Many players mistakenly believe they can reuse the same plastic train pieces to extend their path, but the official rules prohibit this.
According to the Days of Wonder Official Rulebook, the Longest Continuous Path is determined by evaluating continuous lines of plastic trains of the same color.
Alice has a continuous line of blue trains that loops through Chicago and ends in New York. Bob also has a blue line that passes through the same cities but uses more individual train pieces. When calculating the bonus, Alice's path is measured against Bob's, and the player with the highest count of unique pieces in a single continuous line wins the card.
Common Misconceptions
Reusing the same plastic train piece twice in one path
Counting trains of different colors as part of the same continuous path
Including opponent's routes with stations in your path calculation (Europe edition)
Quick Reference
You Can
You Cannot
Include loops in your continuous path
Use the same plastic train twice in one path
Pass through the same city multiple times
Count different colored trains as one path
Award the bonus to all tied players in a tie
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the official rule for the longest continuous path in Ticket to Ride?
It is the longest line of plastic trains of a single color, where no piece is used twice.
Can I go through the same city twice in my longest route?
Yes, a continuous path may pass through the same city several times.
What happens if two players tie for the longest path?
All tied players receive the 10 point bonus.
Does the longest path include my different colored trains?
No, you only count continuous lines of trains of the same color.
David Noah is a board game rules specialist and content creator who writes clear, dispute‑free guides for modern tabletop games. On this site, he focuses on answering the exact rules questions players argue about at the table, using official rulebooks, expansions, and tournament rulings as his primary sources. His goal is to turn confusing edge cases into simple, step‑by‑step explanations so you can spend less time debating and more time playing.
