By Daily Press staff
One hundred fifty-seven U.S. Post Offices serving the Los Angeles metropolitan area are ready to deliver the holidays with expanded office hours. The post offices are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Dec. 21, Monday through Friday, and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. “Our post offices are expecting a very busy holiday mail season, and we are working hard to make everything quick, easy and convenient for our customers,” said Postmaster Robert McGuire. “We encourage customers to mail early and to ship all their holiday packages with the Postal Service.”
Santa Monica has two U.S. Post Offices — 1248 Fifth St. and the Will Rogers Station, 1217 Wilshire Blvd.
Customers also have the option of sending their holiday packages from their homes or businesses by using the Click-N-Ship online package service at http://www.usps.com/clicknship. Insurance is available, and delivery confirmation is free using the service, he said. With Click-N-Ship, the regular carrier will pick up an unlimited number of Priority or Express Mail packages for free when scheduled in advance, he said.
When using First-class Mail and Priority Mail to mail cards and packages domestically, the Postal Service recommends mailing out-of-state mail by Tuesday, Dec. 21, and in-state mail by Wednesday, Dec. 22 After those dates, customers can still use Express Mail for their packages going to many destinations.
Customers mailing to military service persons overseas and to international locations are advised to mail those packages as soon as possible to save on rates and get them there by Christmas. Most military overseas mail and international mail should be sent by Dec. 11 to arrive by Christmas. Express Mail is available after those dates.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 10, 2004. Read the original PDF.