Sending ham as a gift to someone's home: how it arrives, what's included and where we deliver

Giving a ham to someone who lives in another city comes with three worries: that it arrives late, that it arrives damaged, and that whoever opens it doesn't know who it's from. All three have an answer, and we'd rather give it before you buy, not after.

How it's packed

Whole pieces travel vacuum-packed in their cover, inside a protective cardboard shipping box. Boneless pieces and packs are vacuum-packed, which is what really protects them during the journey: cured ham is a stable product that has spent months hanging in a curing house, and a journey of a few days doesn't affect it. Every gift leaves our workshop ready to give and well protected; if you'd like it to arrive with a message, we'll include one.

The card with your personal message

It's the touch people appreciate most and the one fewest shops offer: a card with the message of your choice, inside the parcel. The recipient knows who it's from and why. Mark the order as a gift when you place it and write your message there (or email us afterwards with your order number and the text), and we'll prepare it.

Arriving on time

We prepare and dispatch orders so they arrive when they need to. During the Christmas season we publish the order deadlines for each area on the gifts page, because courier networks get overloaded in December and we'd rather tell you "order before such-and-such a date" than have a gift arrive on the 27th. If you have a specific date in mind, get in touch before ordering and we'll tell you whether we can make it.

Where we deliver (and where we don't yet)

We deliver throughout mainland Spain and to the Balearic Islands. We don't yet deliver to the Canary Islands, Ceuta or Melilla: these territories are outside the EU VAT area and shipments go through customs, with lead times and costs we can't guarantee; we'd rather not promise what we can't control. Within the European Union we deliver to the other member states, except for some islands and territories with their own tax or transport rules (Madeira, the Azores, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily and the French overseas territories, among others); the full list is in Shipping and delivery times. Since Brexit, the United Kingdom is not included.

One exception worth knowing before putting together a hamper for abroad: shipping wine may be restricted to certain destinations. Alcoholic drinks are subject to excise duties that require registration in each destination country before they can be sent. If the destination doesn't allow it, the gift goes without the bottle.

Corporate gifts and invoices

If you're buying as a company, you can request an invoice with your tax ID (NIF) when ordering. For a business purchase, VAT is determined by law by the destination of the goods: anything delivered in Spain carries VAT. If your company is based in another European Union country, has an intra-Community VAT number and the delivery goes to that same country, we validate the number and the sale is VAT-exempt. For corporate gift sets with your logo or message, get in touch: we make them to order.

• Packaging: vacuum-packed and in a protective shipping box.
• A card with the message of your choice.
• Christmas deadlines published by area on the gifts page.
• Mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands: yes; the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla: not yet; rest of the EU: yes, except for some islands and territories; United Kingdom: no.
• Wine: shipping may be restricted to certain destinations.