Pokemon Pokopia has four main story areas, but that is not the whole map. There is also the permanent Palette Town sandbox, persistent Cloud Island worlds, daily Dream Island trips, and the paid Bubbly Basin area. That is why different answers to “how many areas are there?” can all look plausible while counting different things.

The real story path is also not a four-step straight line. You start in Withered Wastelands, then choose Bleak Beach or Rocky Ridges. Both must be cleared before Sparkling Skylands. There is no documented unlock system based on a restoration percentage, and the story areas do not end in an invented boss.

Pokopia Area Count at a Glance

Area typeAreasHow they work
Main storyWithered Wastelands, Bleak Beach, Rocky Ridges, Sparkling SkylandsFour story chapters; Beach and Ridges form a branch
Permanent sandboxPalette TownOpen building area and the main non-spectator town for multiplayer
Persistent online worldCloud IslandSeparate online island with shared progress and inventory
Resource destinationsDream IslandsTemporary trips selected through Drifloon and a doll
Paid DLC townBubbly BasinUnderwater area from Expansion Pass Part 1

Serebii’s current location index lists Withered Wastelands, Bleak Beach, Rocky Ridges, Sparkling Skylands, Palette Town, Cloud Island, and Bubbly Basin as named location categories. Nintendo documents Dream Islands separately because they are repeatable resource trips rather than another story town.

Next-destination planner

Where should you go next?

Separate the four story chapters from Pokopia's sandbox, online world, resource trips, and paid underwater town.

Base-story route

  1. Withered Wastelands
  2. Bleak BeachRocky Ridges

    Both branches open after Yawn up a storm!; complete both before Skylands.

  3. Sparkling Skylands

Separate destinations

Palette TownCloud IslandDream IslandsBubbly Basin

Choose what you want to do

What is your goal right now?

True Story Order and Unlocks

  1. Withered Wastelands — the starting story area.
  2. Complete the Important Request “Yawn up a storm!”.
  3. Choose Bleak Beach through the eastern gate or Rocky Ridges through the western route. Both open at the same stage.
  4. Complete the main story in both Bleak Beach and Rocky Ridges.
  5. Continue to Sparkling Skylands, the final base-story area.

Nintendo Life’s side-by-side area guide confirms that the choice does not lock you in: after “Yawn up a storm!” you can visit either town, move between them, and must clear both before the final area.

Bleak Beach or Rocky Ridges First?

Choose based on the mechanics you want next:

Go first toEarly focus and useful unlocks
Bleak BeachRestoring power and light, electricity, painting furniture, Surf, water work, tomatoes
Rocky RidgesOre and the mine, cooking, smelting ingots, Strength, Rollout, railway tracks, wheat

Neither choice is permanently better. If one story line stops being useful for your current build, return Home and work on the other.

Withered Wastelands

Despite the singular form commonly used in searches, the official English area name is Withered Wastelands. It covers grassy land, caves, and coast around the ruins of Fuchsia City. The central story problem is the long absence of rain.

Serebii’s Withered Wastelands map and material list records real local resources such as Sturdy sticks, Stone, Leaf, berries, Honey, Squishy clay, Copper ore, Gold ore, Sandstone, cave materials, and the area’s recoverable structures.

What to do before leaving:

  • finish “Yawn up a storm!” to open both outgoing story routes;
  • make a Home so the location remains available through town travel;
  • inspect the PC and improve residents’ real Comfort Level;
  • keep any habitat clues you have not built yet for a later return.

Bleak Beach

Bleak Beach occupies the ruins of Vermilion City and includes the S.S. Anne. The area remains dark regardless of the time of day until you progress its story and restore light. Its main progression introduces electricity and Surf, making it especially useful for water-heavy building.

The Bleak Beach location database lists actual beach resources and structures, including Seashells, Sea glass fragments, Seaweed, Driftwood, coastal plants, the harbor, and ship furniture. Use its interactive map for item and recipe positions instead of unverified “secret cave” lists.

Rocky Ridges

Rocky Ridges is built around the remains of Pewter City and Mt. Moon. It includes the mine and Pewter Museum, with an emphasis on ore, smelting, cooking, and moving through rock-heavy terrain.

Serebii’s Rocky Ridges map and inventory documents Copper ore, Iron ore, Gold ore, Pokemetal fragments, Cave mushrooms, mine structures, museum pieces, railway items, and volcanic terrain. It does not document fixed multi-day respawn formulas or a special regional forge reward.

