All aboard! The train to Sarajevo is leaving from platform 1!

Ticket to Ride: My First Journey won't be new to a lot of you. Ticket to Ride is a staple in the board gaming community and it boasts 27 different versions not including map expansions etc. But for those of you who aren't familiar, let me supply a quick run down:

The board is a map of a region of the world. Say USA (as it is in the original.) You have several tickets that show routes you must complete, California to Alaska for example. You fulfill these routes by collecting different colour train cards and playing the right number of the right colour to fill a portion of your route. That's it. It's that simple. And it is excellent. A modern classic for our times and I recommend to everyone that's getting into boardgames.

To this end a Kids version of TTR (Ticket to ride) in my opinion, is a must have. The My First Journey version of this game is great, the trains are big and tactile, the board is huge and clear and the map is of the whole world. But, what I think is the best design by far is the inclusion of big colourful pictures for each city on the map. 

When Elidi and I played I had envisioned having to help her with the tickets as she can't read yet, (she's 4 not the suggested 6 on the box) however because of these big pictures representing cities she was no longer going from Sarajevo to Madrid. She was going from the 'Dancing Lady' to the 'Angry Bull'. This made the game instantly playable for her, she even beat me in our first play through. 

There are a few extra bits included in the box I've not covered yet. First off there's a golden ticket that goes to the winner, lovely touch. Secondly there are East to West cards, you gain one of these if you manage to connect one of the West most countries to one of the East most. These don't come in to play when I play with Elidi, but when I played with her cousin Grace (9 years old) they decided the game (in her favour.)

In closing I think this game is a great addition to any blossoming junior gamer's collection if not only for the great gameplay but also for the wordly education that comes with it. Elidi has learnt so many cities from the few plays we've had, Berlin, Sarajevo, Latvia, Madrid and more.

There is an argument to be made that you can play the smaller two player TTR: New York with children but I would argue that, that version bridges the gap between My First Journey and a fully fledged TTR. 

Hurry up and don't miss the Ticket To Ride: My First Journey train! Its a goodun!