NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC 2026 Magic Advent Calendar – 24 Days of Magic Tricks & Science Experiments, Holiday Countdown Calendar for Kids

I picked up this Advent set for my teen son, who’s obsessed with all things magic, and it has been a fantastic surprise. Each day’s item feels like a mini magical reveal—fun, clever, and just mysterious enough to keep him excited. He’s genuinely eager to open it every morning! The quality is great, the themed pieces are unique, and it’s been wonderful seeing him practice little tricks and show off new surprises each day. It’s the perfect mix of creativity and magical fun. If you have a teen boy who loves magic or enjoys a touch of wonder in his day, this Advent set is a perfect choice. Highly recommended!

This set is truly one of the best gifts you can give to a child. It’s not just a toy, it’s an engaging learning experience that keeps kids entertained while introducing them to the wonders of science in a fun and interactive way. What makes this product stand out is how it combines magic tricks with real scientific principles. Children don’t just perform tricks; they learn the “why” behind them. This approach helps them naturally develop curiosity and a deeper interest in scientific knowledge. Instead of memorizing facts, they discover concepts through hands-on experimentation and play. It’s perfect for keeping kids engaged over multiple days, building anticipation and excitement as they move through each activity. The structure encourages consistent learning while still feeling like a fun daily surprise.

This has been a great way to countdown to Christmas and to get my boys interacting and working together daily. Each of my boys (ages 6, 10, and 11) choose an advent calendar each year and this one was selected by my 6 year old. He has been able to do most of the experiments with minimal help from his older brothers. Not every day is an experiment, some days are gems or stones. The included book tells you what each day holds so if you know you are going to have a busy morning you could have your kid go out of order and choose a gem on that day (this is what we do). There is also plenty of material to complete some of the experiments multiple times so the boys have taken the kit over to their grandparents to show them some of the experiments that they have already conducted at home. Overall, I would recommend this kit for any kids into science!

This has been very fun so far! My 10 year old is the main one doing the experiments. This comes with excellent detailed instructions. So far all pieces are great quality. We have opened rose quartz and tigers eye crystals and they are indeed real. (I collect crystals so I can tell the difference.) It is easy to open each daily door. This is a great value for the money! It even comes with a pamphlet with extra experiments you can do.

My kids 5 and 4 loved this they shared 1 box. Each day they looked forward to science. They learned about experiments and hypothesis and following directions. Most experiments included enough for 2 experiments. We still have some left overs. I marked off 1 star as the pop rocks were hard and all stuck together which did not do anything and a couple days were mixed up. That said I would still buy again when on sale. Great learning for kids. We even enjoyed the rock days as it gave a little break from all the experiments. Also loved that it prioritized learning over more things. Great tradition. We still have some left overs to keep going after Christmas. If there is a new set to try next year we will certainly get again.

I got this for myself, I'm a 34 year old adult :) I saw it on sale for $9 bucks on Black Friday and wish I had grabbed a couple because it's a steal- even at the full price. I'm not a paid reviewer (maybe one day?) I just was really pleased and surprised by this! I want you to get this for your kiddo or yourself if you're pondering because I really think it's worth it. At the time of this review it's listed for about $16 last I looked. I love glow in the dark, I love space theme and I love dinos, I really enjoy hands on activities too and this had everything. At first glance I thought I was just getting little glow figures, which I thought "Okay sick 24 little glow figures to place around my room or add with gifts for friends etc." but it ended up being way cooler! If you don't want spoilers for what's inside then stop reading here. I loved that this was a really unique advent calendar and I honestly wish more were like this!! I got several glow figures, 3 space themed sun catchers to paint with glowing paints, 4 rocks with paints and dino stencils to decorate them with, an invisible ink marker that came with a little uv light to read the messages, And TWO bouncy ball molds with the powder mix to make them. Oh and a crystal which was maybe the most disappointing part as it just is a rough cut with a tiny plastic stand but honestly the quality of this whole product was very impressive. The packaging was well made and designed all the compartments are fully separated and the punch out parts are firm but easy to open. I didn't end up using this as an advent because it was just a cheap treat to myself and my inner child and I was really curious to know what I got for the price so I opened the whole thing and had such joy doing so. Just had to come make a review because I want other people to know how cool it was and so that this company does well and keeps making them !! Can we get year round goal oriented advents? Whoever put this together, bravo, get a raise🙌

As Thanksgiving approached, I was in the market for an Advent calendar for my boys. We had already exhausted most varieties, so when I spotted the National Geographic Mega Science Advent Calendar, the science educator in me was instantly sold. I imagined calm mornings with a quick, tidy experiment before rushing out to catch the bus. I hesitated only briefly at checkout. Was this too ambitious? I reread the description and reassured myself that some days were simply rocks, gems, or minerals. That seemed reasonable. I clicked purchase and spent the next few weeks eagerly awaiting December. The first few days were genuinely fun—new knowledge, excitement, curiosity. What I didn’t anticipate was a winter illness taking over our house, paired with ten school spirit days requiring coordinated outfits and enthusiasm I did not have. Somewhere along the way, I began actively hoping the next day would be a rock. Ideally several rocks in a row. Instead, National Geographic escalated. Some days now included two or three experiments. We were no longer pacing ourselves; we were rocketing toward the finale like a Fourth of July fireworks show that would not end. The final days before Christmas became a chaotic mix of gift wrapping, baking, shopping, and science experiments, interrupted only by a few merciful rock days. The final experiment, “Is That Gold?”, promised to “get messy” and required a frigid excavation outside of a rock I was certain would not be gold. This kit did not disappoint. By this point, the real reward was finally throwing the remains of this Advent calendar—and possibly part of my soul—into the trash and moving bravely into the new year. 5 stars, highly recommend

This was an alright advent calendar for my almost 10 year old- he wasn’t very interested and I wish I had gotten him a Lego one instead-at least that he would have done, I feel this one was opened each day and then not used. I thought since he was into space, he would love- but it had several days with just the plastic stars for the ceilings and a lot of more crafty things vs rocks or things like that- the rocks were for painting and not cool gem type either which I had hoped there would be some. Oh well, it wasn’t terribly pricey- maybe $20 but lesson learned! More for someone who enjoys arts and crafts.