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1025 clues · 131 countries.
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1025 clues · 131 countries.
Showing 1025 clues across 131 countries.
The Alaskan towns in the Alexander Archipelago, on the British Columbia border have a unique look. Tall mountains with lush green forests can be seen in the background, with the majority of buildings made of wood. In addition, Generation 2 coverage is often overcast and misty.
NOTE: Coastal areas of Oregon and Washington can have a similar appearance in terms of landscape and foliage.
The only two major urban areas in Alaska are Anchorage and Fairbanks.
Most of the suburban areas in Alaska are in and around Anchorage.These areas feature wide roads, commercial districts, and sometimes heavy traffic. Mountains can commonly be seen in the distance.
NOTE: Fairbanks has some similar areas, but mountains are less prevalent.
The Alaskan pipeline which is usually visible from main roads, can be seen at these points. This is an easy way to identify Alaska as there are no similar pipelines in the rest of the US.
Juneau, Alaska’s Capital city, is the largest settlement in the Alaskan panhandle. Therefore, it is much more ‘built up’ than other towns in this area. The city is surrounded by heavily forested mountains and hills.
Fire hydrants in Anchorage are typically pale pink or pale yellow in colour.
Fire hydrants in Fairbanks are commonly either bright yellow or a combination of colours (most commonly yellow and blue).
These pole tops, with an upside down triangle shape, are a good clue for Albania.
NOTE: Serbia, Czechia, Slovakia and Romania use similar pole tops.
You will see a lot of cylinder-shaped water tanks on the roofs of buildings.
NOTE: This is less common in Montenegro.
Some parts of Turkey also have a lot of similar-looking water tanks.
Albania has a lot of Italian-style buildings: pastel colours, orange tiled roofs, and blocky shapes with lots of balconies.
The sections of the SH2 between Durrës and Tirana and of the SH4 between Lushnjë and Rrogozhinë are both divided by simple concrete blocks.
The city of Lezhë can often be recognised by the old castle at the top of a tall hill.
The general landscape consists of green, tropical mountains with many palm trees. Small roads are often made of concrete. Most houses are one storey, and have a simple box design. Plain metal sheet roofs are also very common.
The single-lane bridge, connecting the islands of Manu’a and Olosega, can be easily recognized by the thin wire guardrail, with the two islands on either side of the bridge.
Andorra has a lot of these stone buildings. They can be seen almost everywhere in the country.
NOTE: These buildings can also be found close to Andorra, in the French and Spanish Pyrenees.
Andorra la Vella is a capital city surrounded by high mountains, making it recognisable.
NOTE: It is the highest European capital with an altitude of 1023 metres.
In the capital Andorra la Vella you can often see the Caldea tower and the sky wheel.
A tripod featuring the exterior and interior of a small wooden cabin with a grey metal roof can be found south of the eastern tip of Ross Island.
McMurdo Station is the largest research station on Antarctica, and can be recognized by the dark brown soil, many buildings, American infrastructure and sunset coverage.
NOTE: A lot of the coverage around McMurdo Station has the sun setting in the south, which shouldn’t lead you to guess in the northern hemisphere.
On the eastern side of McMurdo Station you can find a small wooden cabin, having a tripod going inside.
The South Pole Observatory has tripod coverage going around and inside of it.
Wooden poles are somewhat common in Argentina, they can be found either with a crossbar or without.
NOTE: Wooden A-frame poles in South America are only found in Argentina.
Within Argentina, these Latvian style wooden hook poles are unique to La Rioja and Mendoza.
Red bricks, similar to what is common in Bolivia, can be found in the northwest of the country, especially in western Jujuy.
In Mar Del Plata and surrounding cities (such as Miramar and Necochea), a unique style of architecture can be found. Its main features include quartzite stoned facades, orange tiled roofs, attached garages, and vault shaped porches.
Comodoro Rivadavia is built on the slopes of Chenque hill, making the city recognisable.
Each state has a unique bus stop design. These are quite common in urban rounds, so are worth learning. Darwin bus stops are usually concrete shelters.
NOTE: The designs may vary slightly, but should still be recognisable. There are multiple versions of Tasmanian bus stops, but most of them should have the word ‘metro’ on it.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
The iconic Stobie pole, made of steel and concrete, is specific to South Australia. The pole tops (trident or rotated letter “E”) are also unique.
NOTE: A few thousand of these poles can be found in other states, most notably Tasmania.
Queensland features these unique pole tops with coils that are angled upwards on the sides.
Victorian pole tops feature 3 circular coils; 2 on the sides, and 1 vertical one at the top. At times, other extensions can be seen on these poles.
Poletops in Tasmania often consist of a thin metal crossbar bent 90 degrees to form an L-shape.
NOTE: Regular Australian crossbars are usually made out of wood.
Circular blue stickers can be found on Queensland poles. You may occasionally see the same type of sticker in a different colour, or with the colour almost completely faded.
NOTE: Blue stickers can also be found on French poles.
Poles in Western Australia often have green painted bases, and sometimes a white sticker or a red and white band attached.
You can find these white property markers on the sides of roads in South Australia.
You can find these white hydrant poles that feature a blue circle and a red section on top of it in Victoria.
These fire hydrants with red painted tops are unique to Victoria.
The northern QLD city of Cairns is distinct due to its tropical vegetation and big green mountains around the city.
NOTE: To differentiate Cairns from other northern Queensland towns, Cairns has many high rise buildings and should feel quite urban. Divided roads are also common in downtown Cairns, and only commonly seen in Mackay further south, where it is less tropical and more flat.
You can sometimes see sloped kerbs in Perth, where it gradually declines to the road, whilst in other cities kerbs go straight down at a 90 degree angle.
Melbourne poles commonly feature these white, rectangular stickers, with a smaller blue square inside it.
South Australian style Stobie poles can sometimes be found in the NSW town of Broken Hill.
This street sign is unique to the City of Sydney.
Round wooden poles are the most common type of pole found in Austria.
Alpine architecture is common in Austria and other countries in the Alps. Houses commonly have distinct light coloured walls, with wooden elements such as balconies or panelling around the top floor, with dark-coloured wooden roofs that extend outward. The roofs can sometimes be angled downward at the front and back. In addition, houses are also often multi-storeyed.
NOTE: Germany uses similar architecture in its southern states.
Dry rock walls made of volcanic rocks are very common on the Azores.
NOTE: Dry rock walls are not common on Madeira, and while they are somewhat common on mainland Portugal, they will not be made of volcanic rocks.
Houses in the Azores are typically one or two stories, with an orange tiled roof. They are painted white or in pastel colours, and dark green shutters on windows are common.
While you can also find yellow or blue highlights like in mainland Portugal, grey highlights are almost exclusive to the Azores.
Street signs in the Azores are almost exclusively painted ceramic tiles, with blue letters and, typically, a decorative pattern around the edge.
Rock walls with a white painted concrete top are somewhat common on Ilha Terceira.
On Ilha do Faial, you will sometimes find traditional whitewashed rock walls with unevenly sized dark basalt stones.
Tin roofs are commonly found in Bangladesh.
NOTE: Due to the humid climate, many countries in South and Southeast Asia use tin roofs.
Bangladesh has several distinct roof styles that create an east/west divide in the country.
The west, particularly the divisions of Rajshahi, Khulna and Dhaka, is dominated by hip roofs made of sheet metal. The states of Rangpur and Chittagong tend to have mixed roofs.
In the east, you will commonly see sheet metal roofs with a triangular "window" just below the ridge of the roof. The state of Sylhet will exclusively have this style, which can also be seen in Chittagong, Mymensingh, eastern Rangpur and northern Dhaka.
Tiled roofs are uncommon in Bangladesh, but the ones you do see are of West Bengal origin, and are thus only found on the Indian border in the state of Khulna.
The Minsk trekker features a historic part of the city, with well-maintained classical European architecture. Many buildings have white or pastel coloured walls. Most of the roads you see are pedestrian-only.
The Holy Spirit Cathedral features prominently in the coverage. Its two towers can often be seen from far away.
Most poles in Belgium are concrete, square shaped, and have tiny holes running up them. They often have small metal wrappings around them. The second most common type of pole has oval-shaped holes. You can find many different types of concrete poles in Belgium.
NOTE: The small metal wrappings can be found in France as well.
A lot of houses in Belgium are made of distinctive red bricks.
NOTE: This is more common in the North and West of the country.
Houses in the South of the country use a lot of stone, have gray tones and generally look more French.
Town entry signs in Belgium are white with a black border. They also mention the name of the city or municipality in bold, black text.
Bus stops are always marked by yellow signposts. Bus shelters often have yellow roofs.
After Germany, Belgium is the next country in which you can find the most blurred houses.
Many parts of the Belgian North Sea coast are lined by apartment blocks, in a manner that is often derisively referred to as a “wall” of buildings by locals.
Near the coast, you will also sometimes be able to spot a dune landscape, with low bushes, long grass and sandy soil.
The most typical look of Bermuda is somewhat dense vegetation, consisting of fairly small trees and a lot of bushes, combined with single family houses strewn across the landscape.
Most buildings on Bermuda are single family stone houses painted in pastel colours. They will almost always have completely white roofs.
Hamilton is by far the largest town on Bermuda, and as such, the downtown area is distinct due to its many large, densely built multi-floor buildings.
The northwestern tip of Bermuda can be recognised by the many large buildings made of unpainted grey brick.
Bhutan commonly uses these stone blocks as safety barriers on winding rural roads. These blocks are very common and often one of the best ways to recognize rural Bhutan rounds.
Guardrails, on the other hand, are rare.
The traditional Bhutanese architecture is very distinct. Most of the houses have tin roofs and wooden painted frames, which give them a unique look.
Many buildings in Bolivia consist of large red bricks. Buildings often have an ‘unfinished' look.
NOTE: This style of architecture is also common in parts of Peru.
Many Bolivians wear traditional clothing, especially women. Folk dress for women typically consists of bowler hats, colourful shawls, and big pleated skirts (pollera).
NOTE: Similar folk dress can sometimes be found in parts of Peru, especially those close to Bolivia.
La Paz and El Alto are twin cities that together form one big metropolitan area. However, despite being located right next to each other, they each have a very different look. See the tips below for more information.
Downtown La Paz is the only place in Bolivia where you will find very tall buildings (10+ storeys).
In many parts of La Paz, you can see these heavily eroded, pillar-like rock formations on the hillsides. They consist of a very recognizable yellow-beige sandstone.
Of the big cities with coverage in Bolivia, these rock formations are essentially unique to La Paz.
El Alto is situated on a very flat, highland plateau. It looks much drier and dustier than La Paz. The layout of its streets is also more regular and grid-like.
The city appears like an unending mess of semi-finished red brick buildings, even more so than other cities in Bolivia. Some neighbourhoods have a very rundown, desolate look.
In El Alto, you can sometimes see a local type of architecture referred to as Neo-Andean. Buildings in this style are colourful, with elaborate, futuristic-looking façades. The style is really unique and is almost completely limited to El Alto.
Gates and doors in El Alto are sometimes painted with a gradient pattern, usually dark green to light green, or red to yellow.
Sucre has a well-preserved historic city centre, with lots of old colonial buildings. The downtown area can be recognized by the white walls, orange tiled roofs, and generally more historic look than other places in Bolivia.
Sajama National Park was covered by this unique Google car: it has a black roof rack with a series of metal bars.
The coverage is on an unpaved road surrounded by fluffy bushes. The Nevado Sajama volcano is always visible. The car briefly drove through the small village of Tomarapi, which can be recognized by its traditional buildings with adobe walls and thatched roofs.
Typical Botswana houses range from small impoverished shacks to comfortable middle-class bungalows. Some buildings have exposed grey bricks. On occasion, you might find traditional round huts.
NOTE: All of these house styles are also found in the other southern African countries.
Gaborone is the capital and largest city. It tends to look richer and more developed than the rest of Botswana, though some neighbourhoods may still look impoverished. In some southern parts of the city hills can be seen, but most of the town is flat.
NOTE: The only other place in the country that often looks similar is Francistown.
These distinctive silos are found in Pandamatenga in northeastern Botswana and can be seen all around the town.
The most common poles in Brazil have some resemblance to a ladder in the bottom portion. They are rectangular, have long segments running through the bottom, and small holes near the top.
NOTE: Paraguay uses similar poles.
Many houses throughout Brazil have orange tiled roofs.
It is fairly common to see transparent satellite dishes, which within Latin America is generally unique to Brazil.
Blue Fortlev water tanks are often seen on Brazilian roofs.
Alongside ladder poles, round poles can often be found across the south of Brazil, especially São Paulo. These poles are cylindrical and made of concrete.
NOTE: This map and the following wooden pole map was created using statistical analysis of semi-urban and rural locations. 434 locations of 3 poles per location were used across 16 states that were thought to have mixed poles. Regardless of the state, the centre of large cities will often have round poles.
This poletop, consisting of an asymmetrical crossbar and a support reaching to the middle of the longer part of the crossbar, is the most common poletop in the state of São Paulo. It can also be frequently seen in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro and Mato Grosso do Sul.
This asymmetrical crossbar with no supports is exclusive to Ceara and Rondonia.
NOTE: While the crossbar in Ceara is usually made of concrete, the Rondonian variation features a metal crossbar, and is far less common.
This pole configuration, featuring a zigzag-shaped top bar resting atop a flat crossbar, is exclusive to Ceara and Roraima. The pole is usually much larger than a regular electricity pole.
Poles that have a smooth cone on top, often called a pencil pole, are common in the state of Rio de Janeiro and rarely in Brasília and Manaus.
Gamma-shaped ("Γ") poles containing electricity boxes at the end of the bar are most commonly seen in the state of Rio de Janeiro and in the cities of Belém, Salvador, Fortaleza and Maceió.
NOTE: A variation with a shorter bar is exclusive to Belém.
Brazil often uses metal trash baskets outside houses. In Acre and Rondônia, however, it is much more common to see them made of concrete.
Lamps in Minas Gerais and Goias will often feature two parts to them. They can also be found in Rio Grande do Norte, Ceará, Rio Grande do Sul as well as the Federal District.
Lamps in urban northern Paraná sometimes have no lamp arm. Styles contrast, and are either colourful, plastic and industrial, or look fancy and ornate. Both versions are most commonly found in northwest Paraná.
Lamps in Ceará often have a fancy and colourful arm, whether as lampposts or attached to utility poles. It sometimes says the town on the arm.
Roads with hexagonal concrete tiles can be found across Brazil, but they are more common in Santa Catarina and Minas Gerais.
You can often see pavements in Rio Grande do Sul that have brown tiles but are either jagged and random, or square. This style can sometimes be seen in Santa Catarina.
