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Birthday gift ideas for family and friends in Australia
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Sending Flowers to Australia From the UK (and What to Send Instead)
You can't post flowers to Australia from the UK. Here's how ordering from a florist over there works, the time zone catch, and what to send instead.
The short answer
Sending Flowers to Australia From the UK (and What to Send Instead)
You can't post flowers to Australia from the UK. Australia's Department of Agriculture treats fresh and dried flowers as high-risk goods, so a bouquet in a box won't get through. What you can do is order from a florist in Australia, either directly or through a UK site that passes the order on, and have it made up and delivered over there. If flowers aren't quite right, there are good alternatives further down, including one that never goes through customs.
Why you can't just post a bouquet
Australia guards its borders against pests and plant diseases more closely than most countries, and flowers sit right in the firing line. In its guide for anyone sending goods to Australia, the Department of Agriculture lists fresh or dried flowers and foliage, wreaths and pinecones among the goods that shouldn't be sent unless every import condition is met. For a personal parcel from the UK, those conditions are out of reach.
Dried and preserved flowers aren't a loophole. The department inspects them on arrival to check they really are dried and free of pests, which adds delay and risk to something that was meant to cheer someone up. If an item fails its check, it's destroyed, sent back, or treated at a cost to the person receiving it. Not quite the surprise you had in mind.
The only people who can carry fresh flowers in are travellers. Someone arriving by plane or cruise ship can bring a few bouquets in person and declare them, according to the department's cut flowers guidance. So if you're flying out to see them, that's an option. By post, it isn't.
How sending flowers to Australia actually works
Every service that offers flowers to Australia works the same way underneath: your order goes to a florist in Australia, who makes the arrangement and delivers it locally. You can order straight from an Australian florist network, or from a UK flower site that relays the order. Either way, the flowers never leave Australia, and that's exactly why they arrive fresh.
Interflora Australia is a good example of how it runs. It takes orders from overseas and connects them to more than 750 Australian florists. Same-day delivery covers the major cities if you order before 2pm on a weekday, or before 10am on a Saturday, in the recipient's time zone. There are no deliveries on Sundays or public holidays, remote areas can take up to 48 hours, and the delivery fee depends on the address. Its guide for overseas customers has the details.
The time zone catch
That 2pm cut-off is Australian time, and it's the bit people in the UK trip over. Sydney is 9 to 11 hours ahead of the UK depending on the time of year, so by the time you've had your morning brew, a same-day order in Sydney has usually missed its window. Order the day before, or set the delivery date in their time zone at checkout. Our UK to Australia time difference guide has the full table, including the awkward weeks when the clocks change on different weekends.
Before you press order
- Check someone will be in. A bouquet left on a doorstep in the Australian summer won't look its best by teatime.
- Get the full address right, with a unit number for flats and a phone number for the driver.
- Keep the card message short. A florist's card is small, so save the long version for a call.
- Compare the final price, not the bouquet price, because delivery fees vary by address.
The Sunday problem: Mother's Day and Christmas
Here's one most guides skip. If your florist doesn't deliver on Sundays or public holidays, two of the biggest flower days in Australia need planning. Mother's Day in Australia is always a Sunday in May, and Christmas Day is a public holiday. Book delivery for the Saturday or the day before, and say in the card that it's arrived a little early on purpose.
Christmas has a second wrinkle. It lands in the middle of the Australian summer, so a bouquet delivered on the 23rd has a hot few days ahead of it. If the flowers are really for the day itself, a gift that doesn't wilt might be the safer bet.
When flowers are the right call
Flowers are hard to beat for speed. If it's their birthday today, or you've just heard some news and want something at their door by the evening, a same-day bouquet from a local florist does what no parcel can. They're the classic choice for sympathy and for congratulations, and nobody has ever been cross about getting them.
Where they fall down is staying power. A bouquet is gone in a week or so, and that's in a cool room. If you want something they'll still be using next month, or something with a bit more of you in it, look at the options below.
