"CATAN - Traveler" is based on the same rules as the "CATAN" base game, its "big brother." At the beginning of the game, you and your opponents each build 2 settlements on the island of CATAN. If the numbers of the terrain hexes your settlements are adjacent to are rolled, you receive resources. You use these resources - ore, brick, grain, lumber, and wool - to build roads in order to reach new settlement sites, to upgrade your settlements to cities, or to buy development cards so you can, at the right moment, turn the tide in your favor. If you lack a particular resource type, you trade with your opponents. If you trade cleverly and have a little bit of luck, you have a good chance to win the game.
The most important differences between "CATAN - Traveler" and the "CATAN" base game:
"CATAN - Traveler" cannot be used with the Catan expansions; however, it is a nice and elegant alternative when traveling or on vacation – particularly if you want to settle CATAN with a partner.