Buildings in the southern states, mainly Santa Catarina, can be of European influence (typically vaguely German) in design and style.
Wooden houses on stilts are very common in the state of Acre.
NOTE: They are also seen more rarely in low-lying Amazonas and Pará, as well as various other countries.
Lamps in Rio de Janeiro are curved through the whole of the lamp arm, which is not seen anywhere else.
Teresina lamps are usually blue with an orange arm.
Belém lamp heads are often orange.
Cuiaba lamps are usually a light green, and is one of the few cities that has poles with multiple electricity metres, sometimes 6 to 12.
Lamps in Belo Horizonte and Uberaba in Generation 4 can have a white, numbered plaque attached to the lamp. In Belo Horizonte, the tag starts with 0 or 1, and in Uberaba, it starts with a 1 or 2.
Since this plaque is new, it may appear in other cities in Minas Gerais in the future.
Lamps in Caxias do Sul usually have a zig-zag bent pole and a yellow head.
Poles on Santa Catarina Island (Florianópolis) are painted white with blue and red stripes.
Most houses in Bulgaria have orange tiled roofs, with distinct patches of mortar along the corner tiles.
Famously, Bulgarian roofs often seem poorly constructed: the roof tiles and mortar tend to be uneven, especially when compared to other European countries.
Suburbs in Bulgaria are generally among the poorest areas in Europe, with small, densely built houses and generally an almost ghetto-like look.
Metallic trash bins with this shape are very common in Bulgaria.
NOTE: This style of bin is also common in Turkey and other balkan countries such as Serbia, Albania and North Macedonia.
Buildings with features similar to Alpine architecture, such as white walls with brown wooden details are commonly found in and around the Smoljan region in the south.
The old town of Nessebar, and to a lesser extent Sozopol, can be recognised by the well-preserved old buildings made of a combination of unpainted stone, white stone walls and brown wood. Most of the streets are paved with cobblestone.
Two types of poles are common:
Concrete ladder poles (so named because the indents and ridges resemble a ladder).
Round concrete poles with small holes.
Rarely, you might see simple wooden poles.
NOTE: The same type of round concrete pole is also common in Vietnam.
You can easily distinguish between Thailand and Cambodia based on the poles. Thailand uses square concrete poles with rows of small pinholes on the sides. Such poles are very uncommon in Cambodia (but not completely absent).
Wooden houses on stilts are common. Walls are often made of vertical planks. Many homes have double or triple roofs.
In addition, traditional Cambodian wooden stilt houses tend to have very recognizable colour schemes.
Walls are commonly painted dark red-brown, light blue or an ochre orange.
Doors, windows and other architectural details are often painted bright blue.
NOTE: More modern houses tend to have a wider variety of colour schemes.
Many traditional homes have tiled orange or red roofs, sometimes with ornaments on the ridges and corners. Corrugated and plain metal roofs are also common.
On other, more modern buildings, you can see a wider variety of roof colours and materials.
The majority of Cambodians are Buddhist. Temples are common throughout the country. Temple architecture is highly decorative, with ornamented roofs. You might also see Buddhist flags.
NOTE: Thailand and Laos are also majority Buddhist. Temples in these countries can look similar.
In the sections of Road 6 west of Siem Reap, to Sisophon, and Road 5, south of Sisophon to Krong Battambang, you can find power lines with unique poles that are found nowhere else in Cambodia. The pole tops have three horizontal beams, with hanging insulators on only one side. The bottom of the poles have indents.
Angkor Wat is a massive temple complex built by the historical Khmer Empire. It is located just north of Siem Reap and has extensive trekker coverage. It can be recognized by its dark, weathered stone buildings. While this location is unlikely to show up in competitive maps, it is extremely common in GeoGuessr’s official Cambodia map.
Each province has their own highway shields with unique designs.
The green Trans-Canada Highway shield, shown in the top right of the image, can be found in all 10 provinces.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
You will often find these yellow fire hydrant markers atop signposts in Québec.
In Québec City these markers will usually have a blue rectangle and markers in Trois-Rivières are distinctly small.
NOTE: Sometimes the markers will have different colours. Beware that Edmundston, in New Brunswick, uses these too.
You can find these rectangular markers on the sides of the roads in Québec. The colours can vary.
NOTE: These can be rarely found on urban divided highways in New Brunswick.
Signs in British Columbia are sometimes hung down from these unique signposts.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, most wooden posts on guardrails have this pyramid shaped top. Occasionally, you can spot them on standalone posts and signposts as well.
Fire hydrants in Newfoundland often have a diamond-shaped marker next to them.
You can spot these wooden boxes holding up signs in Newfoundland and Labrador.
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia commonly use lampheads with a rectangular shape.
Bins made of wood planks can be seen on Newfoundland driveways. These are most commonly octagonal, however they can have other shapes.
NOTE: Although they are most common in Newfoundland, they can also sometimes be seen in other provinces, such as New Brunswick.
Nain is a small town on the Northeastern coast of Labrador. The town features colourful wooden houses, and trees in and around the town. To the north, a big hill is usually visible. And to the south, rocky cliffs can be seen on the other side of the bay. Additionally, kids can sometimes be seen walking beside the trekker.
Red Bay is a town on the southern coast of Labrador, and as such, the coast is always visible. It features slightly red soil, and most of the houses are painted white.
Chile uses square concrete poles with an indent on both sides. They are somewhat similar to Brazilian poles, however have fewer horizontal supports in the indent. The upper part typically has small pinholes.
Wooden poles are also fairly common.
Bridges in Chile often have red painted fence posts.
San Pedro de Atacama can be recognized by its clay brick walls, commonly with triangles at the top.
Villa O’Higgins can be recognized by the large mountains located immediately to the east. To the west, snow-capped mountains are seen in the distance. Street signs, fences and many other structures throughout the village are made of orange-stained wood.
Lamps that look like green domes can be seen in Copiapo.
Lamps in Santiago very commonly have photocells. You will rarely find them in other cities such as Valparaiso, Osorno and Loncoche.
Grey lamps with a thin, flat top and a rounded underside can be found in Talca.
This lamp, with a silver top and grey bottom, can be found in Puerto Montt and Temuco.
ALMA OSF can be recognized by the large radio telescopes and rural facilities.
A significant portion of the coverage was taken inside museums and can be found in many cities, however a majority of the covered museums are located in and around Beijing and Shanghai.
The Palace Museum (commonly referred to as the Forbidden City) is a massive palace in the centre of Beijing.
By the Today Art Museum in Beijing you can find this modern urban street with several cafes and bars along the road. In front of the museum you can also find this uncanny statue.
The Hubei Museum in Wuhan can be recognised by its palace-like architecture with grey roofs.
The Museum of silk production in Hangzhou can be recognised by the rounded glass facade and the fountain by the front.
Shanghai Long Museum can be recognised by the boxy concrete main building.
Suzhou Museum can be recognised by the white and grey symmetric angular architecture.
The Yangzhou Museum can be recognised by the beige rounded stone building.
The ancient city of Zhoucun is the only pinpointable ancient city in China, and can be recognised by the street going straight north to south.
The harbour area is recognizable by the large cranes that are visible from many vantage points.
Signposts in Colombia are made of white metal, and join to form a distinct cross on the back of signs.
NOTE: White metal signposts can also be found in Brazil, however these are usually wider.
Colombian poles are often marked with unique black-and-yellow or black-and-orange stripes.
Wooden fences are particularly common in Colombia.
NOTE: In addition to the unpainted variants, some fence posts are painted and sharp at the top. These are almost exclusive to Colombia.
Colombian poles are generally concrete with a variety of pole tops.
Moreover, dark-coloured poles are more common in Colombia than in neighbouring countries.
NOTE: It is the only country in the Americas, apart from Mexico and Ecuador, where octagonal poles can be found.
In Colombia, it is particularly common for sidewalks to be decorated with reddish tiles.
These pole markings with one short black strip on the top and bottom, and a longer yellow section in the middle, are most commonly found in the Antioquia department. Sometimes, you can find them in the Cordoba department as well.
This unique vehicle can be found in and around Leticia, the Southernmost town in Colombia.
NOTE: The long concrete blocks seen in the bottom left corner are a reliable way of recognising the road North of Leticia.
Providencia street lights are green and supported by a trapezoidal sheet of metal underneath.
NOTE: The uniquely shaped supporting metal piece can also be found in Barranquilla.
Costa Rican architecture is less colonial than that of Panama. Few houses have proper tiled roofs, with dark red sheet metal or dark red plastic tiles being more common. Buildings typically have pastel-coloured concrete walls and are usually either a low single-family house or boxy two-storey structure. They are often heavily guarded with fences and barred windows, to the point that it can be hard to even see a building on many streets.
San José is the capital and by far the largest urban area in Costa Rica. Situated in a valley between multiple mountains, the roads have a noticeable incline. You will see many suburban neighbourhoods and taller buildings than anywhere else in the country.
Simple fences made of irregular wooden branches or logs are found all over Costa Rica but much more prevalent in the west, compared to the planted tree rows or spiked concrete variants more common elsewhere.
Houses on stilts are mostly found on the northeastern coast.
Urban coverage is mainly found in and around San José and Cartago, but also exists in Liberia and Filadelfia de Guanacaste.
The Children’s Museum in northern San José can be recognised by its grand castle-like exterior.
Around the National Museum, you can find several wealthy-looking homes, as well as a small tower built in a style resembling towers on medieval European fortresses.
An orange pedestrian bridge can be found going over a major highway at Parque de la Paz in southeastern San José.
While there is coverage throughout most of the park, you’re not likely to encounter anything but the bridge in a pinpointable map.
La Sabana Park has several sports facilities, including the National Stadium of Costa Rica, located in the western part of the park.
The University of Costa Rica, in eastern San José, is fairly busy, with a lot of greenery and various medium-sized buildings strewn across the campus.
Palacio de los Deportes is a stadium in Heredia, northwest of San José, which can be recognised by its boxy look combined with the red, blue and white colour scheme.
At the entrance to Laguna de Fraijanes Recreational Park you can find a large orange wooden gate separating the road from a parking lot. As the name suggests, the park itself is situated around a small lagoon.
The Cartago Municipal Museum can be recognised by its palace-like facade with a neatly planted garden in front, as well as the railway in the middle of the street in front of the museum.
The Ruins of Cartago is the remains of a large Catholic church near the centre of the city. The POI is one of the first things to show up when you zoom into the city.
José Rafael “Fello” Meza Ivankovich Stadium in southern Cartago can be recognised by the dark blue walls surrounding it.
Costa Rica Institute of Technology can usually be recognised by the mountain range which can be seen to the south and east.
The Punta Leona Resort, which can be found by the “Playa Mantas” POI, can be recognised by the red brick pavement, with the bricks having the same shape as you’ll commonly find in Turkey.
The coverage in Liberia can be recognised by a white building with rounded windows having brown wooden window frames. This building can be seen on all coverage in the town.
Most of the coverage in Filadelfia de Guanacaste was taken on the edge of a park, with a distinct red brick pavement where the bricks are placed in the shape of an “L”.
Croatian utility poles are cylindrical and made of concrete or wood, often with alternating hooks on the wooden poles (somewhat similar to Latvian poles).
Buildings in Croatia sometimes feature exposed red brick walls. This architecture is more common in inland areas.
NOTE: This type of architecture can also be found in Slovenia and Serbia.
Croatia features blue fire hydrants with two diagonal protrusions on either side. Newer fire hydrants seen in Generation 4 have a smaller top but are still recognisable due to the blue paint.
NOTE: Similar fire hydrants can be found in bordering countries, most commonly in Hungary.
Houses and walls made of beige brick are common on the Adriatic coast. They often feature green shutters.
NOTE: Similar architecture can also be found in some regions in Italy. Additionally, Croatian shutters can also be white, beige etc.
Croatia’s capital Zagreb has a distinct big city feel. Apartment blocks can be seen throughout the city. The northern part of the city is hilly. Furthermore, Zagreb has blue electric trams.
NOTE: In addition to regular car coverage, Zagreb also has various urban sidewalk trekkers, often made with a Generation 2 camera.
Zagreb and Osijek are the only two cities in Croatia with trams.
Traffic lights in Rijeka are held up by long blue poles that extend out over the road. These are exclusive to the city.
The town of Petrinja was severely damaged by an earthquake in 2020. As a result, many buildings can be seen ruined and undergoing repair.
The city of Dubrovnik in the far south of coastal Croatia is famous for its beautifully preserved medieval city walls, which can be seen from many points in and around the Old Town.
Much of the architecture on Curaçao consists of simple, one storey bungalows that are pastel coloured. Metal roofs are common on smaller shacks, while tiled roofs can be seen on more expensive houses. Additionally, multi storey villas can sometimes be seen.
The Queen Juliana Bridge is a wide four lane bridge in Willemstad. It can be recognized by the yellow and blue guardrails, and the view over the city.
Most buildings are made of brightly painted stone, with either a tiled or a flat roof.
NOTE: These features are also common in Greek architecture.
Houses in Cyprus often have a horizontal and cylindrical water tank that is white in colour, and has a circular access lid near one end on the top.
Two support bars holding up the metal bar on pole tops, resembling an upside down triangle, can sometimes be found in Czechia and Slovakia.
NOTE: This is also found in Germany, Albania, Serbia and Romania.
Lamp posts with a thick base mounted by opposing pairs of bolts are common in both countries. The exact shape of the base may vary.
Hiking markers, made up of one colourful strip between two white ones, are commonly found in Czechia and Slovakia. They sometimes form an arrow.
NOTE: While by far being the most common in Czechia and Slovakia, similar signs can be found in other European countries such as Poland, Hungary and Germany.
Like all of the former Eastern bloc, prefabricated panel apartment buildings are a common sight in urban areas. What distinguishes Czechia and Slovakia is the relatively good maintenance often combined with vibrant colours and patterns. Some smaller buildings also adhere to this style.
NOTE: To a lesser extent, you can find this kind of architecture in neighbouring countries, like Poland and Hungary.
Roofs with diamond shaped tiles are common in both Czechia and Slovakia.
NOTE: This is also somewhat common in Hungary.
Suburban houses in Czechia are commonly connected in pairs.
NOTE: This is less common in most neighbouring countries, including Slovakia.
Much of the northern Bohemian landscape can be characterised by a rolling landscape combined with steep solitary hills.
NOTE: The hills can sometimes have castles on the top, which look absolutely awesome.
Timber framed houses in Czechia are mostly found along the northern parts of the German border.
Houses with thick, dark wooden poles supporting the upper floors are common in the northernmost parts of the country.
