Ticket to Ride USA: A Beginner’s Guide to Cross-Country Strategy

Ticket to Ride: USA is a fast-paced, easy-to-learn board game that blends strategy, competition, and just the right amount of luck. Whether you’re new to tabletop games or looking for your next family favorite, this cross-country adventure is a great place to start.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the components, setup, rules, and tips for winning your first game.

What Is Ticket to Ride USA?

Ticket to Ride is a railway-themed board game where players collect cards to build train routes across a map of the United States. The goal is to complete secret destination tickets by connecting cities—while trying to block opponents along the way.

It’s competitive, strategic, and simple enough for kids 8 and up to enjoy.

Love travel-themed games? You might also like How to Play Sequence for Kids or Throw Throw Burrito for more group-friendly fun.

What’s in the Box?

1 U.S. map game board

240 colored train cars

110 train car cards

30 destination tickets

5 wooden scoring markers

Rulebook

Players: 2–5
Ages: 8+
Play Time: 30–60 minutes

Setup Instructions

Place the board on a flat surface and give each player 45 train cars and a matching score marker.
Shuffle the train car cards and deal 4 to each player.
Shuffle the destination tickets and deal 3 to each player. Keep at least 2 (you can discard 1).
Place the rest of the train cards as a draw pile, and flip over 5 face-up cards next to it.
Score markers go on the “0” spot on the scoring track.

How to Play: Step-by-Step

Players take turns in clockwise order. On your turn, you must choose one of these three actions:

1. Draw Train Cards

Draw 2 cards (from the face-up display or the deck).
If you take a Locomotive (wild card) from the face-up display, it counts as both picks.

2. Claim a Route

Play a set of matching color cards equal to the number of spaces on a route between two cities.
Place your trains on the spaces.
Score points based on the length of the route (longer routes = more points).

Need a visual breakdown of scoring? Check out our product Ticket to Ride USA

3. Draw Destination Tickets

Draw 3 new destination tickets (you must keep at least 1).
These are worth bonus points if completed—or negative points if not.

End of Game

The game ends when a player has 2 or fewer train cars left. Each player then takes one final turn.

Final scoring includes:

Route points
Completed destination tickets (+ points)
Incomplete destination tickets (– points)
Longest continuous route bonus (+10 points)

The player with the most points wins.

Quick Tips to Win Ticket to Ride

Don’t hold too many tickets—you’ll risk losing points.
Secure long routes early—especially the coast-to-coast paths.
Pay attention to opponents’ moves—they might be aiming for your route.
Use wild cards (locomotives) wisely—they’re rare and powerful.

Planning a family game night? Pair Ticket to Ride with How to Play Taboo or How To Play Codenames

for a fun, varied lineup.

Final Thoughts

Ticket to Ride USA is more than a board game—it’s a cross-country race of strategy, planning, and surprise turnarounds. It’s a modern classic that belongs on every game shelf.

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