Fill stockings without emptying your wallet with the Sun’s top tips for where to save on food, wine, gifts and travel this Christmas
It's tempting to start panic-buying with only 5 weeks to go until Christmas, but it's still possible to give great gifts without punishing your purse
WITH only five weeks until Christmas Day, the temptation is to start panic-buying presents.
But with her money-saving guide to the festive season, today The Sun’s Coupon Queen Maddy Tooke reveals how to give great gifts without punishing your purse.
Via freebies, online codes and discount tips Maddy can help you save a fortune. Following all her advice could leave an average family of four £1,500 better off!
Maddy says: “The most important thing is to set a budget and stick to it so you can keep track of your spending.” Here she tells JENNY FRANCIS how to make sleighloads of sensational savings...
Food and drink
SPLITTING the grocery shop between different supermarkets is the easiest way to save money.
I use to find the cheapest items on my shopping list. You can do this in front of the TV – just make a list of what to get from where at the cheapest price.
For example Paxo Sage and Onion Stuffing is £2.20 at Tesco and Ocado but only £2 at Asda and Morrisons.
Get your Christmas dinner from – its Christmas Turkey Hamper worth £63.50 is reduced to £45.
The hamper contains breakfast bacon medallions, sausages, 3kg fresh turkey, streaky bacon, chipolata sausages, pork sausage meat, pigs in blankets, sage and onion stuffing balls, 2kg potatoes, 1kg carrots, whole red cabbage, sprouts, turkey gravy and a cooking guide. There is enough to feed six to eight adults for £5.62 per person.
Make the most of money-off coupons. At you will find a long list of what is available – including £1 off Brothers Cider at Tesco, £2 off Benecol With Butter, 75p off Spoiltpig Gammon Steaks, 50p off Macsween Haggis, and 30p off Burgen Bread.
Save a quid on New Covent Garden Soup with a £1 off voucher from . Get £20 off Cook and Dine food orders over £75 from Tesco Direct with code TDX-HKFM. Expires tomorrow.
And enjoy a three-course meal for two with a glass of wine each at Prezzo reduced from £49.90 to £30 at .
Stock up on Christmas drinks – save £50 on a £120 order at Laithwaite’s Wine. Use code LINK50 at the checkout. Expires November 30.
There is £30 off orders over £74.99 from The Sunday Times Wine Club with code STLINK30. Get 30 per cent off festive wine cases at Tesco Wine by The Case until Tuesday.
Get £10 off orders over £40 at Majestic Wine with code CHOCOLATE40.
And save £60 on any 15-bottle case from Virgin Wines with free delivery at , use code VCLOUD60.
Decorations
THE best time of year to buy your Christmas decorations is in the January sales.
But if you didn’t stock up back then, there are still some great savings to be found.
When visiting retailers’ websites search for Christmas products – many still have last year’s decorations for half the price.
Argos has a three-for-two offer on over 300 selected Christmas trees, lights and decorations.
A pack of 75 silver and blue Christmas tree decorations that was £9.99 is now £6.66. And a Glitter tip Green 6ft Christmas Tree that was £59.99 has been reduced to £39.99. It brings the total cost to £46.65, down from £69.95. Spend an extra £3.35 to get a £5 voucher.
Get up to 60 per cent off a green or white 6ft Christmas tree from Groupon. They cost £16.99 at
Or for £25 buy a real 5ft 7in Christmas tree from Ikea after November 23 and you will be handed a £20-off voucher to spend between January 16 and February 12.
Travel
CHRISTMAS is one of the busiest times of year and travelling to see friends and family can soon add up.
The best way to keep costs down is to book in advance and take advantage of any voucher codes.
Train tickets are released 12 weeks before so Christmas tickets are available to book now to get the lowest price... so get buying.
Save 10 per cent on airport hotel Travelodge bookings with a code from .
The codes are unique but each Vouchercloud account has five codes available. Expires November 30.
Save 15 per cent on midweek return bookings at P&O Ferries with code midweek16. Expires December 13.
Get £5 off bookings over £50 from with code 5OFF50UK.
Get 25 per cent off Gatwick Airport Parking with UK Meet and Greet Airport Parking. Use code MGLGW25 from .
Plan a trip to European Christmas Markets with for two or three nights with flights, and spend just £89 – saving you £150.
Fancy a pre-Christmas trip to the snowy slopes?
Get £100 off ski trips with Oliver’s Travels using the code VCLOUDSKI.
Top tips
➊ CASHBACK Buy your gifts online through Topcashback and Quidco and get cashback as you spend.
Last year I earned £348.92 from cash back alone. Topcashback offers £6.50 cashback on online Asda grocery shops over £25. Grocery apps like ChickSnap, Shopitize and CheckoutSmart have festive food cashback.
