SALT LAKE CITY — The busiest two mailing and delivery weeks of the year are here and Utah Post Offices are prepared for the avalanche of cards and packages.

“We plan all year for the holidays,” said USPS Salt Lake District Manager Mike Mirides, who shared just some of the preparations Utah Post Offices have made for what is expected to be a record season for packages. 

• Hired more than 350 employees
• Delivering packages 7 days a week
• Expanded delivery windows for packages to include early morning and evening
• Extended Saturday retail hours at 25 Post Offices along the Wasatch Front to make shipping those packages more convenient (see list at end of release)
• Same 25 Post Offices offer dutch-door package pick up service from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Sunday before Christmas for customers picking up notified mail or packages.

With an increase in early and online shopping for gifts, there is no longer a “busiest day” for holiday shipping. Instead, the Postal Service’s busiest time is now two weeks before Christmas.

Starting the week of Dec. 10 the Postal Service expects to deliver nearly 200 million packages per week until Christmas.

This holiday season is expected to be a record-breaker for packages with Postal Service carriers delivering more than 900 million holiday packages nationwide, a 5 percent increase from last year. A similar increase is expected in Utah where during the holidays nearly half-a-million packages are processed each night at the Salt Lake City Priority Mail Center.

“Our goal is to provide outstanding service to our customers and ensure all those holiday cards and packages are delivered on time,” said Mirides. “The best advice I can give to customers is to mail early and conveniently.”

• Ship packages from home for the holidays at usps.com and request a free package pick up.
• Use Self-Service Kiosks – located in 31 postal lobbies across the Wasatch Front, allow customers to buy stamps, mail cards and packages 24/7, using debit or credit cards.

Holiday Military Shipping Deadlines

• Dec. 4 – Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to Military addresses in Iraq and Afghanistan
• Dec. 11 – Priority Mail and First-Class Mail to all other Military addresses
• Dec. 18 – USPS Priority Mail Express to Military Addresses (except Iraq and Afghanistan)

International Shipping Deadlines

• Dec. 1 – Priority Mail International to Africa, Central and South America
• Dec. 8 – Priority Mail International to all other countries
• Dec. 15 – Priority Mail Express International to Africa, Central and South America
• Dec. 18 to 20 – Global Express Guaranteed depending on country

Domestic Shipping Deadlines

• Dec. 14 – USPS Retail Ground
• Dec. 20 – First-Class Mail and packages
• Dec. 20 – Priority Mail
• Dec. 22 – Priority Mail Express

The following Utah Post Offices offer extended retail hours every Saturday Before Christmas (With the exception of the Park City Snyderville Branch, the Post Offices listed below also provide dutch-door package pick up service every Sunday before Christmas from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for customers wanting to pick up notified mail or packages which couldn’t be delivered on the first attempt):

• American Fork 55 N. Merchant St. – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Bountiful 20 S. Main St. – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Cedar City 333 N. Main St. – 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Clearfield 98 N. Main St. – 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Draper 12180 S. 300 East – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Layton 1123 N. Fairfield Rd. – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Lehi 333 E. Main St. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Logan 75 W. 200 North – 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Midvale 35 W. Center St. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Ogden Main 3680 Pacific Ave. – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Orem Mountain Shadows 877 E. 1200 S. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Park City Snyderville 6440 Highway 224 – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (No Sunday dutch door pick up)
• Pleasant Grove 180 S. 100 W. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Provo 95 W. 100 South – 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Riverton 12760 S. Park Ave. – 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Salt Lake Downtown 230 W. 200 South – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Salt Lake Murray 49489 S. State St. – 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Salt Lake West Valley 3490 S. 4400 West – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Salt Lake Cottonwood 6890 S. 2300 East – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Salt Lake Main 1760 W. 2100 South – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Sandy Alta Canyon 9265 S. Highland Dr. – 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Spanish Fork 165 E. 900 North – 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• St George Red Rocks 1150 E. Riverside Dr. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Tooele 65 N. Main St. – 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• West Jordan 7901 S. 3200 West – 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Additional news and information, including all domestic, international and military mailing and shipping deadlines, can be found at the Postal Service Holiday Newsroom at usps.com/holidaynews

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

###