Family game
Ticket to Ride: First Journey
A shorter, simpler Ticket to Ride made for children six and up
- 2–4best with 2-4
- 15–30 minper game
- About 3 minto set up
- 6+years
- Very easy
- Littlereading
The official edition, on Amazon.in
There's no Indian edition, so this is the official imported game. Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery.
Paid link. We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
The game in a nutshell
Ticket to Ride: First Journey is Days of Wonder's version of Ticket to Ride for children aged 6 and up. Two to four players collect coloured train cards, lay plastic trains between cities and race to complete six route tickets, and a game takes about 15 to 30 minutes. It suits families with a 6- to 8-year-old, and parents who already like Ticket to Ride and want a version their child can play with them. In India the Europe-map box is the one sold, and every copy is an import.
Is Ticket to Ride: First Journey right for you?
Great if
- A 6- to 8-year-old's first proper board game: there are real choices to make, but no points to add up
- Parents who already enjoy Ticket to Ride and want something their child can play with them
- Short sessions after school or before dinner, since most games end within 15 to 30 minutes
- Getting children looking at a map of Europe and planning how to get from one city to another
Skip it if
- Your children are 8 or older. The full Ticket to Ride is marked 8+ and will hold their interest for longer
- You want an Indian edition. There isn't one, so every copy here is an import
- You usually have more than four players
A place on the honours list
Good company to be in.
Recognition from beyond our table.
Guldbrikken, Children's Game of the Year (Denmark), USA-map version, 2017 (Winner)
How Ticket to Ride: First Journey plays
Each player gets 20 plastic trains in one colour, four train cards and two tickets. A ticket names two cities, and your job is to join them with an unbroken line of your own trains. The board is a simplified map of Europe, with each city marked by a large, bright landmark.
- Time to teach: about 5 minutes.
- Reading and language: A child can take a turn without reading, because train cards are matched by colour. Tickets name two cities and the board marks each city with a large landmark picture, but a child who can't read yet may need help finding the cities for the first few games. The rulesheet is short, so an adult only needs to read it once.
How to play Ticket to Ride First Journey · Triple S Games
Choose a video · Watch right here
If this creator doesn’t allow embedded playback, watch on YouTube ↗.
Your turn, step by step
- 1Draw
Take the top two train cards from the deck. Unlike the full game, there is no face-up row to choose from.
- 2Claim
Or hand in cards that match a route's colour and length (locomotives are wild) and put one of your trains on each space. You can claim only one route a turn.
- 3Tickets
When your trains join the two cities on a ticket, turn it face up and draw a new one. If both your tickets are blocked, use your turn to swap them for two new ones.
- 4Win
The first to complete six tickets wins; linking an eastern city to a western one earns a bonus ticket that counts as one. If someone places their last train first, the most completed tickets wins, and tied players share the win.
The full explanation: how a game of Ticket to Ride: First Journey goes
On your turn you do one thing. You can draw the top two cards from the train deck, or you can claim a route by handing in cards that match its colour and length, such as two yellow cards for a yellow route that is two spaces long. Locomotive cards are wild and count as any colour. Unlike the grown-up game, there is no row of face-up cards to choose from and fewer options to weigh, so turns are quick.
When your trains join the two cities on a ticket, you turn it face up and draw a new ticket straight away, so you always have something to aim for. If other players' trains block both of your tickets, you can use a turn to swap them for two new ones. Unfinished tickets never cost you anything.
Joining one of the eastern cities (Moscow, Rostov or Ankara) to one of the western cities (Dublin, Brest or Madrid) earns a bonus ticket, and it counts as one completed ticket towards the six. The first player to complete six tickets wins and takes the Golden Ticket card. If someone places their last train before that, the game ends at once and whoever has completed the most tickets wins. Tied players share the win.