Dark wooden houses, with white stripes shining through the wood, are common in most of northern Czechia.
Town houses in Moravia typically have two distinctive features:
Houses have the long side parallel to the road and are often connected in large groups.
Front doors are abnormally large, similar in size and shape to barn doors.
NOTE: This is also common in northeastern Austria.
A variant of baroque architecture called Selské Baroko (folk baroque) can be found in the region surrounding České Budějovice. The style is characterised by highly decorated walls, with the setting being small villages rather than towns and cities.
It is more common to see houses with single pane windows in the northwestern parts of the country.
Streets in downtown Prague are commonly paved with grey and white marble stones, which is also typical for Portugal. They’re often arranged in intricate square mosaics, but some sections are far more plain. NOTE: Similar pavement can be found in much lower volume in other towns too. Consider the apparent size of the city before guessing Prague.
Cube shaped, functionalist red brick houses are found in Zlín, as a remainder of the shoemaking company Baťa’s houses for their workers. In the city centre, high rise buildings are constructed in similar style.
NOTE: So-called Bata-villes were also constructed outside of Czechia, most notably in Slovakia and France.
Pilsen house numbers typically consist of two red and white octagonal plates with inverse colour schemes.
Much of the architecture in Denmark consists of red brick. Roofs often have orange, dark brown or black tiles.
NOTE: Similar brick architecture is also common in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Some houses in Denmark have thatched roofs, especially in rural areas.
You can also sometimes find grey corrugated roofs. These look somewhat similar to roofs commonly found in Baltic countries.
Some older or rural buildings have timber frame walls.
NOTE: Timber framing can be found in other Western and Central European countries as well, but are an especially common wall type for historical buildings in Denmark.
This signpost, where the pipe frame is bent around the sign, is unique to Denmark.
Ring roads are special highways near bigger cities, labelled from O1 up to O4. The number increases from the centre, and each fully or partially encircles the city.
These cities have ring roads: Copenhagen, Odense, Aarhus, Aalborg, Hillerød, Kolding, and Velje.
These traditional “seaweed roofs” are found on the island of Læsø. They are made from a type of seaweed known as eelgrass.
Most electricity poles are square and concrete, with a reverse “L” shape at the top. Less commonly, round or octagonal poles are used.
NOTE: Within the Americas, only the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Uruguay use square poles.
Street View coverage in the Dominican Republic is very limited. Only the capital Santo Domingo and the Northern city of Santiago de los Caballeros are covered.
As the capital and largest city, Santo Domingo has a more developed downtown area, with tall buildings and wide avenues.
Most poles in Ecuador are round and made of concrete. These poles are fairly generic and not all that useful to identify the country.
However, sometimes you will see another, more useful type of concrete pole: the ladder pole. It has a lot of small indents – resembling the steps of a ladder. Within Latin America, these poles are more or less unique to Ecuador.
NOTE: Brazilian waffle poles also have indents, but only a couple – as opposed to the large amount of indents that Ecuadorian ladder poles have.
Most houses are made of grey bricks and have metal roofs.
NOTE: This is not unique to Ecuador, but is very common. Countries such as Peru, and especially Bolivia, commonly use red bricks.
Egypt has very sparse coverage. The entirety of the coverage is in Generation 3, made with a trekker camera. Trekkers can be recognized by the fact that the camera is lower to the ground, having smaller blurs, and no car shadow.
Instead of learning a lot of country-specific clues, it is more practical to simply memorise what the trekkers look like. There are seven sections of coverage, each centred around historic places of interest, ranging from the Pyramids to Coptic churches and medieval citadels.
The coverage is limited to two general areas:
Cairo: four trekkers.
Alexandria: three trekkers, two of which are fairly far outside the city to its southwest (Monastery of Saint Mina and nearby archeological excavations).
Many of the buildings you see in the trekker coverage are made of sandstone.
The great pyramids of Giza have trekker coverage.
NOTE: This is not to be confused with the pyramid in Memphis, which is made of glass instead of sand stone.
The coverage inside the valley temple of Khafre can be recognised by the rows of massive square pillars.
The Djoser pyramid, which can be recognised by the stair-like sections combined with the scaffolding surrounding it, is located south of Cairo. You can also find some other minor historical excavation sites and some plain desert coverage.
The Cairo Citadel is an enormous fortification with a trekker walking through and around it. It can be recognized by its massive walls that are made of clean-cut sandstone blocks.
Inside the Citadel, you can see the Ottoman-era Mosque of Muhammad Ali. It has light grey domes and very tall minarets.
NOTE: This mosque looks superficially similar to the Hagia Sophia mosque in Istanbul.
The trekker in and around the Hanging Church consists of two parts that look fairly different from each other.
Outside the church, the trekker is walking around a normal urban Cairo street. At most points, you will still see the church complex, its spires with crosses, and historic sandstone walls. But you will also see apartment buildings, shops, and normal pedestrian traffic.
This trekker can be found just east of Giza, near the map label Fustat.
At a certain point, the trekker moves from the street into the Hanging Church. Inside, you will see a beautiful courtyard with religious mosaics and two white church spires.
The Qaitbay Citadel consists of a large castle surrounded by thick walls, which are both made of sandstone.
The monastery complex of Saint Mina consists of several large, palace-like buildings in a somewhat modern, Arabic style. Most of the buildings have several spires crowned with Christian crosses.
The Abu Mena Heritage Site is a major excavation area southwest of Alexandria, just south of the Saint Mina monastery. In the middle of the site, you can find a small, yellow wooden chapel.
You can additionally find a fair amount of square concrete poles, often also with diagonal supports. These are similar to those found in Lithuania.
Most wooden poles have a small metal cap on top, similar to those found in the Nordic countries.
NOTE: Alongside the Nordic countries of Sweden, Finland and Norway, these caps can also sometimes be found in Latvia.
Estonian architecture generally consists of a combination of wood and white brick, typically with somewhat steep corrugated metal roofs. Painted stone walls are also somewhat common. While wooden buildings can be found in all three Baltic countries, they are more common in Estonia.
The old town of Tallinn looks very different from any other urban area in Estonia. It is an almost perfectly preserved historic area, with lots of medieval and renaissance-era buildings. In places, it can look a lot like cities in central Europe.
Concrete bus shelters are a common sight on roads in Eswatini.
Faroese houses are typically made of wood, often with an above ground basement made of stone which is painted in a different colour than the wooden part. Roofs will usually be either metal or have grass on top (turf).
Torshavn is by far the biggest town on the islands, and the only place where you will find buildings taller than three floors. The landscape is somewhat open relative to the rest of the country, particularly to the east.
The village of Kirkjubøur at the southern tip of the main island can be recognised by the black houses, almost all having grass roofs. The town also has a small church ruin.
Lamps attached to wooden poles in Finland are normally mounted to the top of the pole with a double bolting.
NOTE: Within Scandinavia, Sweden also uses double bolting. However, in Sweden the lamps are mounted further down and the lamp arms are usually not straight.
Finnish architecture is mostly modern and utilitarian. Downtown areas tend to be very modern, with lots of apartment buildings and use of concrete. Suburbs mostly consist of freestanding single family homes. Many houses have wooden cladding. Like Sweden and Norway, some wooden buildings, especially in the countryside, are painted in a distinctive dark red colour.
Helsinki features these unique green-and-yellow trams.
NOTE: Tampere is the only other Finnish city with trams, but they are red instead of green and yellow.
You can find Red rectangular metallic plates with 7 golden or dark red coloured protrusions that form a rounded hexagon shape on houses, lamp posts, and signposts in Tampere.
Concrete poles with step-like indents are common in France. They are referred to as ladder or waffle poles by the community.
NOTE: They are also common in Spain.
French architecture largely consists of stone houses, which will normally be either unpainted or painted in greyish or yellow pastel colours. The roofs will typically have a simple gable design, with orange tiles or less commonly black slates. Townhouses will often lay wall to wall along the road.
Do note that France has some of the most diverse regional architecture of any European country, so don’t be surprised to see towns that look significantly different from the previously described architecture.
Most town entry signs in Marne follow a unique format: Instead of having separate entry and exit signs, they are combined into a single, noticeably thicker block.
Street signs in the metropolitan area of Paris often say the name of the city, which is generally atypical for street signs in France. The signs will often be made in a modern design, and many city names will be river based, notably named after Seine and Marne.
NOTE: This can be seen sporadically throughout the country, so consider other clues.
Cuboid barriers made of stones and mortar are commonly found on Corsica. While by no means unique to Corsica, it is good to consider the island when you see them in rounds with a plausible Mediterranean landscape.
NOTE: Stone barriers with a rounded top are not found on Corsica.
Black shingle roofs are primarily found in the northwest, the rough cutoff being the Loire river. Other areas include near the Belgian border, the south-centre, and the Pyrenees, making black roofs a good clue for Alps-Pyrenees toss-ups.
Brittany has one of the most recognizable and consistent architectures in the country. Common elements include, in addition to black roofs, edge chimneys, black slate walls and stones surrounding doors and windows. The walls will be either very light coloured or made of stone.
Roofs in the south of the country will often be made up of rounded tiles overlapping one another, often varying in colour.
Rows of dark red brick houses, most similar to Flemish architecture in Belgium, are unsurprisingly found near the Belgian border. The individual bricks may be outlined by white mortar.
In and around Toulouse, mainly in old towns, you will commonly find bright orange brick buildings. They differ from brick houses near Belgium by the bricks being brighter, as well as somewhat Mediterranean looking architectural features, such as wooden shutters, being common.
Walls made of uneven cream coloured to orange stones, glued with mortar and often incorporating red brick details can be found in the towns surrounding Paris. Note that the city of Paris itself generally does not have this architecture.
The French Riviera will mirror many characteristics of Monaco. Rich areas with planted palms and light coloured multi story buildings with wide balconies are good indications you’re in this area, with the rest of the southern coast and Corsican Bastia sharing similar vibes.
NOTE: Just like Monaco, several cities host boat trekkers in their harbour.
White houses with, often colourful, timber framing are a staple of Basque architecture that extends beyond the Basque speaking area. The timber frame colour (in this case red) will be consistent with other wooden elements, like window shutters and gates.
NOTE: They’re also common in parts of Northern Spain, where the timber frames are usually unpainted.
Alpine architecture, unmistakable for its light coloured base and extensive wooden elements, is unsurprisingly found in the Alps.
NOTE: Similar houses can be found in the touristic parts of Pyrenees.
Many elements of Germanic architecture are concentrated in Alsace, such as timber framing and half-hip roof. Furthermore, roofs with fish scale tiles are more common in this region.
Beware that these elements are sometimes incorporated into architecture in other parts of France, and are most reliable in conjunction with one another.
Mansard roofs, also known as French windows, are a very common feature of Parisian architecture. They’re made up of steep black shingle roofs with inserted dormer windows. While not unique to Paris, it is a good clue in abundance and on wide boulevards.
On the Breton island Belle-Île-en-Mer you can find houses typical for Brittany combined with colourful façades and outlines, superficially similar to houses in Portugal.
NOTE: The entire island was only covered with an often oversaturated Generation 2 camera.
Paris uses an iconic green & Prussian blue design with a top arch that has also been replicated in Bucharest, which is sometimes referred to as Paris of the east.
NOTE: The simple rectangular form of the sign can be found in the towns nearby and rarely in other cities.
Lyon’s street signs feature four corner bolts and an uninterrupted inner white border that cuts a notch for the arrondissement and each bolt.
NOTE: Outside Lyon proper, the street sign will display the name of the suburb instead.
On the French Riviera (Côte d'Azur in French, literally translated as Blue Coast), you can find regular traffic signposts painted azure blue. Uniquely, Cagnes-sur-mer, west of Nice, will feature lighter, powder blue infrastructure.
NOTE: Blue infrastructure can be found to a lesser extent all across France, particularly Brittany, so consider the landscape as well.
Most wooden poles in Germany will feature a rectangular white sticker.
Each German state also has their own coat of arms. They are found on unblurred licence plates and some official buildings.
These brick houses are generally concentrated in northwestern Germany.
NOTE: This map is very approximate.
Thatched roofs and rock walls are most common on the North Frisian Islands, as well as mainland Schleswig-Holstein. You can also commonly find them in coastal resort towns in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Houses with black slate walls, resembling fish scales, are commonly found in a large area of central Germany.
These large, utilitarian apartment buildings constructed during the socialist era, that are also known as “Commie blocks” are common in all of former East Germany.
Some of the green caps will have the text ‘LVR’, along with a small coat of arms. These specific green caps are unique to southern North Rhine-Westphalia.
You can find these simple rectangular markers, with rounded edges in Lower Saxony.
These markers with a metallic border around the marker itself are found in Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony.
NOTE: The numbers after the comma are usually smaller on the markers in Lower Saxony.
These triangular posts are commonly found in these regions.
You can go more in-depth with them, too.
Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony use unpainted, rocky-looking posts, with white plates stuck on each side.
Saarland, Thuringia, and Baden-Württemberg use white posts, with the same white plates attached. The posts are usually quite tall, except in Baden-Württemberg, where shorter ones are used.
Baden-Württemberg also uses grey posts.
North Rhine-Westphalia uses white posts without white plates on the sides. You can also find posts which go all the way to the ground.
Hesse barely uses these posts at all. However, when they do, it is quite unpredictable.
These trident-like pole tops can be found in Bavaria, Saxony-Anhalt, and Baden-Württemberg.
Triangle pole tops similar to the ones in Czechia and Slovakia are common in Western Germany.
NOTE: There may be some exceptions outside the highlighted areas.
These pole tops where the middle of the horizontal bar is thicker can be found in all of former East Germany.
Pole tops which have a curved horizontal bar can be found in Bavaria, though they are rare.
Every city state has recognisable rubbish bins all around the city.
Berlin uses bright orange bins that have white text on them.
Hamburg uses bright red bins, with white speech bubbles.
Bremen has green and grey bins, with orange speech bubbles.
Bremerhaven uses a more generic green design, with a black logo.
This type of half-timbered house with arches at the ground floor is very common in this region of Saxony.
The shrub and sand covered hills are unique to the island of Sylt. And like the rest of the North Frisian Islands, rock walls, brick houses, and thatched roofs are common.
NOTE: Some parts of Sylt look more generic, but still very flat.
The territory’s most recognizable feature is the Rock of Gibraltar, a massive limestone mountain that dominates every part of the territory. It can be recognized by its exposed white limestone rocks and distinct shape.
The urban parts of Gibraltar are mostly fairly dense. Buildings look similar to those found in other Mediterranean countries. They have pastel colours and louvered window shutters (horizontal slats of wood set into a frame). These window shutters are usually painted green, blue or brown.