What to send instead of flowers to Australia
This is one of the questions people in the UK ask most, and the honest answer depends on what you want the gift to do. Here's how the main options compare.
| Option | How it gets there | Good for | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flowers from an Australian florist | Made and delivered locally | Same-day surprises, sympathy | Gone in about a week, and the cut-offs run on Australian time |
| A gift box packed in Australia | Australia Post, from inside Australia | Birthdays, missing you, a lift after a bad week | Takes a few days rather than a few hours |
| A food hamper from an Australian shop | Delivered locally | Families and whole households | Usually eaten within the week |
| A pot plant from an Australian nursery | Delivered locally | New homes, keen gardeners | Live plants can't be posted from the UK, so it has to be bought there |
| An experience or e-gift card | By email, instantly | The person who has everything | Nothing to unwrap |
| A recorded video or voice message | Instantly | Any day, any distance | Lovely, but nothing on the doormat |
Posting your own parcel still works for presents that aren't food or plants. Our guide to sending a parcel to Australia from the UK covers services, prices and the customs form, and the food rules for parcels to Australia cover the treats. Just leave out anything with seeds, soil or plant material, because the department wants live plants on an import permit and seeds on a certificate.
A gift box instead: how ours works
Same Skies exists because of exactly this problem. Lewis grew up in the UK and moved to Sydney, and his mum, Samantha, is still in the UK. So every box is packed by hand in Sydney, Monday to Friday, and sent with Australia Post to an address inside Australia. It's a domestic Australian delivery, so your gift never goes through customs, and you can send a gift to Australia from the UK without a trip to the Post Office.
The Hug Away From Home box is the nearest thing to a bouquet that lasts. It has a Hand-Poured Soy Candle, a Botanical Bath Soak, Marc de Champagne Truffles, Candy Kittens Strawberry sweets, a Crochet Comfort Companion and an A3 Matte Art Print. The print is unframed, so it suits someone with a bit of wall space. If you'd rather choose every piece yourself, you can build your own box with six or eight gifts.
Your words live behind a QR code on a premium card inside the box. You can add a message of up to 280 characters, a photo or a video, and they open it by pointing their phone camera at the code. Photos and videos replay for around six months, which is rather longer than a bunch of tulips.
Delivery is free on every box and usually takes 2 to 5 business days after dispatch to most Australian addresses, with regional and remote areas taking longer. Prices are shown as a guide; you pay in Australian dollars and your bank converts at checkout. For Christmas, order by 11:59pm Sydney time on Tuesday 15 December for most of Australia, Monday 14 December for WA, and Thursday 10 December for the NT and regional or remote addresses.
Build your own
Start with an empty box. Fill it with them.
Choose every piece yourself, pick a print that feels like them, then add your letter with a photo or video behind the QR card. We hand-pack it in Sydney and send it free.
- You choose every piece, and the print on the lid
- Your letter, plus a free photo or video behind the QR card
- Hand-packed in Sydney, free delivery Australia-wide
Questions people ask
Can I post flowers from the UK to Australia?
No. Australia's Department of Agriculture lists fresh and dried flowers and foliage as high-risk goods that shouldn't be sent unless every import condition is met, which a personal parcel can't do. Order from a florist in Australia instead.
Can I send dried flowers to Australia?
Not easily. Dried flowers, wreaths and pinecones are on the same high-risk list, and dried or preserved flowers are inspected on arrival. For a gift, choose something that isn't plant material.
How do I send flowers to Australia from the UK?
Order from an Australian florist, or from a UK flower site that passes the order to one. The florist makes the arrangement and delivers it locally, so check the cut-off time in the recipient's time zone.
What can I send instead of flowers to Australia?
A gift box or hamper packed in Australia, a pot plant from an Australian nursery, an experience or e-gift card, or a recorded message. Same Skies boxes are packed by hand in Sydney and delivered free, so they never go through customs.
Can flowers be delivered in Australia on a Sunday?
Not with every service. Interflora Australia doesn't deliver on Sundays or public holidays, so for Mother's Day, which is always a Sunday, or Christmas Day, book delivery for the day before.
Something that lasts longer than the flowers
Packed by hand in Sydney, delivered free across Australia, with your words waiting inside.
Send a gift to Australia