Picnic Coolers
Empty picnic coolers, baskets or hampers are also handy spaces for hiding Christmas gifts.
#31. In the Ironing Pile
Unless you have a child who is fanatic about ironing (wishful thinking!), then the ironing pile could be a good hiding place for some new clothes in amongst the rest of the to-be-ironed clothes.
#32. Under the Bed
If you don’t have pull out drawers or storage under your bed, you could fill some bags with old clothes and tuck some presents into them, store them under your bed.
#33. Small Appliance Boxes
Is that spiraliser or juicer still sitting in its box? Take the equipment out and use the box as a present storage spot.
#34. Behind Books
If you’ve got bookshelves, pull the whole row of books forward on the shelf and you can make some space for hiding gifts behind the books.
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Now the challenge is to remember where you hid everything! Keep a master list somewhere safe and write down all your hiding spots!
About the Author: Jill Holtz
