Despite not being the most straightforward way to win inCivilization 6, winning by a cultural victory in the game provides its own kind of satisfaction and challenge.Cultural Victorieshave a lot ofstipulations to be made for them to work, and they rely a lot on a player’s ability to do diplomacy well with the other nations in the game.
This is why it is important to know every little tip and trick that is out there so that any fan deciding to play the game with the goal of a cultural victory in mind is ready for anything.
Updated on July 02, 2025 by Rhenn Taguiam:With Firaxis Games teasingCivilization 7with a 2025 release date, fans of the acclaimed grand strategy series might be eager to see just what the new titlehas in store for them - especially with the rise of other games in the genre. However, fans who want to deep-dive into theCivilizationseries while waiting for this new release may want to consider exploring the many different victory options available to them in otherCivtitles. One such example would be the pursuit of a Cultural Victory inCivilization 6, which emphasizes on the game’s Culture Points mechanic. Players having a hard time pulling off this victory condition should consider tips such as starting off strong, maximizing opportunities to develop trade and commerce, and ensuring they have developed proper relationships with other nations.
1Setting Up Late Can Cost The Match
Secure The Upgrades, Theater Square District Before Costs Go Up
Players gunning for a Cultural Victory in theirCivilization 6playthroughs know the best way to do so is to improve their Tourism and increase their Victory Points. However, multiplayer matches where different Civs pursue Cultural Victories may see one faction fare better against another for one simple reason: the speed of their upgrades.
It’s ideal for players not just to quickly secure an optimal number of cities, but also to get their Theater Districts up and running as soon as possible. District costs also increase according to the player’sunlocked Technologiesand Civics number. Even if players eventually secure their Theater Districts later, they may effectively be late when unlocking other Culture-adjacent mechanics such as Great Works.
2Maximize Trade Routes
Get Trade Up And Running To Accumulate Gold For Emergencies
As a grand strategy title,Civilization 6also emphasizes the value of forming meaningful relationships with other factions. Thanks to Trade Routes, players of theCivilizationtitle can exchange not just Gold but also Culture if they’re connected to a city with another Theater Square. However, prioritizing the former might be a more viable strategy for players who want to secure a Cultural Victory.
This all has to do with ensuring players have enough Gold to facilitate vital exchanges in the late game. Additionally, it’s ideal that the player civilization also has a Trade Route for all other civilizations and having open borders with each of them as they offer a 25% bonus on both trading and diplomatic arrangements. Focusing on a Cultural Victory can leave players vulnerable in other areas of gameplay, such as maintaining the Production of satellite cities and even purchasing Favors.
3Buy The Path To Victory
Buy Out Whatever Enhances A Faction’s Culture
Just because a player wants to win a Cultural Victory doesn’t mean their Civilization has to do all the hard work. With enough resources, a player’s Civilization may be able to pull through just by purchasing the right essentials. At its core, a player must also focus on their Production to acquire enough Gold. Once they do, it’s just a matter of applying a popular business strategy implemented by top performers in the market: buying a potential hit.
InCivilization 6terms, players should trybuying out Great Worksas soon as they get produced to reap its Culture benefits. Players using this strategy can skip acquiring Great People, as they really only need their Great Works to maximize their benefits.
4Many Nations Means Many Tourists
Keep Friends, Make Peace With Enemies To Maintain An Influx Of Tourists
Players aiming for a Cultural Victory might be tempted to grab a few territories here and there just to cement their control over a region, especially if another Civ beat them to the punch. However, while the occasional removal of an AI opponent shouldn’t matter in the long term, players who want to maximize their Cultural Victory experience should keep as many Civs as possible to at least benefit from their Tourists.
Players who eventually have enough Great Works, Wonders, a Holy City, or even Relics should be able to attract another nation to some capacity. Should players want to fight, they should ideally fight the Civ in the running for a Cultural Victory. Getting other Civs to help players in the fight can lessen penalties,maintaining a healthy relationshipfor Tourism.
5Avoid Warmongering
Be As Peaceful As Possible
Considering how Tourism forms a crucial part of a Cultural Victory in thegameplay of this grand strategy title, players should avoid raising tensions between their civ and other factions to maximize the influx of tourists into their regions. Warmongering penalties can force setbacks on players that can get rivals ahead in the Cultural Victory race, making aggressive plays less than ideal.