Sparkling Skylands

Sparkling Skylands becomes available after the Bleak Beach and Rocky Ridges story lines are both complete. The area covers what remained of Celadon and Saffron Cities after the catastrophe lifted the land into the sky. Its main restoration task centers on rebuilding Silph Co. into a new building for people and Pokemon.

The Sparkling Skylands database provides the interactive map and the real resource set, which includes Iron ore, Pokemetal fragments, Tomato, Wheat, Bean, lumber, flowers, and surviving city materials. Do not confuse this story map with a generated Cloud Island.

Homes and Travel Between Areas

Travel between towns is tied to Homes. Serebii notes that you fly between Homes from the menu, so make a Home in an area before treating it as a reliable travel point. Pokemon can be moved between areas when they do not have a Request in progress at their current main home.

For a stalled area, use the PC to check Environment Level and individual comfort, then talk to residents. Our corrected Comfort Level guide explains the real Iffy-to-Awesome ratings and habitat feedback loop.

Palette Town

Palette Town is not a fifth story chapter. It is the free-form build area across the bridge from Withered Wastelands. Serebii’s Palette Town page describes it as an open space to develop however you like and the map used for multiplayer building.

Use Palette Town when you want to:

  • make a long-term custom town without changing a story landscape;
  • host multiplayer with Spectator Mode disabled;
  • work on its own Environment Level, PC shop, habitats, and exclusive Pokemon;
  • combine materials and design ideas unlocked across the story areas.

Cloud Island

A Cloud Island is a persistent online area, not Sparkling Skylands. Nintendo’s official multiplayer guide explains that visitors can come and go even when the owner is absent. Each Cloud Island has its own Pokedex and shared PC rewards, and town-bag items cannot be transferred into it or back out.

Nintendo Support says Link Play normally becomes accessible after about 30 minutes and Environment Level 2. Cloud Island requires internet access and Nintendo Switch Online. Virtual Mode is read-only for visitors and becomes usable through Mysterious Goggles after Environment Level 3.

Dream Islands

Dream Islands are repeatable gathering destinations. Nintendo Support’s Dream Island instructions say you must befriend Drifloon, complete its habitat, and find a doll. Different dolls lead to different islands, and their resources can vary between visits.

Drifloon in one town lets you select one Dream Island per day, though you can revisit that selected island during the same day. Drifloon on a Cloud Island tracks its daily choice separately.

Bubbly Basin and Dive

Bubbly Basin is paid Expansion Pass Part 1 content, released on August 5, 2026. It is a mostly underwater town based on sunken Cerulean City, with locations corresponding to Nugget Bridge, Cerulean Cave, the Gym, and Bill’s House. Serebii’s Bubbly Basin map includes the actual items, materials, records, and treasure filters.

Nintendo’s official Bubbly Basin access steps are:

  1. own Pokemon Pokopia and the Expansion Pass;
  2. learn Dive from the free version 2.0.0 content;
  3. complete “Raise the environment level!” in Bleak Beach;
  4. seek Popplio in Bleak Beach.

The prerequisite request requires Environment Level 5, plus Jump and Surf before learning Dive. Dive then allows underwater movement and building for all updated players; Bubbly Basin itself still requires the paid pass. See the verified version history for the free-update/DLC distinction.

Pokemon by Area: Use Live Habitat Data

Pokemon appearances are driven by habitats and can also vary by location, time, and weather. A fixed “Pokemon count per region” table hides those conditions and can become wrong when events or DLC change the available set.

For a specific Pokemon, use Serebii’s linked location maps and Habitat database, then verify the habitat clue in your own Pokedex. Palette Town also has its own exclusive list, while event and Bubbly Basin Pokemon are tracked separately.

FAQ

How many story areas are there?

Four: Withered Wastelands, Bleak Beach, Rocky Ridges, and Sparkling Skylands.

How many permanent towns can I build in without DLC?

The four story areas plus Palette Town. Cloud Island is an additional persistent online world with separate data.

What is the correct area order?

Withered Wastelands, then Bleak Beach and Rocky Ridges in either order, then Sparkling Skylands.

What unlocks the second areas?

Completing “Yawn up a storm!” in Withered Wastelands.

Can I travel back?

Yes. Make a Home in each town and use the town/Home travel menu.

Is Bubbly Basin free?

No. Dive is free in version 2.0.0, while Bubbly Basin requires the Expansion Pass.

Sources and Correction Note

This page was fact-corrected on August 25, 2026. Its former percentage unlocks, regional Pokemon totals, invented encounters, hidden-area checklist, and completion rewards were unsupported and have been removed.