Do I have to pick destination cards?

Question

I just claimed my final route and now have 2 cars left, so everyone gets one last turn, including me. Must I pick new destination cards on my final turn and then lose those points in the final tally?

Are you required to pick new destination cards when you have fulfilled all your routes, no matter what turn you are on?

Answer 1

You are never required to obtain additional destination tickets cards, even if you've completed the ones you have.

You have three options available to you:

• You could claim a route. Remember, routes are worth points, and nothing prevents someone from claiming routes once their destination tickets have been completed.
• You could pick new destination ticket cards. You might get lucky and get one or more that's already completed! If you don't think you're winning, this can be very effective.
• If you're unable or unwilling to take the above actions, you can effectively "pass" by drawing more transportation cards.

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While I used the terminology of New York in this answer, this answer applies to all of the following:

• Ticket to Ride
• Ticket to Ride: Asia
• Ticket to Ride: Europe (You also have the option to build a train station.)
• Ticket to Ride: Germany
• Ticket to Ride: India
• Ticket to Ride: New York
• Ticket to Ride: Nordic Countries
• Ticket to Ride: Pennsylvania
• Ticket to Ride: Switzerland
• Ticket to Ride: United Kingdom (You still have the option of buying a technology card before your normal action.)

I have no experience with the other Ticket to Ride titles.

Answer 2

No, you do not have to claim new destination cards. There are other options available, such as claiming routes to block others or pick up the points.

Deliberately aiming to complete the minimum destinations early and claim routes arbitrarily to block the opponents can even be a viable strategy depending on what you first pick up at the start of the game.

Answer 3

Starting with the youngest player and proceeding in clockwise order, players take turns until the game ends. On your turn, you must do one (and only one) of the following three actions: draw Transportation cards, claim a Route, or draw Destination Ticket cards.

https://ncdn0.daysofwonder.com/tickettoride/en/img/tt_ny_en_rules_2018.pdf

There's nothing there about having to claim new Destination Tickets. Destination Tickets are purely a matter of end-of-game scoring; they have no direct effect on the game state during play. You don't reveal what Destination Tickets you have until the end of the game, so other players have no idea whether you've completed them or not (although skilled players will be able to make deductions from your play). So if there were a rule saying you have to draw new Destination Tickets once you've fulfilled your current ones, it would rely on players being honest (and observant; if you're focused on other things, you could not notice that you've completed all your Destination Tickets, especially if it's a circuitous route). Moreover, it would punish players for finishing their Destination Tickets, and finishing Destination Tickets is a major part of the game. Game makers tend to try to avoid rules that punish players for achieving the goal of the game, reward dishonest players, or result in players that are not paying attention looking like they deliberately broke the rules.