Instead, consider building as many Wonders as possible and settling as many cities. After this, the focus is to prioritize Diplomatic Service for Spies and Resident Embassies. That way, players can establish embassies in other civs to slowly get them to open borders, further improving Tourism. It’s important to keep diplomatic relations open to trade their Great Works and artifacts, which can further boost the player civ’s tourist potential.
6Pivot From Religion
Start Focusing On Religion And Going For A Cultural Victory Afterwards
One of the most challenging things encountered when pursuing a victory condition inCivilization 6is the tendency for players to win through a different method even before they meet their desired win-con. This is especially applicable to a Cultural Victory if playersfocus on their Religion first. Players should ideally find a Religion not only based on their location but also benefits that are geared towards Production and Culture. An example of this would be going for God of the Open Sky which gives +1 Culture from Pastures in an area with a lot of cattle, horses, and sheep.
From here, beliefs should focus on boosting Tourism outright (Reliquaries) or those that provide Culture based on structures (Choral Music, Jesuit Education). It’s ideal to be able to secure Relics, as they can work towards Religious Tourism. In this regard, relevant structures to focus on include Mont St. Michel and Mahabodhi Temple, so Apostles could be sent to locations with religious combat units, left there to die for the free Relics, and potentially even convert that city.
7Adjacency Bonuses Can Boost Overall Tourism Quickly
Build Districts, Wonders Strategically
Now thatCivilization 6introduced new mechanics such as City Districtsand Policy Cards into the mix, players of the grand strategy title may experience more complex plays, especially when elements of city tiles can provide bonuses to other tiles directly beside them. Players pursuing a Cultural Victory can use these adjacency bonuses to their advantage, especially by the time they’re able to secure more iconic buildings for their civilization.
For instance, building the Eiffel Tower close to the Seaside Resort and National Park can stack together to boost the appeal to all adjacent tiles. This in turn can also stack with pre-existing Tourism benefits that Cristo Redentor extends. Moreover, Mont St. Michel and St. Basil’s Cathedral also provide Relic bonuses based on a player’s Culture.
8Go For The Art Philanthropist Trope
Collect Great Works To Boost Tourism
In real life, people go to other countries and destinations in the world whenever they want to see beautiful scenery as well as historic sites. However, some people also prefer traveling to see works of art in those locations. The principle applies inCivilization 6gameplay, particularly in the pursuit of a Cultural Victory. At its core, whenever players gather Great Works to be put in a museum, they should always be thematic.
For instance, a museum’schoice of artworkscould be under religious sculptures from different artists. That way, players can easily filter museums according to subcategories that focus on a particular item. These include museums for separate Religious Works, Sculpture Works, and the like. On top of Relics, these Great Works can add valuable Tourism and Culture bonuses.
9It’s A Race
Focus On Culture Early On So Rivals Can’t Build Momentum
Unlike othervictory setups inCivilization 6where players can bounce back from a disadvantage in the middle of the playthrough, the winning a Cultural Victory begins as early as the first turn. It’s ideal that players fill up both their Science and Civic Trees as soon as possible and skip any upgrade that doesn’t improve Tourism.
This means targeting improvements such as Writing (for double Tourism) and opting for unique monuments such as the Chateaux (in France) and the Great Wall (in China). On top of securing eventual Artifacts, Great Works, and Relics, starting good relations with other civs on top of securing Trees can fast-track the players for a Cultural Victory.
10Focus On Essentials
Understand The Difference Between Culture And Tourism Stats
Before players get to the specifics of securing their Cultural Victory, they need to understand what they’re aiming for in theirCivilization 6gameplay. At its core, when translating Cultural Victory into “combat,” the Culture stat is for “defense” and Tourism is for “offense.” To “win” against another civilization, players need to attract more Tourists versus the opposing civ’s Culture stat. In a real-world analogy, the strength of a location’s cultural offerings won’t be as impactful if its citizens are tourists in another location.
Without dwelling on unnecessary statistics, “winning” in culture wars against anotherCiv 6faction means having to attract more tourists from a civ than what that location can offer. Unlike usual victory routes that involve makingsuccessfulCiv 6businesses, understanding a Cultural Victory’s focus on travel can at least give players an idea of the progress of other civs in this department depending on the progress they’ve made with their own Culture/Tourism slant.
