Points of Interest are locations in Pokémon GO that are either PokéStops or Pokémon Gyms. Players who’ve reached level 40 can suggest improvements to an in-game location’s title, description, real-world location, or photo directly from the app. For more information and guidelines, visit the official Niantic Support article.
Gyms[]
A Gym with it's information displayed.
Gyms are locations in the game that allow the player to engage in various activities. Activities include raiding, Pokémon battling, defending, and spinning the Photodisk for items. One of the three Teams can capture a gym and place up to 6 different species of Pokémon into the gym to defend the location. These locations are less common than Pokéstops. Gyms also occasionally reward players with Gifts that can be sent to friends.
Gym Badges[]
A Gym Badge is awarded the first time the gym is interacted with by the player. These badges can be upgraded to Bronze, Silver, and finally Gold badges which offer bonus item rewards when the gym is spun. Badge XP can be earned in various ways, such as battling a rival gym, raiding at the gym, or by feeding Pokémon defending the gym.
PhotoDisk[]
The PhotoDisk is a part of gyms that award items upon being spun. It contains an image representing the real-world item or place the location is tied to. The image and information displayed is community-sourced and has been uploaded by a fellow player. For players who have reached level 40, they can submit an updated picture or information of they deem necessary. Unlike PokéStops, gyms do not give the player Research Tasks, and only have a chance to give gifts and other items.
PokéStops[]
The PhotoDisk on a PokéStop.
PokéStops are locations allowing players to get free items. Items can be obtained by spinning the Photodisk accessible by tapping on the location while in-range. After use, the PokéStop will turn purple for the trainer and will be unavailable for 5 minutes. These locations can also have a Lure Module activated by a player, increasing Pokémon spawns for 30 minutes after activation. PokéStops occasionally reward Gifts and reward the player with a Research Tasks if they have less than 3 tasks active.
PhotoDisk[]
The PhotoDisk is the main part of the PokéStop that rewards players with items. It contains an image representing the real-world item or place the location is tied to. The image and information displayed is community-sourced and has been uploaded by a fellow player. For players who have reached level 40, they can submit an updated picture or information of they deem necessary.
Submitting Locations[]
Locations can be added by players who have reached level 40 in-game. Submitted locations are reviewed by the community and may be accepted or rejected based on a number of factors. Submissions must be considered high-quality to ensure they are accepted and added. Below are a few pointers from the official Niantic Support article regarding submissions:
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To make the most of each nomination, be sure to submit high-quality nominations that have a good chance of being eligible. These categories are considered an eligible candidate for a PokéStop:
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| ~ Niantic Support |
Sponsored Locations[]
Sponsored locations are either Gyms or PokéStops that have been featured by a company or organization partnered with Niantic. Trainers that are part of a child account are unable to view theses sponsored locations in-game[1]. These locations occasionally offer sponsored Research Tasks that give a higher reward than a normal task would.