By Jamie Quinn · Updated October 23, 2026
Which Ticket to Ride to Buy: USA, Europe, New York or Legacy
For most first-time buyers, get the Ticket to Ride base game in its current refreshed printing: the original United States map for 2 to 5 players, about 30 to 60 minutes a game, $39.99 from Amazon. If you already own it, or your group likes a little more strategy, Ticket to Ride Europe adds tunnels, ferries and stations for the same price. For a couple who want a full game, Europe is also my two-player pick; for a 15-minute game, Ticket to Ride New York costs about $21. For kids aged 6 and 7, First Journey. Rails & Sails and Legacy: Legends of the West are for groups who already love the game.
Every box I pick below is a standalone game: you do not need the base game to play it. The exceptions are USA 1910, a card expansion for the US map, and the Map Collection boxes (such as United Kingdom + Pennsylvania), whose listings say the base game is required.
The Boxes Compared
| Box | Players and time | Price (Oct 23) |
|---|---|---|
| Base game (USA) | 2 to 5, 30 to 60 min | $39.99 |
| Europe | 2 to 5, 30 to 60 min | $39.99 |
| New York | 2 to 4, 10 to 15 min | $20.98 |
| First Journey (kids 6+) | 2 to 4, 15 to 30 min | $39.99 |
| Northern Lights | 2 to 5, 30 to 60 min | $54.99 |
| Rails & Sails | 2 to 5, 90 to 120 min | $85.90 |
| Legacy (12 games) | 2 to 5, 20 to 90 min each | $103.28 |
Prices are the Amazon offers I checked on October 23 and move often. Player counts and play times come from the publisher's rules as summarized on Wikipedia's Ticket to Ride article, and from each Amazon listing.
How to Choose
- First Ticket to Ride. The base game. Many rankings put Europe first, but its tunnels, ferries and stations are extra rules on top of the US game, and the refreshed US printing has 657 ratings at 4.8 against 85 at 4.0 for the refreshed Europe. The US box also already has the large cards that used to be the main reason to buy USA 1910.
- You own the base game, or your group already plays board games. Europe: stations let you borrow a route an opponent has blocked, and tunnels and ferries change what a route costs.
- Two players. For a full game, Europe: its stations let you use one route your opponent has taken, so a two-player game is less likely to stall on one blocked route. The 2 to 3 player Scandinavia map, Nordic Countries, is the usual couples' recommendation, but its Amazon listing had no offer on October 23. Northern Lights covers the same four countries for 2 to 5 players at $54.99.
- Short on time. New York is a small express version for 2 to 4 that plays in 10 to 15 minutes. It costs $19.01 less than the base game.
- Kids aged 6 and 7. First Journey: bigger pieces, a smaller board, no score counting, 15 to 30 minutes.
- A long game with ships. Rails & Sails plays on a double-sided world map and Great Lakes map with train and ship cards. It is rated for ages 10 and up and runs 90 to 120 minutes.
- A campaign. Legacy: Legends of the West is 12 linked games that unlock new rules and content as you play. It costs $63.29 more than the base game.
The Boxes in Detail
1. Ticket to Ride, Start Here
The original game on a map of North America in the early 20th century: collect sets of colored train cards, claim routes, and score for completed destination tickets and the longest route. It won Germany's Spiel des Jahres in 2004. Amazon sells the current refreshed printing itself at $39.99, with a 4.8 rating from 657 reviews.
What the refresh changed, per Opinionated Gamers' review: large train cards the same size as USA 1910's, 33 destination tickets instead of 30 (the three new ones are from 1910), a score track that runs to 100, and a new setup where each player is dealt four tickets and must keep two. That reviewer's view is that an owner of a copy in good shape does not need to replace it.
2. Ticket to Ride Europe, the Next Map
A standalone game for 2 to 5 players with 225 plastic trains, 15 stations, 110 train cards and 46 tickets, per the listing. Tunnels can cost extra cards, ferries need locomotive cards, and stations let you use one route another player owns. The refreshed printing is $39.99 from Amazon, $10 less than the older Europe listing at $49.99, but it has only 85 ratings so far, averaging 4.0. The older listing's 4.8 from more than 14,800 reviews is the better guide to the game itself.
3. Ticket to Ride New York, the Quick One
An express version set in 1960s Manhattan, for 2 to 4 players in 10 to 15 minutes, with tourist attractions that score extra. It is $20.98 from Amazon with a 4.7 rating from more than 2,500 reviews. A good travel or two-player copy; it is not a smaller version of the US map.
4. Ticket to Ride Rails & Sails, the Big World Map
Trains and ships on a double-sided board: the world on one side, the Great Lakes on the other. It has the highest rating on this page with the most reviews, 4.9 from more than 4,200, and it is the longest game here. At $85.90 from Amazon it is a second box for a group that already plays.
5. Ticket to Ride Legacy: Legends of the West, the Campaign
A 12-game campaign by Rob Daviau, Matt Leacock and Alan R. Moon: you run a railway company across North America, open boxes that add rules and content, and end with a map no other copy has. Like other legacy games, the campaign changes the components, so it is played through once with one group. $103.28 from Amazon, 4.8 from 350 reviews.
6. Ticket to Ride USA 1910, the Card Expansion
Not a new map: 181 large-format cards that replace the original deck, 35 destination tickets, and three ways to play (1910, Mega Game and Big Cities). It needs the base game. On an older copy it adds the large cards and all the extra tickets. On the refreshed printing, whose cards are already the same size and which already has three of the 1910 tickets, it adds the other 32 tickets and the Mega Game and Big Cities modes. Opinionated Gamers reports that a refreshed 1910 is rumored. $20.23 from Amazon, 4.9 from more than 4,100 reviews.
7. Ticket to Ride First Journey, for Kids
The kids' version for ages 6 and up and 2 to 4 players: bigger pieces, a smaller board and shorter routes. Players start with two tickets that are replaced as they are completed, and there is no point scoring, so a child can play without adding up a score track. Games take 15 to 30 minutes. $39.99 from Amazon, 4.8 from more than 5,600 reviews. A newer First Journey listing sells for $29.99 but has only 17 ratings.
Also on Amazon: Ticket to Ride Northern Lights, a standalone map of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland with rail and sea routes for 2 to 5 players, 30 to 60 minutes, $54.99, 4.6 from 75 reviews. See Northern Lights on Amazon.
Related Guides
Choosing between editions of another big game? See my guides to which Catan to buy, which Wingspan to buy and which Gloomhaven to buy. New to the hobby, start with my gateway board games; for two, see board games for two. More in family games.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need the base game for Europe or New York?
No. Europe, New York, Northern Lights, Rails & Sails, Legacy and First Journey are standalone games. USA 1910 and the Map Collection boxes need a base game.
Which Ticket to Ride is best for two players?
For a full game, Europe, because its stations keep a two-player game from stalling on one blocked route. Nordic Countries, made for 2 to 3, had no Amazon offer on October 23. For a quick game, New York, for 2 to 4 in 10 to 15 minutes.
Is Ticket to Ride Europe harder than the original?
A little. It adds tunnels, ferries and stations on top of the same core rules, so most groups learn the base game first or teach Europe to players who already know it.
What is the right age for Ticket to Ride?
The publisher rates the standard games for ages 8 and up and Rails & Sails and Legacy for 10 and up. First Journey is made for ages 6 and up.
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