Near the southern tip of the territory, you will be able to see the minarets of the Ibrahim-al-Ibrahim Mosque, the southernmost mosque in continental Europe.
Greek utility poles are primarily wooden, and often have a distinctly dark brown colour. They will often be noticeably taller than in other countries.
These distinctive poletops, which have a metal frame shaped vaguely like a harp.
NOTE: They are unique to Greece and Cyprus.
This type of small lamp, attached to the side of poles with a round shade above the light bulb.
NOTE: You can also find them in North Macedonia and Serbia.
These types of miniature churches, put on small pedestals, are often found along Greek roads and are unique to Greece.
Greek architecture shares a lot of features with other Mediterranean countries: a lot of white and pastel-coloured stone houses with orange tiled roofs. White houses are very common when compared to most other Mediterranean countries.
Urban residential buildings will generally be multi-floored, light-coloured and typically have connected balconies along one or multiple walls.
Perhaps the most recognisable style of Greek architecture are the white houses with blue fences, window frames and doors. Beware that these are mainly found on islands.
One of the most well-known types of Greek architecture; houses with completely white walls, blue doors and shutters, is mainly found on the small central Cyclade islands.
These extraordinary monolithic mountains are called Meteora, and can be found north of Trikala.
In Thessaloniki, you will often see a large amount of unusually tall antennas on top of buildings.
Greenlandic architecture mainly consists of small, colourful, simple looking wooden houses, which even in cities are typically placed quite sparsely. The major cities have some larger buildings, which normally look fairly minimalistic.
Unlike most houses in Greenland, the houses in Tiilerilaaq are commonly grey rather than colourful. The village can also be recognized by the ground, which is almost entirely made up of smooth, light grey rocks.
Poles on Guam are almost always concrete and commonly very thick.
NOTE: Northern Mariana Islands typically have wooden poles.
LeoPalace Resort can be recognised by the white, resort buildings with orange tiled roofs, which looks superficially similar to tiled roofs found on Java.
Guatemalan architecture mainly consists of pastel painted stone houses, commonly with rusted sheet metal roofs. It is also somewhat common for buildings to be made out of exposed white brick.
In Guatemala you will very commonly see poles painted with either pink, green or a combination of the two.
In most of the Guatemala coverage, the top right bar will be facing forward. This means that you can see this line on the side facing forward.
In these regions, you can often see a blue rope on the bottom right bar.
NOTE: Sometimes it can be hard or almost impossible to see, in which case it might look like a normal backward facing bar.
A trekker featuring several Mayan temples can be found just west of the town of Tikal.
It is worth mentioning that while there are other Guatemalan trekkers featuring Mayan ruins, this is by far the most prominent and contains the largest and most intact temple structures.
Contemporary Hawaiian homes are typically 1 or 2 storey wooden structures, commonly lighter in colour. Many homes feature retaining walls made of volcanic rock.
Hawaii uses highway shields that resemble a guitar pick, with the numbers on the bottom of the shield. Most highway signs also use yellow signposts.
Honolulu, located on southern Oʻahu, is by far the largest city and urban area in Hawaii. If you are in a dense urban area and can see tall buildings, you will always be in or near Honolulu.
Hong Kong is located in Southern China, sharing a border with the Guangdong province. It is a Chinese Special Administrative Region, so for country streaks purposes, it is counted as part of China.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Hong Kong is a densely populated city with millions of inhabitants. In urban areas, modern skyscrapers are common, with busy streets filled with vehicles and pedestrians.
The city has a unique vibe that you can quickly pick up on. In many cases, this vibe alone should be sufficient to identify urban Hong Kong locations.
There is also a plethora of rural locations that are harder to identify.
Outside the urban areas, Hong Kong is generally quite mountainous, with green, subtropical vegetation. There is extensive coverage in rural areas outside the city, with many roads going through the mountains. You might see low-rise rural buildings, however usually you will not need to travel far to see tall apartment blocks.
NOTE: Singapore, on the other hand, is very flat.
One very striking aspect of Hong Kong architecture are the many extremely tall apartment buildings found throughout the city.
NOTE: Apartment buildings in Singapore and Taiwan tend to be not nearly as tall as those in Hong Kong.
Because of the subtropical climate, air conditioners attached to the walls of apartments are very common in Hong Kong.
Cylindrical grey lamp posts with a wide base are common. Many lamp posts have a white sticker.
Distinct weathered rock walls can be seen on the side of mountains. Some of them have nets, to prevent rockslides. In addition, green or blue plaques are a common sight.
Most fire hydrants are red, and usually have circular tops and three protrusions. There is also a pipe-like variant. Some fire hydrants have other colours, so make sure to look at their shape or other clues before guessing.
Distinct bright orange bins can be found on sidewalks.
Buses in Hong Kong are mostly double-decker, with various colour schemes and adverts on the side. Single-decker versions do exist, but are less common. Smaller minibuses can also be seen, with a green or red roof.
NOTE: Place names are sometimes visible on the front of the buses, which can be useful for region guessing.
Double-decker buses are also somewhat common in Singapore, but these will often have a recognizable light green colour scheme.
Boxy houses that are a few storeys high are a common sight in small villages, mostly to the north of Hong Kong.
A double-decker tram line runs along the north of Hong Kong Island. A full map of the route can be seen here.
NOTE: Make sure not to mistake this tram for the red MTR railway line, which has some sections above ground.
The northwestern part of the New Territories is served by a distinct light rail system. It can be recognised by its green-and-orange platforms, single-level train cars and the fact that the tracks are separated from the street.
Mong Kok and the surrounding districts in Kowloon can be recognized by the crowded, busy, gridded streets, with apartment blocks situated above the shops.
NOTE: These buildings are usually older, which means there will be a lack of glass walls (as opposed to parts of Hong Kong Island which feature more glass).
The Central District can be recognized by the large concentration of modern skyscrapers. The district feels quite busy, affluent and well-kept, with lots of luxury brand stores and ads.
You can use these two skyscrapers to determine whether you are on the Kowloon or Hong Kong Island side. The IFC is on the Hong Kong Island side and the ICC is on the Kowloon side.
The ICC has straighter edges and looks more like a cuboid, while the IFC is rounder. The IFC will also have noticeable vertical window frames, while the ICC has none.
Mid-Levels is a residential district that is easily recognized by the non-identical tall modern apartments and hilliness.
The residential district of Sai Wan Ho has a lot of identical white and brown apartment blocks, and tall glass office buildings.
Chek Lap Kok Island and the Boundary Crossing Facilities can be recognized by the various large scale construction works going on in the area. From the outside, it can be identified by the many bridges that connect other parts of Hong Kong to the two islands.
The residential district of Caribbean Coast and Tung Chung has identical apartment blocks that face the same direction, almost like a “wall” of buildings. There are a lot of planted palm trees in between and on the side of roads.
The Tsing Ma Bridge can be recognized by being the only major suspension bridge in Hong Kong. The bridge has two ladder-like support towers, and yellow and red guardrails.
Ting Kau Bridge, a cable-stayed bridge connecting Ting Kau and Tsing Yi, can be identified by the generally clean asphalt and newer condition, three cylindrical support towers, hangers coming directly from the towers themselves, and yellow paint seen in the median and on the outsides.
While similar to the Ting Kau Bridge, the cable-stayed Stonecutters Bridge can be identified by the lack of yellow paint, and its box beam guardrail design, as opposed to the cable design seen on the other two bridges.
Lung Wo Road can be recognized by the Hong Kong Island skyline to the south and the Kowloon skyline to the north. The road is also in good condition and the sidewalks are clean.
Lam Kam Road is similar to Fan Kam Road, however it runs in a more east-west direction. The road should also feel busier with more cars driving along the road and more houses on the sides of the road. In addition, the road is usually wider and a median containing trees can be seen separating sidewalks near the villages.
The Kai Tak Cruise Terminal can mainly be seen from the Eastern Corridor, north of Tsat Tsz Mui, and from the Kwun Tong bypass south-west of Kwun Tong. The cruise terminal can be recognized by its shiny, cylindrical appearance, with triangular windows along the side.
The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge can be seen from the South Perimeter Road, on Chek Lap Kok Island. Its length stretches into the horizon, spanning across the ocean. The road itself can be recognized by the black and yellow concrete barriers on either side.
Between Hong Kong Island and Lantau Island, there are three unique islands: Peng Chau, Cheung Chau and Lamma Island, with trekker coverage. These islands can be identified by the lack of cars, narrow streets, and rural architecture. Lamma Island is also the hilliest of the three.
Hungarian sign posts commonly appear to be abnormally tall, often taller than the Street View camera.
Hungarian houses are typically made of stone, painted in a light colour and almost always with red tiled roofs. Suburban houses are typically only one storeyed, while more central houses may be taller. Houses in town and city centres are often fairly old but well-kept.
If you see a street sign with a thick metal frame around it, you are very likely to be in the western parts of the country.
Reykjavík is the capital and by far the largest city in Iceland. The city is mostly flat with slight hills, and is located on the south side of a bay. It is most recognizable as it is significantly larger than other Icelandic cities, with a large urban area and “bigger city” feel.
NOTE: The city of Akureyri can feel urban in some places. You can distinguish it from Reykjavik as it has mountains to the east and west.
The most common Indian utility pole is a concrete square pole with a trident pole top.
Beware that many regions have their own distinct poles and poletops.
NOTE: Indian poles will almost always be made of concrete or metal. Wooden poles are extremely uncommon.
Concrete holey poles are unique to Gujarat and the Union territory of Daman and Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Gujarat uses a variety of poletops, some of which can be used to identify other states. Beware that holey poles generally take precedence over poletop metas.
NOTE: They are rarely found in other states especially Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.
Metal poles with a mesh pattern are commonly found in Sikkim.
Metal holey poles are common in Kerala.
Electricity counters in Punjab are usually mint green with small window-like squares. They can rarely be seen in Haryana.
Small metal poletops in the shape of a window are found in Punjab and Haryana.
In Manipur you can often find trident poletops on poles made entirely out of metal. They sometimes have small bars on the top of the trident.
Upside down triangle poletops placed below the top of the pole are commonly found in Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, and less commonly in Madhya Pradesh.
Poles in Madhya Pradesh often have a metal bar shaped like an upside down A slightly below the top of the pole.
A variety of poletops attached to the pole with two vertical bars forming a tall and narrow rectangle can be found in West Bengal.
In West Bengal you may also find poletops containing two crossbars which are connected to each other with thin vertical supports on either side. The lower bar is connected on either side to the pole with diagonal supports.
In the northeast you may find poles with a combination of an even and uneven poletop.
Poles with two diagonal bars forming a ‘<’ shape are common in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh and occasionally found in Assam.
Trident poletops with the tip of the middle bar bent at a 90° angle can be found in Assam.
Poletops with a short crossbar above a longer crossbar can be found in Goa.
Markings on poles and trees, consisting of one black stripe in-between two white ones, are common in Tamil Nadu.
Rounded roof tiles are common in central India. They often appear disorganised and are kept in rows/columns that are not completely straight.
Roofs in southern India are characterised by more organised tiles that are bright orange and flat with a ridge in the middle. It is particularly common in Tamil Nadu.
NOTE: Similarly shaped tiles with a darker brown colour are common further north.
Flat roof tiles, similar to the ones found in the south, with a small diamond shaped protrusion in the middle, are commonly found in and around West Bengal.
Large hip roofs made of corrugated sheet metal are found in West Bengal and adjacent areas in Bihar and Odisha.
Metal roofs, with a small triangle near the top, are common in Northeast India.
Houses made of square panels separated by thin beams are found in Northeast India.
Houses or huts with thatched roofs are mainly found along the east coast and northern plains. Large hay mounds are also generally more common in this region. Note that thatched roofs from Uttar Pradesh to Odisha tend to be made of fine pieces of hay whereas thatched roofs from Odisha to Tamil Nadu tend to be made of dried palm fans.
Gurdwaras, which can typically be recognised by their white domes and ornate walls, are most common in Punjab. You can also sometimes recognise them by the Sikh Khanda symbol, which represents the religion.
Goa and Kerala are two of the most developed states in India and often have very wealthy and modern homes.
In the northeast you will commonly see fences made of thin wooden sticks in a square pattern.
The City of Chandigarh is a planned industrial city. As a result, the city features a lot of unique infrastructure, such as blue signs mentioning sectors and industrial areas, round yellow markings on street lights, and street signs which will typically feature several numbers rather than street names.
NOTE: The nearby cities of Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar and Panchkula are also planned industrial cities, which feature somewhat similar signs.
Elevated railways can be found in the following cities:
Bengaluru
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Jaipur
Kochi
Kolkata
Mumbai
The area on the border of Telangana and Karnataka often have houses with roofs made out of distinctly thin grey bricks. These grey bricks and similar coloured rocks are sometimes also seen in walls and scattered on the ground in stockyards.
White painted clay huts are found in northwestern Bihar and northeastern Uttar Pradesh.
Wooden huts with a cross pattern can be found in central Bihar.
Poles in Indonesia are typically round and made out of either steel or concrete. Many of the steel poles are painted black, and also feature the Indonesian flag colours on them. The pole tops are usually either even or uneven, depending on the region.
You can learn more about regional poles in the region-guessing section.
Usually yellow waystones that are angled towards the road, and have a cutout close to the top are unique to Indonesia. They include shorthand for three cities or towns, with the biggest one being on the top in the cutout section.
NOTE: Waystones in the Philippines are perpendicular to the road and have the text facing away from the road.
Poles with an indent on both sides are found in West Java, Jakarta, and Banten.
Trident style pole tops are most commonly found in Central Java and Yogyakarta, and rarely in South and West Kalimantan, and North Sumatra and Riau.
Bali features both even and uneven poles, as well as the Lesser Sunda island variants. You can also find this unique rectangle attachment on the pole tops in Bali.
On the Lesser Sunda Islands (“Nusas”), you can find poles with an extra long support on the pole top. Sometimes, two supports can be present.
Pole tops in North and Central Sulawesi, and Gorontalo commonly feature an extra attachment right under the horizontal bar.
These painted fences are typically found on Sulawesi. They will be mostly painted white with blue or red.
Green paint can often be seen on the side of bridges in South and Central Kalimantan.
Tiled roofs are most commonly found on the island of Java, and sometimes nearby regions such as southern Sumatra, the Lesser Sunda Islands, and South Kalimantan.
NOTE: The tiles on roofs in South Kalimantan and Jambi look slightly different. The tiles are usually less rounded but flatter.
Plain sheet metal roofs are more commonly found toward the north, where tiled roofs are not found. They are most commonly found on Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Sumatra.
