Reviewing Wayspot nominations involves your good judgement. There is no single set of rules or person who can tell a community in black and white what places are important where others are not. That’s why there will always be some ‘grey area’ in our collective goal to map the most interesting local places. What really influences reviews is how content is presented to convince reviewers that a nomination supports Niantic’s mission and follows the rules around abuse, accuracy, and intent.

To help you submit the best possible content for a nomination, follow the guidelines below. Keep these guidelines in mind when reviewing nominations as well.

Adding supporting text improves the chances of garnering fairer, more informed reviews, especially if your nomination falls within a grey area of eligibility. Supporting text should include a thoughtful explanation of why a nomination justifies as a Wayspot in support of Niantic’s mission and/or why it is important to the community. Think of it as what you’d tell a friend if you took them to visit that Wayspot.

Supporting photos should include more than just the Wayspot. Make sure it provides some surrounding context to help justify its uniqueness, outstanding qualities, or historical context. Make sure the actual Wayspot is still within the view.

Indoor nominations are eligible, so long as they are publicly accessible to some capacity (e.g. inside a library or business with limited hours of operation), and where small groups can congregate and play comfortably. Note that nominations on private residential property are ineligible.

Sensitive locations such as funeral homes, burial grounds, cemeteries, and graveyards should generally be avoided out of respect, but gravestones are eligible for consideration if it is publicly accessible and it belongs to a historical figure or significant community figure.

Larger areas like dog parks or sport fields make great Wayspots, but it is important to choose the right placement of the Wayspot that respects the activity it was designed to support. Instead of placing the Wayspot in the center of an open field, park, or other large area, place it at the entrance or where there is a visible sign or placemarker. That encourages you to approach the area to visit the Wayspot, without having to enter or interfere with the activities within.

Wayspots within large areas like parks, plazas, and fields are eligible as well, even if the larger area itself is a Wayspot. Just keep in mind that someone may have already made a nomination on various objects/placemarkers around entrances, which could lead to a rejection (as a duplicate).

Generally speaking, local businesses that are considered long-standing watering holes, favorite hyper-local hangouts, or even more regionally recognized as a cultural hotspot, fall under the eligibility criteria of Explore and can be submitted for consideration and review. For submitters, since this is a subjective judgement call the reviewers must make, do utilize the supporting text and images to strengthen your case. For reviewers, keep in mind that even a generic business in a small town can be an important part of the local community.