Compared with the full Ticket to Ride, this version drops the points, the scoring track, the long-route bonus and the penalty for missed tickets. That makes it easier for children to follow. Adults get fewer decisions, so expect a relaxed game with your child rather than a challenge for yourself.
What's in the box
- 1Game board
simplified map of Europe with large landmark pictures for the cities - 80Plastic trains
20 in each of 4 colours; the rulesheet says a few spares are included - 72Train cards
six colours plus wild locomotive cards - 32Ticket cards
each names two cities to join - 4Bonus tickets
for joining an eastern city (Moscow, Rostov or Ankara) to a western one (Dublin, Brest or Madrid) - 1Golden Ticket card
goes to the winner - 1Rulesheet
Box: 27.8 × 27.8 × 6 cm, 1.2 kg. Handy to know for gifting and travel.
From Days of Wonder's First Journey page and its English Europe-map rulesheet (item 720027). The USA-map box has the same parts with a map of North America, and its bonus tickets are for joining the west coast to the east coast. Neither source says how many of the 72 train cards are locomotives.
Where to buy
The official edition, on Amazon.in
There's no Indian edition, so this is the official imported game. Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery.
Opens Amazon.in in a new tab.
There is no Indian edition, and we found no Indian distributor for First Journey. Funskool's name appears on an Amazon.in listing for the grown-up Ticket to Ride Europe, but not on any First Journey listing. Every copy is an import. Our Amazon.in link goes to Days of Wonder's Europe-map edition, an import.
How to make sure you get a genuine copyA little care before you click.
- Look for the Days of Wonder logo and designer Alan R. Moon's name on the box.
- Count the contents: 80 plastic trains (20 in each of four colours), 72 train cards, 32 tickets, 4 bonus tickets and 1 Golden Ticket card.
- The Europe-map box sold in India carries barcode 824968200278.
- Make sure you are buying First Journey and not the grown-up game. Amazon.in has several low-priced 'Ticket to Ride Europe' listings from unfamiliar brands. Those use the full game's name, are not First Journey and are not sold under Days of Wonder.
- Be wary of a First Journey box from an unknown brand that costs a fraction of the usual price; the genuine game carries the Days of Wonder name.
We link to one Amazon.in listing that we've checked against the maker's own information. We don't show prices: Amazon shows today's price, the seller and delivery. Paid link. We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
What reviewers and players say
Reviewers see First Journey as one of the best first board games for children of about 5 to 8. It keeps the heart of Ticket to Ride, collecting coloured cards, claiming routes and linking cities, but drops the scoring, so a child simply races to finish six tickets and a game ends in under half an hour. Parents who play the full game call it a faithful adaptation and a natural stepping stone. The catches: drawing blind from the deck adds a lot of luck, grown-ups get few real decisions, and most children are ready for the full game by about 8.
What people love
- Children pick it up quickly, and with no points to add up a six-year-old can play without help after a game or two
- Games are short, about 15 to 30 minutes, which holds young children's attention better than the full game
- Bright artwork and slightly larger, detailed trains that appeal to children, and the parts are sturdy
- A faithful mini version of Ticket to Ride that parents enjoy sharing before moving on to the full game
Common complaints
- Without the face-up cards of the full game, you can wait several turns for the colour you need, so luck plays a big part
- Some moves are obvious and adults have few real choices, so it is a game to play with children rather than for grown-ups
- Children outgrow it: by about 8, most are ready for the full Ticket to Ride
Based on 7 reviews and discussions
- Review Ticket to Ride First Journey Board Game Review and Rules (Eric Mortensen, January 2020) · Geeky Hobbies
- Video Ticket to Ride: First Journey (Europe) Review - with Tom Vasel (Tom Vasel, May 2018) · The Dice Tower (YouTube)
- Review Ticket to Ride: First Journey - The Kids Version (QuiverQuinn, October 2016) · Board Game Stories
- Players Comment in 'Simplifying Board Games' (mpettitt, June 2020) · Hacker News
- Players Comment in 'Simplifying Board Games' (michaelbuckbee, June 2020) · Hacker News
- Reference Ticket to Ride (board game): First Journey section and accolades (read October 2026) · Wikipedia
- Reference Ticket to Ride: First Journey (publisher page with contents and rules) · Days of Wonder
Summarised in our own words from the sources above. We don't use Amazon reviews or ratings.