These horizontal slots inside the triangles of the roofs are almost unique to Southern Sulawesi.
NOTE: They can rarely be found in East Kalimantan and West Nusa.
You can find these distinct roofs with uniquely high-pitched peaks on Sumba.
Architecture in Bali is unique because it was influenced by old Balinese culture and Hinduism. The most important thing to look for are these crown-like roof pinnacles, found everywhere in Bali. Guardian statues and slit-drum towers are common too. Andesite, a dark, volcanic rock, is a common building material in Bali. You can often see gates, walls, and other intricately carved ornaments built from this material.
West Sumatra features these distinct boat-shaped roofs.
North Sumatra features similarly distinct boat-shaped roofs, however the roofs are less angled upward and they do not feature spires.
NOTE: These roofs are most commonly found near Lake Toba, due to its sacred history.
On Kalimantan, you can find these unique roofs made out of wooden chips.
Roofs with gable horns can be found most commonly in South Sulawesi, Riau and Central and South Kalimantan.
NOTE: Horned roofs are often found with Bugis roofs in South Sulawesi. Use this tip along with other clues to determine which region you are in.
A small region of South Sulawesi, around the city of Rante Pao, features these very unique houses, called Tongkonan, that have saddle-shaped roofs. The houses themselves are also elevated from the ground.
Steeply pitched roofs made of palm tree leaves can sometimes be seen on Nias Island, south west of North Sumatra.
The coverage in Iraq is limited to a single trekker in the Iraqi National Museum in Baghdad.
The inside of the museum features statues, steles, a variety of artefacts, and a few back rooms.
You will usually find cream white buildings with black roofs in Ireland. Sometimes, the buildings feature grey corner stones. In cities, you will typically find row buildings.
NOTE: British style brick buildings can still be found in Ireland.
Rural metal gates with rounded corners are very common in Ireland.
NOTE: This is mainly useful to distinguish it from the UK, where similar gates typically have square corners. However, gates in Northern Ireland also typically have rounded corners.
Houses with whitewashed walls and entrance walls are a common sight, similar to Ireland.
Striped kerbs can sometimes be seen along main roads.
Douglas, the capital and largest town on the Isle of Man, can be recognized by the rows of terraced houses, with a higher population density.
This generic lamp design with a blue base and a small blue sticker can be found on most of the island, except for around Douglas, and some parts northeast and south. In addition, the top 2 letters can be used to narrow your location down to 1 of the 21 parishes.
A small white sticker with 2 green numbers will be present on lamps in Douglas.
The coat of arms is placed above the text on many signs in Port Erin.
The Ronaldsway Airport can be recognized by the large, flat and open field with a boundary fence.
The Peel castle, sitting atop an island, can unsurprisingly, be seen in Peel.
Architecture tends to consist of bright and warm-coloured stone buildings, often with a blocky appearance. While Mediterranean-style houses with orange tiled roofs are more common than in other Middle Eastern countries, flat roofs are still just as common.
You will very often see striped kerbs: red and white and fairly commonly black and white.
Red and yellow and blue and white are also rarely found.
Utility poles with a mesh framework are very common.
The area west of Jerusalem can often look deceptively similar to northern Israel, with green forested hills and some agriculture sprinkled across the landscape.
Two things can occasionally be used to tell the two apart. Firstly, in northern Israel you may occasionally see wide, flat valleys, while the Jerusalem area is always going to be hilly. Secondly, if you see houses made of Jerusalem stone, you are likely to be near Jerusalem.
In Jerusalem and surrounding cities in the West Bank, nearly every building is built with the same type of material, called Jerusalem stone. Beware that the stone will look much smoother on newer buildings.
NOTE: Single houses with the same material can be found in other towns and cities.
Rock walls put together with cement are found in the north of Israel.
Jericho can commonly be recognised by the date palms in a somewhat sparsely built and poor-looking urban setting.
This grey mosaic brick work shaped like towers is unique to the city of Harish.
This white lamp is unique to Nahariya. It has three arms, with round light bulbs on top.
These lamps, shaped similarly to Barad Dûr, are unique to Acre. It can be found in several different colours.
NOTE: Similar looking lamps can be found around central Israel, however the gap between the two horns on top of the lamp should confirm Acre.
These metal lamps, characterised by one high and one low lamp put together with a very angular look, are unique to Netivot.
Poles with blue and white paint on the bottom are unique to Eilat.
These yellow fences and signposts are unique to Kiryat Motzkin.
This style of blue and white fence is very common to see in Ashdod.
Roundabout signs which are either very thick or attached to a large cube, can be found in the city of Raanana.
These tall industrial chimneys, by the coast north of Netanya, are visible from far away.
Italian architecture mainly consists of pastel coloured stone houses, generally with terracotta roofs. Houses will very commonly have wooden shutters, which will typically be divided in two and open sideways.
Wooden poles in Italy will commonly feature a small white pole sticker.
A lot of buildings in and around Tuscany are made of irregular unpainted brown-grey bricks.
NOTE: A similar style of architecture can be found in northeastern Spain.
Alpine architecture, which typically features large buildings with white stone walls and wooden details, are found in the Alpine region.
Buildings in Aosta Valley are often built with grey uneven bricks, with an Alpine look.
NOTE: This can look superficially similar to Andorran architecture.
Solid wooden shutters with black metal hinges is a common feature in the northeast of Italy, particularly in Veneto.
Houses in the Apulian region are generally very light coloured, and have flat roofs, typically with two to three floors. The architecture is sometimes reminiscent of the Middle East.
This particular style of roof, called a trullo, is unique to the Itria valley in southeastern Italy. It is particularly common in and around the town of Alberobello.
Venice can typically be recognized by its many canals running through most of the city.
The Aeolian islands are a volcanic archipelago north of Sicily. Here you will find a mix of volcanic soil and rocks with mediterranean vegetation, like stone pines or olive trees. Like in Sicily, cacti are fairly common.
In the mountains of the islands it is very common to see touristic white villas.
Japanese architecture has many distinct and expressive styles, with many unique buildings. These can range from traditional country houses, regional designs, modern large cities, coastal reinforced buildings, and anything in between.
You can learn more about different types of architecture and styles in the region guessing section.
Japan mostly uses these round concrete poles, which have these screw-like extensions. Other information can often be found on or attached to the pole including:
Electrical plates.
Guy-wires.
Pole reflectors.
Therefore, they are a key asset in region guessing Japan.
You can learn more about plates, reflectors, and guy-wires in the region guessing section.
Retaining walls can be an excellent clue for Japan in rural areas with little to no information.
The pole reflector pads vary by region in Japan. But generic designs can be found nationwide.
These attachments with an approximately 120-degree angle can commonly be found on poles in Kansai.
NOTE: Sometimes there is no angle, and instead just an angled downward attachment.
These smaller attachments with a 90-degree angle can commonly be found on poles in Shikoku.
The transformers in Tohoku, which often have additional square holding brackets and the logo of the Tohoku Electrical Company, are sometimes mounted on a round plate with a zigzag bar.
Furthermore, you may also find transformers mounted on the side of a square, with a straight bar mounted on the top of the square. Rarely, you may find a square without a bar.
NOTE: While Kansai may have a square attachment as well, the bar will be mounted on the bottom rather than the top.
The transformers in Kansai have either a straight or zigzag bar mounted on the bottom of a square. The transformer(s) will be mounted on the sides of that same square.
While this is uncommon, the bar and transformer(s) may be mounted on a vertical bar, rather than a square.
NOTE: While Tohoku may have a square attachment as well, the bar will be mounted on the top rather than the bottom.
This pole top, with four thicker bars and a circle piece at the top, is common in the Chubu region.
This pole top, with two sides filled in and shaped like a tent, is common in the Hokuriku region.
This pole top, with four thin, skinny bars, is common in the Chugoku region.
This tuning fork pole top, with a long top bar that sticks out each end and horizontal bar(s) below, is found the majority of the time in the Kanto region.
This tuning fork pole top, with a short top bar and horizontal bar below, is found the majority of the time in the Chubu region.
This tuning fork pole top, with a thin wire and horizontal bar below, is common in the Kansai region.
Hot water, gas and propane tanks can be found more frequently in northern prefectures or high elevation mountainous areas. Here are a few common variations you can find:
The standard hot water tank.
Covered propane tanks.
Exposed propane tanks.
These cylindrical tanks.
And finally, these circular tripod tanks.
Moreover, these are even more common in rural towns or villages, where major water or gas lines are unavailable.
These unique red-tiled roofs are most commonly found in Chugoku, especially in the prefectures of Hiroshima and Shimane.
The further you are north, roofs generally transition from tiled to level or flat sloped in order to compensate for heavy snowfall. Northern houses often have ladders attached to the side, giving roof access to clear snow.
NOTE: In addition to north to south, high-elevation mountainous regions or high snowfall areas often use such roofs, even in more central or southern prefectures.
Okinawa can often be recognised by the white concrete buildings with flat roofs.
You can find these ‘Shisa’ guardian lions and house plaques with these specific characters in Okinawa. The colour and shapes of both can vary.
Tokyo City features a nice manhole design, with a 5 petal flower and many small circles on the outside.
These artistically painted poles, made to resemble birch trees, are unique to the city of Date in Hokkaido.
Jersey is a self-governing island territory in the Channel Islands, located off France’s northwestern coast. It is a British Crown Dependency, so for country streaks purposes it is counted as part of the United Kingdom.
Similarly, the local architecture shares many characteristics with that of northern France. This includes pastel-coloured walls and dark slate roofs. However, British-style terraced houses are also common.
Jersey is home to large reserves of red granite. As a result, it is a popular building material used for the construction of many walls and houses throughout the island.
Most street name signs in Jersey are adorned with the coat of arms of the parish in which they are located.
You can click on the graphic to enlarge it.
Contrasting with the island’s typically rural look, the area surrounding the capital city of St Helier is more urbanised, featuring taller buildings, narrower streets and a more lively atmosphere.
The roads surrounding Jersey Airport can be recognized thanks to the visible boundary fence.
The La Collette Power Station is located on a peninsula south of the capital. Its chimney can be seen from various points along the south coast and serves as a useful reference point for pinpointing.
Victoria Ave runs along the island’s southern coast, immediately west of St Helier. It is the only divided road on Jersey and features a distinct maroon median.
Most buildings in Jordan are made of bright sandstone bricks and have flat roofs.
NOTE: Similar sandstone bricks are also common in Jerusalem and in the West Bank.
Amman is by far the largest city in Jordan with extensive coverage. It is a bustling, developed metropolis with a distinct “big city” feel to it. It is slightly hilly and most of the city consists of medium-sized apartment blocks.
Highway 35 connecting Amman and Jerash is a divided road surrounded by hills speckled with green vegetation.
NOTE: Highway 40 west of Amman is also divided and features a similar landscape. However, the T-shaped lamppost shown in the image is only found on highway 35 which helps distinguish the two.
Highway 40 is a recognisable divided road surrounded by low, green shrubbery that makes its way west of Amman through the hilly terrain into the sandy area close to the Dead Sea.
NOTE: Y-shaped lamp posts as shown in the image can be found along the length of highway 40, making it distinguishable from highway 35 north of Amman.
West of the town of Wadi Musa, a collection of trekkers can be found in and around Petra, a rock-cut city from antiquity. This trekker coverage features highly eroded reddish rocks, narrow gorges, and occasionally groups of tourists crowding around the archaeological sites.
NOTE: While not likely to appear in competitive or pinpointable maps, these trekkers are a mainstay in many maps, including the default World map.
A lot of Kazakh infrastructure, from pedestrian signs, poles, houses, to bollards, is very similar to what you see in Russia.
Gas pipes are extremely common in Kazakh cities.
This ornamental pattern known as the koshkar-muiz can be found as part of decorations in all kinds of settings in Kazakhstan.
Many cities and towns in Kazakhstan have these entrance arcs, which are often quite intricate and ornate.
These are the most useful to learn bus stops.
Atyrau has a modern design, with white and lime/neon green walls. The bus stop name is prominently written on top.
Kostanay uses simple brown bus stops, that have a blue and yellow crest on one of the glass panes.
Petropavl also has brown bus stops, with glass panes on all 3 sides not facing the road. The roof is angled slightly upwards.
Karaganda uses old looking turquoise bus stops, which have a curved roof.
Zhezqazghan has very wide blue bus stops, which have 2 sections; 1 indoors, and one outside. These sections are separated by a door.
These street signs attached to buildings are generally quite inconsistent, but there are some worth knowing.
Aktobe has compact signs where half of the space is taken by the QR code.
Petropavl uses white signs, with a blue semicircle below the street names.
Astana consistently uses this fairly generic design.
Zhetisay also uses a fairly generic design, but it is not found in Turkistan or Shymkent.
Yellow boxes connected to the gas pipes are common outside houses in Shymkent, Turkistan, and Taldykorgan.
Turkistan consistently uses these thin grey lamps with two small light sources near the end.
Lamps in Kulsary have a sizable blue photocell on the top.
Some lamps in Uralsk have this very unique design, with 3 separate lamps in an ascending pattern.
Nairobi is the largest city in the country, and capital of Kenya. It is the only city to have a considerable amount of skyscrapers, and is highly developed. It is densely populated, and is surrounded by small, poor settlements.
These kilometre markers with a red-and white triangle pattern are unique to Kyrgyzstan.
The majority of Kyrgyzstan’s population is Muslim. Hence, you will see a lot of mosques throughout the country.
As the capital city of Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek is by far the most developed city, featuring many taller multi-story buildings you would not see elsewhere. And on the outskirts, you can see fancier buildings as well. There are also mountains south of Bishkek, but these can be hard to see at times.
In Talas, most poles are painted white on the bottom, and feature red and yellow stripes.
From there onwards, concrete barriers are used as medians.
The eastern side of EM-13 closely resembles the road going west of Naryn. (See tip below) This road, however, is an unpaved gravel road in the middle of the Naryn valley, so the hills to the north are now closer. The Landscape is filled with bushes, shrubs, and grass.
NOTE: The one town in the region can be recognized by these white-and-red fences with a white diamond pattern in the middle.
This valley is full of vegetation. This area also has a lot of buildings and fences near the road. Most of the road is in poor shape, with it being unpaved and potholes littering parts of it. To the north, you can see some darker clouds, and closer to Arkit, the weather will get cloudier, and there are more dead trees.
The south to north driving direction on this road is worth noting.
Street View coverage in Laos is very limited. Only five cities are covered: Vientiane, Vang Vieng, Luang Prabang, Savannakhet, and Pakse.
In addition, all coverage in Laos was taken by a Generation 3 camera.
