Flower delivery to Boca Raton
March 22, 2004 2:44 PM   Subscribe

My parents' 30th wedding anniversary is Wednesday and I want to send them flowers. They live in Boca Raton. Should I: (a) order flowers from online? (subpart 1) If so from where?; or (b) track a local florist in Boca Raton to deliver the flowers? If so, how? And for a 30th wedding anniversary, what type of flowers? Thanks!
posted by adrober to Shopping (12 answers total)
 
Go through a local flower shop. Online florists outsource the work, and the local florist making the delivery has little incentive to throw in the good stuff because the recipient will associate the arrangement with online vendor. From what I've heard, Teleflora orders (or similar online shops) get what's left from the local store's inventory -- it's like going out to eat on a Monday and ordering the chef's special for the day.

Also, ask your parents to take a picture of the arrangement, or at least, describe what you ordered once they get it. Often, florist will skimp on phone orders because they assume you'll have no way of knowing what's been sent. Recipients usually use vague descriptions. The flowers were "beautiful" or "thoughtful" or "nice." All well and good, except for those times they receive one dozen roses and you ordered two.
posted by herc at 3:27 PM on March 22, 2004


I agree -- in my experience, calling a local florist (when possible) usually results in a much nicer arrangement, and sometimes a more interesting selection of local varieties, etc. -- especially if you mention that it's a special event and ask for some recommendations of what they have on hand that might be particularly appreciated. (I will say that when I have ordered flowers online, though, 1-800-Flowers has been fine -- nothing spectacular, but no major problems. FTD.com, however, was dreadful on all fronts -- bad bouquet, bad customer service.)
posted by scody at 3:37 PM on March 22, 2004


My wife just received two bouquets for her birthday. One from someone familiar with the area where we are, the other from someone who was not. The former arrangement was vastly superior. Ditto on the recommendations above: find a quality florist in the Boca Raton area and deal directly with them.
posted by Dick Paris at 3:45 PM on March 22, 2004


when i want to order flowers for someone elsewhere, i call a good or upscale hotel in that local area. ask to speak to the concierge and then for a florist recommendation. it has always worked for me.
posted by heather at 3:48 PM on March 22, 2004


I've had very good luck with tulips.com.
posted by riffola at 4:10 PM on March 22, 2004


ftd.com completely failed to deliver a valentine's day order I placed last year. One beautiful woman was sorely disappointed in me. :-(
posted by jpoulos at 4:36 PM on March 22, 2004


If you aren't familiar with the area or can't get a good local recommendation, I'd go with some of the internet flower sellers....sometimes the local shops can be great or not-so. As a online recommendation, I've both received and given from the flowers at Hallmark.com, and they've been very nice.
posted by dicaxpuella at 4:59 PM on March 22, 2004


ditto on the local concierge tip, just make sure it's a quality hotel but not one that's going to just send you to the most expensive place in town. try calling two and compare for yourself.
posted by rorycberger at 6:44 PM on March 22, 2004


I go to Yahoo!'s Yellow Pages and maps find the nearest florist to the delivery point.. many times there's one within .5 miles - and usually you can call the day of if you're running late.
posted by ao4047 at 7:48 PM on March 22, 2004


Response by poster: Thanks everyone! Very helpful!
posted by adrober at 8:43 PM on March 22, 2004


I agree that local florists are better. But if you do use a big online florist -- a bunch of them offer frequent-flyer miles. Check with your preferred airline or other affinity program for details.
posted by Vidiot at 11:13 PM on March 22, 2004


not all online florists go through local florists. calyx and corolla is generally a direct-from-grower florist. they are handsdown the most beautiful flowers and plants i have ever seen. they're pretty much the only florist i use and very much worth the price (they are expensive). however, they do a lot of live plant bouquet work and the plants are hardy.
posted by crush-onastick at 7:10 AM on March 23, 2004


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