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How to play Lost Cities (2026): Lost Cities is Reiner Knizia’s two-player card game about funding expeditions. You lay cards in rising order to build routes, bet on the ones you trust, and try not to start more expeditions than you can finish. A game takes about 15 minutes, and a full match is three games. This guide follows the current Thames & Kosmos rules for the edition with the sixth expedition.
Get the game: Lost Cities Card Game (with 6th Expedition)
This edition comes with a two-sided board: one side for the classic five-expedition game and one for the longer six-expedition variant, plus 72 cards. It is one of the best two-player card games you can buy.
Price band: $10–$20 (about $20) · Check today’s price on Amazon
What is in the Lost Cities box
- 1 two-sided game board (base game side and long game side)
- 72 cards in six colors: 54 expedition cards numbered 2 to 10 and 18 wager cards, three per color
- Rules for the base game and the long game variant
Setting up the base game
- Place the board between the two players with the base game side up. It has five discard spaces, one per color.
- Return the 12 purple cards (9 expedition cards and 3 wager cards) to the box. The base game uses 60 cards.
- Shuffle and deal eight cards to each player. Place the rest face down as the draw pile.
- Keep pen and paper handy for scoring. The oldest player goes first.
A turn in Lost Cities
Every turn has two steps, always in this order: play a card, then draw a card.
Step 1: play or discard
- Play to an expedition: place a card on your side of the board in the column for its color. Each new card must be higher than the last card you played in that column.
- Wager cards go first: you may play one, two or three wager cards at the start of a column, but never after a number card of that color.
- Or discard: place a card face up on the matching discard pile in the middle of the board.
Step 2: draw
Take the top card of the draw pile, or the top card of any discard pile. You may not draw the card you just discarded on the same turn.
How a game of Lost Cities ends
The game ends the moment a player draws the last card from the draw pile. Near the end, players may agree to fan out the pile to count the remaining cards and judge how many turns are left.
Scoring an expedition
- Add up the numbers on the cards in a column.
- Subtract 20 points for the cost of the expedition. A color you never started costs nothing and scores nothing.
- If the column has one, two or three wager cards, multiply the result by two, three or four.
- Add a bonus of 20 points for any column with at least eight cards. The bonus is not multiplied.
A column can score negative points, and wagers multiply losses as well as gains. That is why starting an expedition late in the game is so risky.
Playing a full match
Write down both scores, then deal a new game. The player with more points so far goes first in the next game. After three games, the higher total wins.
The long game with six expeditions
For a longer game, flip the board to the long game side, which has six expedition spaces, and shuffle all 72 cards together, including the purple ones. Everything else plays the same way.
Lost Cities strategy tips
- Do not start every color. Three or four strong expeditions usually beat five weak ones.
- Play low cards early, but do not rush. Every number you skip is gone for good in that column.
- Only place wagers when you hold enough cards in that color to clear the 20-point cost.
- Watch your opponent’s columns before discarding. A card they need on a discard pile is a gift.
- Count the draw pile late in the game, and stop starting new routes when it gets thin.
Common Lost Cities mistakes
- Playing a wager after a number card in the same color.
- Drawing back the card you just discarded.
- Multiplying the eight-card bonus by your wagers. It always stays at 20.
Compare it with another two-player favorite in Lost Cities vs Jaipur, or browse our best 2-player card games.
Lost Cities rules questions
How many cards do you hold in Lost Cities?
Eight. You play or discard one card and then draw one, so your hand always returns to eight.
Can you play more than one wager card on an expedition?
Yes. You can play up to three wager cards in a color, as long as you play them before any number card in that color.
What does the 20-point bonus in Lost Cities mean?
Any expedition with at least eight cards earns 20 extra points, which are added after the wager multiplier.
Is Lost Cities only for two players?
Yes. The card game is designed for exactly two players.