All five cities have a distinct look and with some practise they are easily distinguishable from each other. The differences are discussed in more detail in the region-guessing section, but the summarized version is as follows:
Luang Prabang: historical architecture, hills, palms
Vang Vieng: distinct mountains
Vientiane: no roof rack, large city
Savannakhet: very flat
Pakse: red soil, arid, hills
Laos is a majority Buddhist country. Buddhist temples are a common sight. They can be recognized by their ornate decorations, often with gold leaf detailing.
NOTE: Thailand and Cambodia are also majority Buddhist.
Some lamp posts have diagonal red and white striped markings that do not go down to the base.
Luang Prabang is the former royal capital of Laos and a UNESCO heritage site. The city has a lot of historical architecture, including several temples. Many buildings make use of traditional dark wooden architectural elements. There are also some buildings dating back to French colonial rule of Laos.
Vang Vieng is also very touristic: you will see a lot of signs for hotels, guesthouses, and other tourism-related enterprises. In the (very few) rounds that the distinct mountains are blocked by buildings, this is a good way to recognize the town.
The divided highway that passes through Nong Beuak can be easily recognized by these street lamps that line the sides of the road.
NOTE: These streetlamps can also be found on the divided section of road 13, but it is more urban, and has a different road angle.
The only trekker in Laos is a view of the monumental Patuxai arch, a massive war memorial in the middle of Vientiane. Some of the coverage is made with a normal trekker, and some with a tripod.
This 1380-metre long bridge crosses the Mekong River next to the city of Pakse. It is the only major bridge in Laos with coverage.
Latvian bus stop signs have this design.
Most importantly, the bus has five windows. Within the Baltics, this is unique to Latvia. The other two Baltic countries have four windows.
Latvian house numbers are often shaped like tall rectangles and can be found in several colours.
NOTE: This is not common in Estonia or Lithuania.
Latvian architecture generally consists of a combination of wood and white brick, typically with somewhat steep corrugated metal roofs. Slightly modern houses with pastel coloured stone walls and houses with a combination of wood with another material, particularly white brick, are also common.
The historic downtown area of Riga is characterised by majestic art nouveau architecture, that is in places reminiscent of the architecture in Vienna. This is unique within Latvia, and even within the entire Baltics.
While several types of architecture can be found on the Lebanese coverage, it is worth mentioning that many buildings are made of sandstone bricks.
NOTE: These bricks often look very similar to Jerusalem stone, commonly found in Israel and the West Bank.
Beirut is the capital of Lebanon and the only covered city with many modern high-rise buildings. While the city might not be clearly visible from all parts of the coverage, you will almost always be able to see urban buildings or infrastructure in the background.
Université Saint Joseph, southeast of central Beirut can be recognised by the old, grand-looking sandstone building.
Campus Debbieh of the Beirut Arab University consists of somewhat sparsely built large modern sandstone buildings on top of a forested hill. The ocean can typically be seen far away to the west.
The Lebanese International University (LIU) can be recognised by the many large stone buildings having unpainted bottom floors while the floors above are painted beige.
The University of Balamand has a lot of modern white painted buildings. The buildings often have a very cubic look.
The Lebanese American University, east of Byblos, has a very urban look, with a lot of construction work and large modern buildings.
The ancient city of Byblos is one of the oldest cities in the world and can be recognised by the many old historical buildings, almost all built out of the same type of unpainted stone bricks.
In Baalbek you can find a large complex of Roman ruins.
The Mseilha fortress can be found southwest of Tripoli and is built on a monolithic limestone rock.
Lesotho uses long white licence plates with blue text. If partially unblurred, you may see the Mokorotlo hat symbol on the left.
In rural areas, you will often see traditional round huts with thatched roofs.
NOTE: These are less common in the other three southern African countries, but can still be seen.
The only city with a significantly urbanised downtown area is Maseru, the capital. All other towns have a very provincial feel in comparison to Maseru.
Note that the suburbs of Maseru can still have a very rural feel.
Architecture in Liechtenstein is a blend of traditional Alpine styles and more modern buildings, especially in the bigger cities.
Black signs with a white border and embossed letters can be found in Schaan.
Lithuanian poles are usually square and concrete, and often feature a diagonal support beam.
NOTE: While most common in Lithuania, these are also found from time to time in Estonia, and on rare occasions in Latvia.
Lithuanian architecture primarily consists of light coloured brick buildings, usually with somewhat steep corrugated metal roofs. Wooden buildings are also fairly common, however less so than in Estonia. Pastel painted stone buildings are somewhat common, especially in newer suburbs.
Lithuania's historical state flag, known as the Vytis, depicts a mounted knight on a dark red background. It can sometimes be seen on both private and public buildings.
On the Curonian Spit you can also find wooden, and often red, Scandinavian looking houses.
Poles with poletops shaped like upside-down tridents are the most common type of pole in Luxembourg.
In addition, you can find a variety of other poletops.
NOTE: These poles can also be commonly seen in France, Spain and Portugal.
The frames mentioned in the previous two tips are also commonly found on a lot of other road infrastructure.
NOTE: Denmark notably also uses a lot of similar-looking frames on road infrastructure. A recognizable difference is that the corners on Luxembourg frames are more square, while Danish frames are more rounded.
Houses tend to have dark slate roofs.
Walls and windows tend to be plain and undecorated. Walls are usually painted white, grey, or pastel colours.
NOTE: Such architecture can also be found in the surrounding regions in Belgium and France, but is especially prominent in Luxembourg.
Cylindrical grey lamp posts with a black painted bottom can be seen in Macau.
NOTE: Similar lamp posts can be seen in Hong Kong, however they do not have a black painted bottom.
Gambling is legal in Macau and its biggest source of revenue (50% of its GDP). As a result, you will see a lot of casinos and advertisements for gambling. The casinos often have very extravagant, kitsch designs.
Due to how old the Generation 2 is, many newer casinos can be seen under construction.
Dense apartment buildings with gridded, narrow streets and cars parked on both sides can be found in this region in the northern half of Macau.
The Sai Van Bridge can be recognized by these unique cuboid towers with arches in them.
Most of the coverage in Antananarivo was taken on the side of a hill looking out over the city, which leads up to the Queen’s Palace, which can be seen near the top of the hill.
Toliara can be recognized as being a generally quite busy-looking town and the only large town on Madagascar with no person following the trekker.
Houses are mainly painted white, grey, or pastel colours such as yellow and pink. In addition, the red tile roofs will often be in a good condition.
Concrete block barriers, usually painted white, are often found along roads.
As a result of the island’s mountainous terrain, tunnels are very common.
On bridges you will often find railings painted dark green.
Pico Areeiro is the second highest mountain on the island, and the highest with coverage. It can be recognized by its view over most of the island, and the white radar station at the top.
The Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport is located in eastern Madeira. The north of it is built on these numerous concrete pillars.
Lamp posts with two small circles on the support are mainly found on mainland Malaysia.
Lamp posts with a triangular metal support are mainly found on mainland Malaysia.
Electricity poles on the Borneo side typically have a 2-1 insulator configuration, and a long diagonal wooden support. They are exclusive to the Sarawak region of the island.
NOTE: Indonesian poles can look similar, but they are usually not made of wood, and use smaller or no diagonal supports.
Thin metal poles with two parallel pole tops are exclusive to the Sabah region of Borneo.
This lamp post with a supporting piece of sheet metal resembling a boomerang is found in Sarawak.
NOTE: It is more common in cities other than Kuching.
Urban areas in Labuan are dotted with blue cylindrical containers.
Almost all the tripods focus on showing historical mosques. These tripods usually have an indoor part and an exterior part, which are sometimes not connected to each other.
These mosques have a recognizable look: they are made out of mud bricks and adobe plaster. The walls of the buildings are decorated with wooden sticks. Inside, you will usually see the same adobe walls, and prayer rugs on the floor.
The exterior parts of the mosque tripods can look like a normal street. These will sometimes have enough information available (when moving) to be included in pinpointable maps, like A Community World.
This guide has separate sections for the pinpointable and non-pinpointable coverage. You can choose to study only the coverage that is relevant for competitive maps, or all the coverage. Note, however, that the interiors of the mosques are not considered pinpointable, even though they are covered in the section next to their respective exteriors.
The Niono mosque is located in a busy area by the side of a wide, sandy and fairly dirty road, with trees right by the walls of the mosque.
It is most easily located on the map by first looking for the “Centre Commercial” slightly north of the centre of Niono.
The inside of the Niono mosque can be recognized by its fairly detailed “European style” pillars, which is not found in any of the other Malinese mosques with coverage.
The roads around the Sidi Yahiya mosque are a mixture of sand and tiles shaped like slices of bread, which within Mali, is unique to this coverage.
The surrounding buildings are mostly built of bricks having a peachy orange colour with a brown undertone. This can also be found around the other two mosques with coverage in Timbuktu. The area generally looks busier than around the Djingareyber mosque.
The interior of Sidi Yahiya mosque is recognized by the yellow painted walls combined with the bottom of the walls, which consists of unpainted bricks. The mosque has a courtyard, with walls made of bricks and a floor made of bright, square tiles.
Coverage outside of the Djingareyber mosque in Timbuktu features brick buildings and a paved street with rectangular tiles.
The inside of the Djingareyber mosque can be characterised by yellow painted walls, wide round archways, and red carpet.
The Sankoré Mosque is surrounded by very sandy ground. The mosque itself has a prominent pyramid-shaped tower.
The Sankoré Mosque has richly decorated doors, which are made of wood adorned with metal details.
The interior of the Sankoré Mosque has blue carpet, yellow painted walls, and a fairly low ceiling supported by wooden beams.
The exterior of the mosque in Gao can be recognised by the large desolate space outside the walls, the ground consisting of reddish dirt, and some trees in the background.
The inside of the Gao mosque consists of undecorated corridors with low roofs. You can see the pyramid shaped structure, with a very large number of dry branches sticking out of it, from the courtyard.
The Djenné mosque has a very recognizable front, with some distant trees and a clear sky. The mosque is surrounded by low houses, making the area look fairly open.
The interior of the Djenné mosque is quite dark, with a high roof and narrow corridors with gothic arches. There is also a large courtyard with sandy ground and brown wooden doors along the walls.
The Mopti mosque is similar in style to the Djenne mosque, but has trees growing closer to the walls and a slight amount of clouds in the sky. The streets with coverage around the walls of the mosque also appear more narrow than the ones in Djenne.
The interior of the Mopti mosque can be recognised by the somewhat open space, with a high roof, no arches, and a blue carpet across the entire floor.
In the north west of Bamako, you can find a tripod inside an empty modern mosque. The interior’s light blue walls and pink floor make this location instantly recognizable.
The coverage on the exterior is in the mosque’s yard. The outside walls are made of concrete, and are painted yellow and orange.
This coverage is severely misplaced, being actually located in an unidentifiable rural area, rather than inside Bamako.
Inside the Sankore mosque coverage in Timbuktu (but not connected to it), there are several misplaced locations: The inside of a tour business actually located in Bamako, a classroom, a couple of streets and some other miscellaneous places.
Limestone rock walls are extremely common in Malta. This alone is usually enough to determine that you are in Malta.
The vast majority of buildings in Malta consist of low storey buildings, with white to beige coloured walls. Buildings made of limestone are also fairly common.
This style of traditional covered balconies is very common on Maltese buildings. They are often painted in bright colours.
Regular metal guardrails are rare on Gozo Island. Low stone barriers are more common instead.
These blue signs are unique to Valletta.
The coastal southern trekker can be recognized by a few unique things:
In the north, the trekker starts off walking on a slightly hilly path, with other people.
Several houses with orange roofs can be seen.
A flatter and more open path can be seen, with the ocean slightly visible through the trees.
The coverage ends in the south with a car park and some stalls.
Most utility poles in Mexico are made of concrete and have an octagonal shape. There will often be engravings on the side.
NOTE: Octagonal poles are also common in Colombia.
Yellow accents on kerbs and bridge barriers are quite common.
You will commonly see wide cylindrical, black or white water tanks on rooftops.
Red brick buildings are mostly concentrated in the states west of Mexico City, specifically Jalisco, Michoacan, Guanajuato, and Aguascalientes.
White concrete block buildings are highly concentrated in the states surrounding Mexico city, and are generally more common to the east. They can however still be found all over the country.
Mud brick buildings are most abundant in Durango, especially full houses constructed with mud brick. However, they can essentially be found in almost all of the dry desert states.
Architecture in northern Mexico often features design elements from American style bungalows. Many houses are coloured with light or pastel colours, gated and commonly have front yards. Orange tiles inspired by Spanish colonial architecture are also typical.
Thatched roofs are most common in the Yucatan peninsula and eastern San Luis Potosi. They can also be found elsewhere, mainly in the southeast.
These walls made of light coloured rock are found in the Yucatan peninsula, but most common in Yucatan state.
Wooden poles with a lowered crossbar are mostly found in Sinaloa and Sonora.
The wooden variant of the hanging pole is found on the Baja California peninsula.
Poles with a lowered crossbar and a single support beam that extend from one end of the crossbar to the pole itself can be found in Durango.
These fences made out of trees with red-coloured bark are commonly found in Veracruz.
NOTE: These tree fences can still be found in other coastal states and are best utilised when combined with other clues.
This pavement consisting of hexagonal tiles is found in Puebla and Tlaxcala.
This exact pavement design with three lines of cobblestone patterning is mainly found in Oaxaca.
Taxis in and around Mexico City have a white lower half with a pink upper half.
Most lamp posts and lamp arms in Aguascalientes city are yellow.
NOTE: They are not exclusive and are only very common.
This lamp with a black rectangular head is found in Cuernavaca.
This lamp with black front and back edges and a white middle section is found in Santiago de Queretaro.
This lamp with five circular bulbs that looks like a dice is found in Cancun.
This lamp with a rectangular head and a ring-shaped light bulb is found in Matamoros.
This lamp with a zig-zag bent pole arm is found in Hermosillo.
The bottom half of poles in Cuernavaca are often painted green.
NOTE: In Generation 4, the paint usually looks faded, some to the point where it is barely visible.
Monaco is a rich and densely populated city state, with a Mediterranean feel to it. The architecture is similar to cities in southern France and northern Italy, but more luxurious. You will see a lot of apartment buildings, neoclassical details, and pastel colours. There are essentially no rural areas.
There is a lot of coverage inside tunnels.
Mongolian infrastructure has clear Russian influence. Wooden poles with supporting stone blocks, white lamp posts, and three-striped pedestrian crossing signs are common to see.
Unique to Mongolia is the “ЗОГС” stop sign.
NOTE: Each town has unique lamp post designs, so learning them can be quite useful.
