Secret Santa gifts for train fans: small ideas that land

Secret Santa gifts for train fans are easier than they look, because rail people tend to love the small, specific stuff: a print of an old railway poster, a notebook for spotting, a single model wagon for the layout. The trick is matching the gift to the kind of train fan they are and keeping inside whatever limit the organiser has set.

What's a good Secret Santa gift for a train fan?

Something they'll use or display, tied to trains they actually care about. A generic "I love trains" novelty item will get a polite smile. A print of the line they grew up near will get a proper one.

A bit of quiet research helps. Find out:

• which station they use, or which line they talk about
• whether they're more steam and heritage, or modern trains and timetables
• whether they build models, and if so in which gauge (OO is the common one in Britain, N is smaller)

Two or three answers are usually enough to pick something good.

Small train gifts that fit a Secret Santa budget

These all tend to sit at the cheaper end, depending on where you buy them:

• A railway poster print. Reprints of the old railway company posters are easy to find, and a simple frame makes them look far more expensive than they are. The Jolly Fisherman and his "Skegness is so bracing" line is the famous example.
• A spotting notebook and pencil. A pocket notebook with a decent cover is properly useful at a platform end. Pencils keep going in the cold and wet, which pens don't always manage.
• An enamel badge or keyring with a locomotive, a station sign or an old railway company crest.
• A model wagon or small accessory in their gauge, for modellers. Check the gauge first.
• A tea towel or mug printed with a route map or a vintage timetable design.
• A small railway book: walks along old lines, a pocket guide to a region's railways, or a book of railway photographs.

Secret Santa at work: train gifts for the office

Office swaps have their own rules. The gift gets opened in front of everyone, so keep it light, useful and easy to carry home on the train (which, given the theme, seems fitting).

Desk-friendly ideas:

• a coaster or mug with a vintage railway design
• a desk calendar of railway photographs
• a small book about the line most of the office commutes on
• a pocket notebook for the person who's always checking times

There's also a free idea for the whole office, outside the Secret Santa itself. If lots of people leave by train, put a live departure board for the nearest station on a spare screen. The free live demo runs full screen in a browser, with no signup, and shows the next trains with platforms, delays and calling points. Our guide to a live departure board on any screen explains how.

Going in together for a bigger present

Sometimes a Secret Santa turns into a whip-round, especially for a leaving do, a retirement, or the colleague everybody knows is train-mad. That's when a bigger present makes sense.

A live departure board for their own station is a good one for a group. TrainTicker Desktop is £199.99, with no subscription, and shows the next trains from any National Rail station in Great Britain on an amber LED board like the ones on the platform. It works for the station they commute from or one with a bit of sentimental pull.

At checkout, tick the gift option and add a note from everyone. The note is printed on the packing slip and gift orders ship with no prices on it. Delivery takes 3 to 4 weeks, so a group buying for Christmas should collect the money early. For leaving and retirement gifts, see our guide to retirement gifts for railway workers.

Secret Santa train gift ideas at a glance

What to avoid

A few common misses:

1. Model kit in the wrong gauge. It won't fit the layout and they'll feel bad saying so.
2. Duplicates. Enthusiasts collect, so the obvious book may already be on the shelf.
3. Anything that teases them for liking trains. Save the jokes for the card.
4. Going over the limit. It makes everyone else feel awkward, and that rather spoils the point of Secret Santa.

For more small ideas, try our stocking fillers for train lovers. For the bigger family present, see Christmas gifts for train lovers.