SAVE: £100
➋ USE POINTS WISELY I save up my Tesco Clubcard points for Christmas but not to spend on food. Clubcard Boost lets you increase the value of your coupons to spend on the HIgh Street.
So £5 in Clubcard points becomes £15 to spend in Goldsmiths, £2.50 in points becomes £5 to spend at Evans Cycles and £10 in points is £20 to spend at Red Letter Days.
SAVE: £50
➌ REDUCE GIFT SPEND Secret Santa is a great way to keep costs down in large families or friend groups.
SAVE: £20
➍ UPGRADE YOUR PHONE At Christmas the big networks compete and give away game consoles, laptops and tablets with phone contracts. This year at Carphone Warehouse buy a Samsung Galaxy S7 for £30.99 a month and get a free Samsung Galaxy Gear VR headset worth £99.99.
SAVE: £99.99
➎ SWITCH Get £100 for switching your current account to Halifax Reward using the switch service. It also gives you £5 per month if you pay in £750 a month, have two direct debits and stay in credit.
SAVE: £100
Gifts for kids
KIDS of all ages love chocolate – and you can get ten per cent off from Hotel Chocolat by getting the code VC10 from .
It’s half-price on a Thorntons Loads of Chocolate set, reduced from £60 to £30. And save 15 per cent off Chocolate Trading Company orders with code VCCT15. Ends November 28.
To keep older kids entertained on Christmas Day, John Lewis has the new Sony PlayStation 4 500GB, right, and a FREE game for £227.95.
Choose between Battlefield 1, Fifa 2017 and Titanfall 2, saving you a handy £42.
Save ten per cent on selected titles at GAME with code VCLOUD10. Includes LEGO Star Wars, Uncharted 4 and DOOM. And the Jibber Jabber Game is down from £29.99 to £14.99 on
Save £25 off orders over £100 from technology and stationary retailer Viking. Use code Q7A-25CLOUDNOV from at the checkout.
Gifts for him
THERE is 70 per cent off Photo Calendars from Truprint with code 2017PLAN. Expires November 24.
Get 25 per cent off Jack Wills orders, left, with code FRIENDS25. Ends tomorrow. And 20 per cent off experiences from Red Letter Days with code CLXMAS.
has savings on beauty electricals. A Philips Sonicare HX6911/50 Flexcare+ Black Edition toothbrush is £90, saving you £110. At get £20 off orders over £150 at H Samuel with code VCSAVE20.
So get the Daniel Wellington St Mawes Men’s Watch for £139, down from £159.
At asos.com/men/outlet/ Adidas Zx Gonz Trainers are £56 from £70 and a Le Breve Longline Bomber is £55 down from £91.
Gifts for her
HER favourite scent is her perfect gift and there is currently 15 per cent off top perfumes like Miss Dior, right, online at The Fragrance Shop with . Offer ends December 1.
Get 10 per cent off orders over £50 from Debenhams with code XC24 from . Offer expires tomorrow.
Get £25 off a £50 spend at The Body Shop with code 14319. Expires 9am on Monday.
Get a £50-off voucher when you spend £150 at Ernest Jones Jewellers before December 24. You can use it with a £150 spend from January 18. It’s two gifts in one.
Get a FREE Limited Edition Red Carpet Ready Eyeshadow Palette when you spend £7.50 on selected Barry M cosmetics at Boots.
Yankee Candle’s 2016 Christmas Tealight Delight Gift Set is reduced from £29.99 to £19.99 on .
And remember to order through , as new Groupon customers get an extra £11 cashback.
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Festive freebies
SMALL gifts bought as stocking fillers might seem cheap at the time but the cost can soon add up. I find the best stocking fillers are the ones you can get for free.
Get a free Personalised Video from Santa, below, at – usually available from December 1.
Send your child’s Letter To Santa to the Royal Mail at and get a free reply. Send letters in by December 9.
There’s a free Christmas recipe book being given away by The Vegetarian Society. Request yours at .
Get a free Palmer’s Lip Balm from . And The Fragrance Shop has a “free gift with a purchase” offer.
Get a free Michael Kors Tote Bag when you buy Michael Kors Wonderlust Eau De Parfum 50ml for £61.50. It’s a great way of getting two gifts for the price of one.
Activity Village has printable activities and games, saving you a fortune on pricy board games. Print your own from .
For fun, kids can track Santa’s progress on the Norad Santa site from December 1.
Save on a festive taxi ride with £15 discount for new UBER customers with code VCUK15 from . If the fare is less than £15 it’s free. Ends December 31.
Savings displayed in baubles are estimated totals.