Mongolian neighbourhoods are very frequently separated by dirt alleys and wooden fences.
White, round yurts are the traditional dwelling of nomadic families in Mongolia, and are often seen all around the country.
The capital city, Ulaanbaatar, is by far the biggest city in Mongolia, with about 50% of the entire country's population living in it. As such, its urban development and sheer size is unlike anywhere else in Mongolia. The cityscape is bustling with many high rise buildings, chain stores, travelling cars, buses, and pedestrians, as well as clean roads and sidewalks. Meanwhile, the suburbs can be recognized from the vast yurt districts in hilly areas. Generation 4 coverage is common, however Generation 3 winter coverage is also common to see in the suburbs.
The eastern region can be further divided into several smaller areas based on the layout of the orange roof rack straps. These straps can be seen by looking straight down.
NOTE: Orange straps can be found in the west as well, this tip is only useful for the eastern car with a blue tent from the previous tip.
You can click on the map to enlarge it.
The tent will have red tensioner straps at the front around the city of Chinggis.
NOTE: The Chinggis-Baganuur highway (in grey) is almost entirely hidden coverage.
If the grey tent has hook straps angled downwards, you should be in southwestern Mongolia.
The tent with 2 straps and a single knot in the straps covers most of northwestern Mongolia.
NOTE: Occasionally, camera stitching can hide the knot.
The tent with a knot on both straps covers most of southwestern Mongolia.
The tent with the lower strap in a clump covers most of central-southern Mongolia, along the road from Ulaanbaatar to Altai.
The tent with 4 straps covers most of central-northern Mongolia.
You can find a tent with an open zipper in central Mongolia, near the town of Khorgo.
Erdenet is the second largest city in Mongolia. As such, it has many multistory buildings that can be seen from across town, a large stadium, and a ferris wheel in the south of the city. It is surrounded by large barren hills to the south and to the north, and was covered on a cloudy day in the winter, meaning all vegetation is dead.
NOTE: Erdenet can look very similar to Darkhan and Ulaanbaatar, but the lack of snow distinguishes it from Darkhan, while the cloudy skies and lack of rubber inlays on the roof racks can be used to distinguish it from Ulaanbaatar.
The city of Darkhan in northern Mongolia can be recognized by its distinct snow coverage. It is the third largest city in Mongolia and as such has many high-rising buildings and travelling cars.
NOTE: Other smaller towns can also have snow coverage but Darkhan is the only large city in Mongolia with snow coverage, apart from some Ulaanbaatar suburbs.
Chinggis is a major town in the east with red straps on the front of the tent. It is a fairly dry and flat town with small hills to the north, and somewhat cloudy skies.
NOTE: Dundburd and Bayan-Ovoo are the only other towns with the same tent, but are much smaller towns with no paved roads.
Baruun-Urt can be identified by the towering building under construction in the centre of town (on the map its POI is called “Smile”) combined with the dry landscape.
NOTE: Similar buildings under construction can be found in other towns such as Chinggis but they are not as large and do not feature an orange tower crane like the Smile building.
The town of Khalkhgol in far east Mongolia can be recognized by its flat, green landscape with low rolling hills and a giant sword statue visible in the distance.
Sainshand is the largest town in the desert region and it has a dry climate, many buildings, and paved roads. A dry ridge separates the northern and southern parts of the town, distinguishing Sainshand from other desert towns that are mostly flat. In the downtown area you can find a miniature pink eiffel tower.
The desert town of Zamiin-Uud on the border with China has unique sailboat lamp posts featuring a golden flower pot around them. Often, white signs with Mongolian folded script can be seen attached to these lamp posts.
NOTE: The other desert towns of Choir and Sainshand look similar to Zamiin-Uud and have the same Street View car but use different lamp posts. Choir can be identified by its blue lamp posts and Sainshand by its white lamp posts.
The small, hilly town of Tosontsengel, frequently has red-tinted roads and uses these unique lamp posts that have a wavy design.
Ulaangom is a northwestern town with large, distant, dark mountains to the southwest. Additionally, these distinct double lamp posts with a blue or green painted base can frequently be seen in Ulaangom.
NOTE: Rarely, double lamp posts can be found in other cities such as Baruun-Urt and Chinggis, but these towns have flat landscapes.
Durmitor National Park can be recognized by a distinct landscape consisting of grassy, treeless mountains with a high-altitude feel.
The town of Žabljak is situated in this national park, and can be recognized by the landscape but also by the unique architecture.
Podgorica is the capital and largest city in Montenegro, and can be recognized by the modern buildings, wide roads and modern infrastructure.
Namibia used to be a German colony, and as such, you can still notice the German influence, most notably in their place names. Some older buildings can have a German style as well.
Windhoek is by far the largest city in Namibia, as well as the richest, with many high rise buildings near downtown. Affluent and often gated single family houses are a common sight on the sides of hilly streets, which are often well marked with simple white street signs.
In the northwest of the city you’ll find the slums dotting the hills.
Langstrand is a small resort town between Swakopmund and Walvis Bay with pink brick sidewalks next to essentially every road. The weather is always overcast and gloomy.
Orange coloured thatched fences, walls, and huts are everywhere in the desert town of Aussenkehr, which is built on the slope of a hill.
While not as common, the same thatched architecture is present in Noordoewer, and unlike Aussenkehr, the town was built on flat land, with an imposing cliffside visible to the southwest, across the border in South Africa. Similar mountains can be seen to the north as well.
Nepal typically uses square concrete poles in the flat areas, and thin metallic poles in the mountainous regions. The poletops vary, but it is often some kind of trident.
The concrete pole with a trident pole top and triangle supports is unique to Nepal. Another common pole almost unique to Nepal is a concrete square pole with 2 vertical insulators on the sides with a wide gap between them. Other poles can often appear very similar to poles in India.
Most buildings are either colorful blocky multi-story structures or small houses with painted concrete, red brick, or thatched looking walls, with either a tiled or tin roof. As part of the building facade, you will often spot triangle shaped decorations.
This type of white-painted Buddhist stupa, sometimes with painted eyes on the sides, are only found in Nepal.
Rounded roof tiles are most common in the flat regions south of Kathmandu, but are also prevalent further west.
NOTE: Don’t mix this up with the half-rounded tiles, which are part of the hint below this.
West Bengal style roof tiles, which are more organised and have small diamond shaped protrusions, are most common in the far west flat region. This hint also works for the half-rounded tiles.
Flat square shaped stone tiles that are grey in colour are common south of Kathmandu, more specifically around Birgunj and Janakpur.
NOTE: Neat, square, stone tiles are not found in parts of India that tend to look similar to Nepal.
Rectangular tiles that are less organised in shape and placement are common in western mountain towns, but can also be found towards the center of the country.
Roofs made from sheets of corrugated metal are most common between Birgunj and Janakpur.
Roofs that have a railing along the sides of the roofs, usually made of dark concrete, are found in some parts of western Nepal. They are most common in the Tulsipur valley, where the railings sometimes have a stair shape. The easternmost region where they’re found is the plains by Kawasoti. The westernmost regions often have lower quality “railings”, sometimes consisting of a few sticks.
Gable ends decorated by carvings of gods, goddesses, and other religious symbols, usually painted in a golden colour, are mostly around Kawasoti, west of Bharatpur.
Fences of varying build quality, made of mainly sticks, are most commonly found in the eastern plains of Nepal.
In the far east, you will mainly see roofs made of sheet metal with a triangular "window" just below the ridge of the roof, and an outwards sloping section below it.
Large hip roofs made of sheet metal with a small protrusion just below the ridge are found around Biratnagar in the east.
Similar to the above hint, hip roofs made of sheet metal with an even smaller protruding piece of metal at the ridge are mainly found west of and around Biratnagar.
Small round clay huts with thatched roofs are mainly found around Birgunj.
NOTE: These are also common just over the border in India.
In Kathmandu, you’ll find poles with an asymmetrical crossbar, which has a triangular attachment on top of it, as well as a support bar below it.
Namche Bazar is by far the largest and most densely populated settlement with trekker coverage. There is also some coverage looking down on the town.
The southernmost trekker coverage is situated in the town of Lukla, which can be recognised by the narrow street with relatively large buildings, combined with the extremely dark coverage.
Khumjung village, situated just north of Namche Bazar, can be recognised by the jagged mountain towering above the village. Almost every house in the village has a green roof.
Beware that there is a label for Khumjung further north, which is not close to the village.
The Netherlands has a high amount of urban planning, and as a result tends to have a very organised look. Road infrastructure is well-maintained. Suburbs are usually master-planned and typically feature row houses.
Brick roads are common in the Netherlands, both in rural and urban areas. The brick pattern shown in the image is especially common.
Most Dutch sidewalks use the same type of square grey tiles and offset tiling pattern. In some historic areas, you might find smaller brick sidewalks.
Brick architecture is very common in the Netherlands. Many buildings feature red-brownish-coloured bricks. Roofs often have orange or dark grey tiles.
NOTE: Similar brick architecture is also common in Denmark and Belgium.
As mentioned before, row houses are very common in the Netherlands. Almost half of the Dutch housing stock are row houses, significantly more than almost all other European countries.
Windmills, both traditional water or grain mills, and modern wind power turbines, are common in the Netherlands.
Almost all of the land belonging to the province of Flevoland was reclaimed from the sea in the mid-20th century. As a result, the province has a distinct, man-made look: extremely straight roads and large crop fields dominate the landscape. Wind turbines are common. In urban areas, there are no historical buildings.
NOTE: The only exception to this description is the town of Urk, which is situated on a former island now surrounded by the rest of the province’s man-made polder landscape.
Farms in the north of the Netherlands often have very large roofs.
Rolling shutters on house windows are more common in the southern half of the Netherlands.
NOTE: While more prevalent in the south, rolling shutters on homes in more northern regions are not unheard of. Use this meta with some caution.
Buildings in the Zaanstreek region just north of Amsterdam often feature wooden architectural elements, usually painted green or black; with white trims. They sometimes have tall roof spires, usually painted white.
The Afsluitdijk is a very recognizable man-made causeway between Noord-Holland and Friesland. It is a divided highway that runs in a very straight southwest to northeast direction. You can see water to your southeast, and a dike to your northwest.
NOTE: There are other large causeways and dams in the Netherlands, but the Afsluitdijk is the biggest and has a very recognizable road direction.
The harbour of Rotterdam is one of the largest in the world. It extends all the way from downtown Rotterdam to the North Sea coast. If you see a lot of industrial activity, often in combination with large, round fuel storage tanks, there is a good chance that you are in this harbour area.
NOTE: Amsterdam and Delfzijl also have large harbours. Both also feature a lot of fuel storage tanks.
The most common pole type found in New Zealand is made of concrete and has one long indent which runs most of the way up the pole. Most concrete poles have small silver possum guards. Circular wooden poles can also be found, but are less common. You can also see concrete holey poles in New Zealand.
Several New Zealand cities have distinctive rubbish bins. The distinguishing feature of the bins are the council logos on the front. The colour of the bin lid varies within cities.
NOTE: It is rare to find bins with green lids outside of Christchurch.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Holey poles are found most commonly in Southland and around Auckland.
Square concrete poles without the usual indent are most common in Southland, but can also be found in Otago, Taranaki and Manawatū-Whanganui.
Uneven crossbars, meaning they are off-centre, are found in Otago, Marlborough, Wellington and Taranaki.
Some concrete poles in eastern Waikato and Whanganui city have white paint on the middle part of their wooden crossbars. This white painted crossbar can also be found in parts of western Bay of Plenty, Taranaki, Manawatū-Whanganui and eastern Wellington.
A yellow tag, similar in appearance to a cow-tag, is found on most poles in Gisborne. It is also found in a few spots on the South Island, as well as over the border in northern Hawke’s Bay.
A warning sticker attached to poles, which has a yellow danger triangle between two white rectangles, is found in Hawke’s Bay, from lake Taupo to lake Rotorua, in northern Waikato and south of Auckland city.
Wooden fences with tightly packed fence posts are most common on the North Island and the north of the South Island, as well as on the Banks peninsula.
Wooden fences with a big gap in-between them are most common on the South island as well as in Taranaki.
Fences with thin metal fence posts are almost exclusive to the South island.
Short pieces of wood attached to a fence post, slightly extending it, can often be found on fences in Hawke’s Bay and occasionally in Manawatū-Whanganui and Gisborne.
Similar wooden extensions, which are significantly longer, are mainly found in Southland and Hawke’s Bay, but can also be seen in Otago.
In 2011, Christchurch was hit by an earthquake. As a result, roads on coverage from 2012 often appear in quite bad shape. Water damage caused many driveways to be cut off from streets due to large puddles of water, dirt or mud.
Due to this reason, many residential houses in the city had to be removed, leading to several districts on newer coverage appearing like normal suburbs, but with almost no houses. This is noticeable when looking at where former driveways used to be.
Most Nigerian poles are made of concrete, have indents with a few horizontal supports, and are similar to the ones used in Brazil, but do not have holes through them.
Most Nigerian houses are single-storey, with steeply pitched roofs commonly made of metal sheets. Cinder block walls surrounding the houses are also common.
Benue state can be recognized by the lush, green grass covered ground, with reddish soil. The vegetation is somewhat scattered, with the grass making way for taller trees. Shorter trees and shrubs between the grass and taller trees are somewhat uncommon. Thatched huts are also common in comparison to other southern states.
NOTE: An abundance of palms should make you lean toward the bordering southern states that can look similar.
Skopje is the capital and by far the largest city. If you see any large apartments or buildings, you are almost guaranteed to be in Skopje.
The E-65 just south of Tetovo has one concrete median separating each lane instead of a normal guardrail. This is the only highway in the country to have this.
Obituaries in Kumanovo are the most distinct. They are the only obituaries to have a thick light blue border.
Obituaries in Bitola are horizontal and can be either light or dark blue. The cross is in-between the border, leaving a gap in the rectangle.
Obituaries in Ohrid are horizontal and either red or blue. The cross is underneath the border, which is unique to Ohrid when the obituary is red.
Obituaries in Strumica are vertical and blue. They are the only obituaries to have an intricate pattern in the corner of the poster.
Obituaries in Veles are vertical and blue. Veles has the largest variety of obituaries, but will never have the pattern in the corner like the ones seen in Strumica. They are also the only city that will have the cross above the border when blue.
Obituaries in Prilep are vertical and black. The border does not go completely around the poster, which makes it easy to distinguish.
If you see black and yellow striped kerbs, you are most likely to be in Strumica.
They are rarely found in Skopje and if you see them around roundabouts, you will most likely be in Tetovo.
These long rectangular lamps are only found in the city of Prilep.
