Ask HN: Gift Ideas for 3 year old?
1 LecroJS 8 7/12/2025, 9:12:45 PM
My niece is turning 3 years old soon and I need to bring something for her birthday. I don’t have much experience buying gifts for kids and am interested in learning what others have had success with. She does not have any particular interests yet apart from playing with whatever is in front of her. My price range is up to ~$200. What have you had success with? What have you not had success with?
https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/big-interactive-community...
You get both the duplo pieces to build a train track and train stations, but also the train engine itself is battery powered, drives around and includes a sensor that lets it react to different sections of the train.
In my experience, that's where it's at. My niece at ~3 was as excited about the wrapping as the thing inside, sometimes more so. She was also swimming in toys thanks to family members.
If you really want to spend a lot of money, ask if the parents have a savings account for her or something, and get some crayons or other flashy fun stuff for like $3 or whatever.
If there is a Children's Hospital near you they usually have unique things in their gift shop also pricey but worth it.