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Boston holiday gift guide for the transportation fan in your life

Including books, clothes, and experiences

Got someone on your list who’s really into planes, trains, and automobiles (and bikes)? Here are some suggestions for the perfect gift this holiday season.


Everything T-related

↑ Perhaps the best place to start when hunting for a present for that transportation freak in your life is the MBTA’s official online gift shop.

Myriad T-related merchandise can be found within, including clothing, calendars, jewelry, mouse pads, notebooks, signage, and water bottles. The wooden toy commuter-rail train above is $29.95.

For Logan lovers

Micha Weber/Shutterstock

↑ You never know: Someone might really be into Logan Airport, with all its delays and crowding and pricey eats.

For those folks, try vendors such as Redbubble, which sell all sorts of merchandise related to the legendary aviation hub, including t-shirts, bags, mugs, and wall art. This handy pillow retails for $18.92.

Some Hubway help

EQRoy/Shutterstock

↑ The Boston region’s esteemed—and apparently winter-proof—bike-share system offers the opportunity to purchase gift memberships online.

Right now, Hubway’s offering a yearly membership for $79, which is $20 cheaper than usual. There are also 30-day, 72-hour, and 24-hour gift passes available.

And, for good measure, maybe a Hubway helmet, too?

Museum pieces

↑ Boston’s mega-popular Museum of Science features a permanent exhibit on transportation. That exhibit includes trains, boats, and “a real-life steam engine.”

Museum admission for adults is $25, for seniors $21, and for kids $20.

Something to read on the way

Construction in Kenmore Square around 1914
City of Boston Archives

↑ There are plenty of books about Boston transportation, including fun kids’ books (such as Dave Brigham’s A Wicked Good T Trip!) and lush picture books (such as Frank Cheney’s Boston’s Blue Line).

For a Boston transit tome with a little dramatic kick to it, might we recommend Doug Most’s The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry That Built America’s First Subway? It’s about exactly what its title implies. Spoiler alert: We won.