How to Send a Gift to Someone in France from the UK or the US

From the UK or the US, there are three ways to get a gift to someone in France. You can order from a gift or hamper company in your own country and have it shipped. You can order from an international flower or gift network, which passes the order to a local partner in France. Or you can have the gift bought in France and delivered locally, so nothing crosses a border.

The right choice depends on three things: how soon it must arrive, whether the gift has to cross a border, and how much the way it is handed over matters.

A parcel sent from the UK or the US to France is an import. It can be held at customs and the recipient can be asked to pay duties, VAT and handling fees before delivery, which is an awkward way to receive a present. Some hamper companies include these costs in their price and say so; check before ordering. Food, alcohol and fresh products carry extra restrictions.

Shipping also takes time: several days in most cases, and the delivery is made by a parcel carrier, often to a mailbox, a neighbour or a pickup point.

Flower networks take your order online and pass it to a florist in France who prepares and delivers it. Nothing crosses a border, and same day delivery is often possible. The bouquet is the local florist's interpretation of the photo you chose, and the delivery is made on the florist's round, often to a reception desk or a concierge.

The third option is to brief someone in Paris who buys the gift for you and hands it over in person. Nothing crosses a border, so there are no customs and no duties. The gift can come from any Paris house: champagne, chocolates, a bouquet from a Paris florist, a fragrance, a piece of leather goods. You see photos before it leaves, and you get a photo when it is handed over, with your card.

This is what we do at My Paris Concierge: we buy in Paris and deliver the same day in Paris and Île de France, and elsewhere in France. See sending a gift to someone in Paris, luxury flower delivery in Paris and champagne delivery in Paris.

For a standard hamper that can wait a week, a shipped hamper with duties included works. For flowers the same day at a modest price, a flower network is enough. For a gift that has to arrive today, look perfect and be handed over in person, with a message read aloud or a card given at the door, a gift bought and delivered in Paris is the option that removes the uncertainty.