More like Ticket to Ride: First Journey
Our picks if Ticket to Ride: First Journey isn't quite right
| Feature |
Ticket to Ride: First Journey |
Ticket to Ride |
Dragomino |
Sleeping Queens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | 2–4 | 2–5 | 2–4 | 2–5 |
| Best with | 2-4 | 4 | 2-4 | 3-5 |
| Play time | 15–30 min | 30–60 min | 15–20 min | 15–20 min |
| Age | 6+ | 8+ | 5+ | 8+ |
| Rules | Easy | Easy | Easy | Easy |
| Indian edition | Import | Import | Import | Import |
| Why look at it | This page | The full game this is based on, for ages 8 and up, with scoring, longer routes and more decisions | Another children's version of a family favourite (Kingdomino), for ages 5 and up, with no reading at all | A 20-minute card game for the same family table, with some simple addition built in |
More by Alan R. Moon
More from Days of Wonder
More route-building games
See allTicket to Ride
Collect coloured cards and claim railway routes across America.
Connectors: Mission Space
Link picture tiles into a path through planets and galaxies
Saboteur
Dwarves dig for gold while hidden saboteurs try to block the tunnel
Catan
Trade wheat for brick, build roads, and race to ten points.
Brass: Birmingham
Build canals, railways and industries across Industrial Revolution England
Questions people ask about Ticket to Ride: First Journey
Which Ticket to Ride is best for a 6-year-old?
First Journey is the one made for that age. The box says 6+, a game lasts 15 to 30 minutes and there are no points to count. The regular Ticket to Ride is marked 8+, so it is the natural next step once your child is comfortable planning routes.
Is Ticket to Ride: First Journey available in India?
Only as an import: there is no Indian edition, and the Europe-map box is the one sold in India. Our Buy on Amazon.in button goes to the listing we've checked; make sure the brand is Days of Wonder.
Should I buy the USA map or the Europe map of First Journey?
The rules are the same; only the map and pictures change. The Europe-map box is the one sold in India, and it is the one our Amazon.in link goes to, so it is the practical choice here. We did not find the USA-map version in India.
How is First Journey different from regular Ticket to Ride?
It has a smaller board, shorter routes, 20 trains per player and no scoring. You draw train cards only from the top of the deck, finished tickets are replaced straight away, and the winner is the first player to complete six tickets.
Game facts
- Designed by
- Alan R. Moon
- Publisher
- Days of Wonder (Asmodee)
- First published
- 2016
- Players
- 2–4
- Barcode
- 824968200278
- Language
- Little reading – A child can take a turn without reading, because train cards are matched by colour. Tickets name two cities and the board marks each city with a large landmark picture, but a child who can't read yet may need help finding the cities for the first few games. The rulesheet is short, so an adult only needs to read it once.
- Box size and weight
- 27.8 × 27.8 × 6 cm, 1.2 kg
- Awards
- Guldbrikken, Children's Game of the Year (Denmark), USA-map version, 2017 (Winner)
Sources & photo creditsThe references behind this guide.
Facts on this page come from the publisher, the Indian maker or distributor, and the sources below. Photos are credited under each one.
- Ticket to Ride: First Journey – Days of Wonder (publisher page)
- Ticket to Ride (board game) – Wikipedia
- Ticket to Ride: First Journey Europe – Board Games India
- Ticket to Ride First Journey rules – Official Game Rules
- Ticket to Ride First Journey rules – Geeky Hobbies
- Ticket to Ride: First Journey (Europe map) rules, English – Days of Wonder (PDF)