I’ve got a nephew who is 3-something years old. He’s really into airplanes. All of the ideas of gifts I’ve found have either been books (I give him books, but I’d like to give him something interactive) or toys that are way above his age level.
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good gift for a 3 to 4-year-old who loves airplanes?
Edit: I just want to give a big thanks to all of you for being so helpful. I’ve got some great ideas for Christmas, his birthday, and beyond if he remains fascinated by planes. Very helpful.
He’s 3, don’t overthink it. When I was 3, one of those Balsa wood gliders was the most fun thing in the world.
This is the first thing that came to mind. I used to get them at the dentist as a kid
https://www.amazon.ca/Glider-Assorted-Birthday-Stocking-Stuffers/dp/B07WHM33X1
Didn’t realize how cheap they were, maybe I’ll get more…
I can’t seem to find them on Amazon, but there used to be those air pump powered planes that were a lot of fun if you had the room to fly them.
Maybe one of those paper airplane building books.
Thank you, that sounds like a great idea!
This!
My kids have had a few of these over the years and they’re great. At 3-4yrs, they’ll needs some help with instructions and folding, but it’s still a great gift.
Maybe see if you have an aviation museum in your area. Some cool planes for the kid to see (or maybe even touch!) and also something for you to enjoy as well. Some also have gift shops as well which would probably be of interest to him.
Yup. Museum of Flight (seattle) or NASM in DC are AMAZING and you can easily spend multiple days just taking in their static displays.
I noticed when I fly a lot of airlines include models of the plane you’re on in the in-flight purchase pamphlet. They’re pretty simple, probably fine for a kid - on the off chance you’re flying somewhere for the holidays.
Amazon has these cool airport play mats. Bundle with a couple toy planes to takeoffs and land with.
Has the child flown on a commercial airline, yet? My son loved having a Southwest branded toy airplane - realistic looking one - after he had flown on that carrier. It let him relive his flight and expand on it in his imagination.
A poster with pictures of airplanes, that you hang up on his playroom wall. And then you look at the planes together and name them every time you visit. That’s awesome fun for a 3 year old.
Matchbox used to make a line of plane toys, not sure if they still do. Been a few years since I paid attention to toy cars
A shirt with an airplane on it. Get one that’s a few sizes too big so he can wear it for a while.
On theme though not literally an aeroplane; the parachuter toys, like little army men that have a parachute on them that you throw out of windows/down the stairs, they were always an absolutely favourite of mine.
Make sure to get the type with netting that connects the parachute to the person as opposed to strings as it can never tangle
I don’t know if the Air & Space Museum has an online gift shop, but they have stuff for all ages. Even if you’re not close to the ones in DC, they have storage hangars all over that they open to the public. Keep an eye out for that.
See if you have a small, local air field that you can get him a flight in a Cessna.
You can get trinkets made from the skins of older, real airplanes.
They could be a cool collection starter and they’re shiny