Dense commercial areas can be found on the southern half of the west coast.
The vast majority of Norwegian houses are made of wood. Many houses are painted red, which is also typical for Sweden and Finland. Black painted houses are also quite common, more so than in Sweden or Finland.
NOTE: While the architecture is very similar to that of Sweden and Finland, there are some small, general differences. Sweden and Finland generally have more red and yellow houses, while Norway generally has more white houses. There is also a larger percentage of wooden houses in suburbs and near town centres in Norway than in Sweden and Finland, which use more brick than Norway.
Norwegian poles are normally wooden and often have a small black metal cap on the top.
NOTE: This metal cap is also common in both Sweden and Finland.
Lamps attached to wooden poles in Norway are normally mounted to the pole with a thick single bolting.
NOTE: Sweden and Finland use double bolting.
Traditional houses in Norway commonly have grass covered roofs.
NOTE: This is far less common in Sweden and Finland.
While completely white wooden houses can be found in the entire country, they’re especially common on the southern coast, where you’ll commonly see entire villages made up of them.
Two red stripes going around lamp posts are commonly found in Stavanger.
You can find this specific design of green fire hydrants in Bergen.
The old mining town of Røros can be recognised by the densely built traditional wooden architecture.
Buildings in Oman are typically made of light-coloured stone. The houses are ‘blocky’ but still quite ornate, and they are usually surrounded by a matching fence, which often has an even more ornate gate.
NOTE: Buildings in the UAE are often very similar.
Black bins with a black sticker on the front can be found in Al Buraimi, Ash Sharqiyah North, and Muscat Governorates.
Grey bins with a black sticker on the front are found in Ad Dhahirah Governorate.
Black bins with a white sticker are found in Ad Dakhiliyah Governorate, southern Dhofar Governorate, and Muscat Governorate.
Grey bins with a white sticker are commonly found in Ad Dakhiliyah Governorate, and sometimes in Dhofar Governorate.
Grey bins without a sticker on the front are found in Al Batinah North Governorate.
NOTE: They can have a sticker on the side.
Western-style small black bins are found in Muscat and eastern Al Batinah North Governorate.
Regardless of colour, if the bins have a sticker on the side, you should be in one of the North Coast governorates.
Road 35 is surrounded by hills and mountains, and the ground is mostly covered in green shrubs. Curved lamp posts are posted at regular intervals on the northeastern side of the road.
The road southeast of Ubar has a general northwest bound angle, along with a power line to the left of the road. You will often see signs of life in the form of farms or buildings on this road.
NOTE: Don’t mix this up with the 37, which has a similar angle, but is more desolate and can have sunset coverage.
A significant portion of the Pakistani coverage was taken in large, well ordered gardens, often surrounded by stone walls and in combination with old temples or fortresses. This type of garden is typically referred to as a Mughal garden.
Typically brightly coloured, baggy pants are very common in Pakistan.
NOTE: This is mostly useful to differentiate it from Generation 3 trekkers in India, where pants tend to be tighter.
Coverage in Pakistan is extremely limited, only being found in Punjab around major temples and tourist attractions.
Due to the number of distinct coverage spots, this section will only focus on the parts that are considered pinpointable.
Just south of Lahore Fort you can find a trekker walking around some narrow urban streets that are typically very busy.
NOTE: This is also hidden coverage.
Lahore Fort is a large fortress in Lahore, with the Alamgiri Gate being one of the most iconic monuments in Pakistan.
Inside Lahore Fort you may find this road completely surrounded by tall red brick walls on both sides.
The Government College University of Lahore can be recognised by its gothic architecture.
The Patiala Block of King Edward Medical University in Lahore is a large white colonial building with large white domes having black lines going around them.
Kinnaird College for Women University is mainly made up of traditional Pakistani red brick buildings, often combined with red brick paths.
Bahria Grand Hotel, in the southwestern suburbs of Lahore, can be recognised by the minigolf course in front of the hotel. There is also a statue of a cow by the entrance to the hotel grounds.
Hiran Minar is a small temple, completely surrounded by a small lake with a single bridge connecting it to land, can be found just northwest of the city of Sheikhupura.
The coverage around the shrine of Hazrat Baba Bulleh Shah, in western Kasur, can typically be recognised by the mosque with a large green dome, and two smaller green domes on top of the minarets. While the mosque itself isn’t visible from all of the coverage, the minarets can be seen from most spots.
In Pākpattan you can find a busy market street with a roof made of rugs.
NOTE: Like the car coverage in Lahore, this, and the rest of the coverage in Pākpattan, is hidden coverage.
Just west of the market street in Pākpattan you can find a very busy-looking urban street.
You can also find this narrow alleyway in Pākpattan, just north of the market street.
Rohtas Fort, west of Jhelum, can typically be recognised by the almost black fortress walls. While the walls aren’t always nearby, they can usually be seen in the distance.
Most roads are paralleled by fences that are partly or fully made out of small trees. The rest of the fence posts are also almost always wooden.
Panamanian architecture often reflects Spanish colonial influences, featuring vibrant colours, and some ornate detailing. The most common type of building has painted concrete or sometimes brick walls with red metal sheets or tiles for a roof. Many windows have bars on them for security.
Volcanic rocks that are either scattered on the ground, or built into rock walls, are common north of David.
Panama City can be recognised by the large number of white high-rise buildings.
Colón features a lot of warehouses and rundown multi-storey buildings.
Peruvian metal signposts feature concrete blocks at the bottom.
NOTE: Within South America, Peru is the only country to do so.
The country uses a variety of poles. They are made out of either concrete or wood, and sometimes feature distinct horizontal concrete bars.
NOTE: Horizontal concrete bars are also found in Argentina.
Some poles in Peru have painted bottom sections. Most commonly they will be black or black-and-yellow.
NOTE: This pattern of pole paint is unique to Peru within South America, however, similar ones can be seen in other South American countries, such as Colombia.
Bridges in Peru are commonly painted orange.
Peruvian electricity counters have a unique design: They are rectangular, metallic, and typically feature two or three horizontal slits.
Peru is home to diverse and somewhat unique architecture. Here are a few examples of types of buildings commonly seen in Peru; ranging from Colonial-era buildings, contemporary “boxy” buildings, and traditional red brick buildings.
Some of these styles are broken down further in Step 2 of this guide.
Low grass, a few hills, stone walls in villages and brown brick buildings are typical for the region south of Lake Titicaca in eastern Peru.
As a general rule, the closer you are to Lake Titicaca in Peru, houses and buildings made out of red brick become more common. This type of architecture resembles the predominant type of building seen in parts of western Bolivia, which is helpful for remembering where it is seen most commonly. Additionally, buildings with blue tinted glass can be seen most commonly in the same areas.
NOTE: Red brick buildings can be seen anywhere in the country, so use other clues before guessing.
Buildings with overhanging roofs with wooden supports are mostly found in northern regions of Peru. These buildings are sometimes brightly coloured as well.
Tuk-Tuks with open front compartments are primarily found in the northern half of Peru, and are especially common in northern Amazonian adjacent regions.
NOTE: This type of Tuk-Tuk can be found elsewhere to a lesser extent, so use other clues before guessing.
Lamp posts in Lima and Lima Department often have a distinct, sweeping curve at the top, resembling an inverted "J" shape.
NOTE: This design can occasionally be found in other parts of the country, such as Iquitos and Pucallpa.
For other, more specific patterns, please see this document.
Most of the boulevard-type streets in Peru are in the city of Lima. These boulevards are typically long, straight streets divided by concrete or a grassy berm.
The east-central Amazonian city of Pucallpa, which lies close to the Brazil border, has a consistent street grid of WSW to ENE.
NOTE: Some northern and eastern areas of the city feature grids of different orientation.
The southern city of Cusco is recognizable by its prevalence of both red brick and Spanish colonial style buildings. Cusco is surrounded by mountains on all sides and features an airport in the middle of the city. Due to its proximity and similar architecture, Cusco superficially resembles the Bolivian city of La Paz.
Octagonal metal poles are quite common in the Philippines.
NOTE: They can sometimes be found in Bangladesh and some parts of Malaysia as well.
The Philippines have several different tuk-tuk and tricycle designs, roughly distributed as shown in this infographic.
This image was provided by AeroGelo. You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Houses built with amakan walls, a traditionally woven bamboo mat, with a diamond pattern are almost exclusively found in the southern half of the country.
Houses built with amakan walls (referred to as Sawali in the north) with a diagonally woven pattern are mostly found on the island of Palawan, but can also be found throughout the northern half of the country.
Square concrete poles with an indent on both side, similar to the poles found in Chile, are mainly found north of Manila and in and around the city of Bacolod on the island of Negros.
A poletop made up of two tall vertical metal bars having an L-shaped cross-section which are connected via several thin wires, making it resemble a ladder, is unique to Manila and the surrounding area.
NOTE: You may sometimes come across similar looking poletops, with square bars instead of L-shaped ones, throughout the entire country. They will however almost never have more than two connecting wires.
In and around the city of Marawi, Mindanao you can find many destroyed houses and ruins from the Marawi siege in 2017.
These large decorated white waystones, commemorating the Bataan Death March, can be seen along roads going from Mariveles and Bagac in the south to San Fernando in the north.
NOTE: The Bataan Death March continued from San Fernando to Capas by train, where a larger memorial has been built.
Lamp posts on Siquijor are typically painted yellow, with black stripes at the bottom.
Images and statues of ancient Roman soldiers can be found on the island of Marinduque.
Adamstown is the only settlement on Pitcairn Island, and is found near the northeastern shore. Some of the roads going through the town are made of concrete rather than dirt.
A dock with the POI “The Landing” containing a large number of small ATVs can be found at the eastern end of Adamstown.
Poland usually has thin concrete utility poles with see-through holes. They are commonly known as “holey poles”. The holes often do not extend all the way to the bottom of the pole.
Sometimes, two poles are joined together, or put in an A-frame shape. You can also find round concrete poles.
NOTE: Hungary and Romania also have holey poles, but these are wider and more bulky. In addition, the holes extend all the way to the bottom.
Neatly tiled sidewalks are very common in Poland. Tiles are often grey or light red. Occasionally, even roads have tiled pavement. Many different types of tile patterns occur, including larger square tiles.
Polish architecture is fairly similar to other Central European countries. Buildings usually have plain stone walls covered in light or pastel stucco. Frequent roofing colours are orange or red, black, and brown. Roof tiles and panes often have a tidy, almost plastic-like look. Some rural houses have corrugated sheet roofs similar to those often found in the Baltics.
Detached single family homes are common throughout Poland. They sometimes have a blocky look.
In bigger towns, apartment buildings are common. Many date from communist times, and some of them still have a somewhat austere look. However, many have been renovated and look nice and well-kept.
Downtown areas are usually dense and often have historic buildings.
Traditional wooden houses are commonly found in the east, mainly in Podlaskie Voivodeship.
Street lamps mounted on top of the pole become more common towards the northeast of the country, with some pockets in the far south.
In contrast, lamps attached to the side of the pole are rarely found in the northeast.
Gdańsk is a large city in northwestern Poland. Its historic downtown features unique buildings that were inspired by Dutch Golden Age architecture. These buildings look somewhat similar to Amsterdam.
Concrete ladder poles, with very tall ladder steps, are common in Portugal. Each step often has a small see-through hole.
NOTE: In Spain and France you will commonly see ladder poles with short steps.
Black and white waystones can commonly be found in Portugal.
Similarly, cobblestone sidewalks made of distinctly bright stones are very common.
White painted stone houses with orange tiled roofs are extremely common in Portugal.
You’ll commonly see blue or yellow lines painted around windows and doors, as well as around the edges of walls.
Houses made of decorative mosaic tiles are somewhat common in Portugal.
In the Faro district in the south of Portugal you will very commonly come across decorative chimneys, which will either be round or square shaped with small spire-shaped tops. The round chimneys are a particularly strong clue.
Houses in northern Portugal are often made of square concrete blocks, which are commonly put together with white mortar.
NOTE: Very similar architecture, but typically without the white mortar, is commonly found over the border in Galicia.
Most homes in Puerto Rico are made of concrete and have flat rooftops. Metal gates in front of homes are common features as well, especially in urban areas.
NOTE: Homes in other areas of Latin America can have a similar appearance.
The Southern city of Ponce features many buildings in the style of Ponce Creole Architecture, which is a combination of Victorian and Spanish Revival styles. Buildings are typically made out of wood and masonry.
Old Town San Juan is located at the far Northwest tip of the city of San Juan. This area has very narrow streets, colourful buildings, and a mix of Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque architecture. Also, some streets in this area are made of bricks.
Al Bayt Stadium can be recognized by the black and white horizontal stripes on the stadium along with the tent-like roof.
Lusail Stadium, in Lusail, can be recognized by its golden bowl-like shape.
Four towers, resembling a screw thread, can be seen from almost every point in Lusail.
A structure resembling a gahfiya can be seen around the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, in Rawdat Al Jahhaniya district.
The Mall of Qatar in Rawdat Al Jahhaniya can be recognized by the boxy appearance with many ads on the side of the building. Large car parks are also seen next to the mall.
Education City Stadium can be recognized by the large, grey cladding with a diamond pattern.
Education City features distinct black-tiled roads.
Khalifa International Stadium can be recognized by the dual arches shaped like a wide open mouth.
The Torch Tower can be seen from almost every point in the Baaya District, and can be recognized by its hyperboloid structure, along with it being the tallest building in Qatar.
This cardboard box in the right side of the bed is seen in Lusail. The rusty clips will also be visible.
NOTE: The box will not always be visible. Make sure to look out for other clues before guessing.
The black box on the right side of the bed is seen in Al Khor, and in the green area around The Torch Tower and Khalifa International Stadium.
NOTE: The box will not always be visible. Make sure to look out for other clues before guessing.
A tripod was used to capture the interior of the Hamad International Airport. A unique tripod that captured the inside of a plane can also be seen here.
Sugarcane plantations on Réunion can be found in two regions: the northeast and the southwest. The southwest is generally more built up and densely populated, meaning you will see more buildings or cars around.
Two support bars holding up the metal bar on pole tops, resembling an upside down triangle, can sometimes be found in Romania.
NOTE: Czechia, Slovakia, Albania and Serbia also feature this pole top.
It is very common to see waystones in Romania. They are typically fairly large, with red or blue framing with the road number on the side, or made of actual stone and somewhat rugged-looking. There is also a very small variant which is all white.
Romanian architecture primarily consists of single-family houses made of stone, typically painted in different pastel colours and with roofs ranging from orange tiles to grey metal. It is also somewhat common to see houses with walls made of painted square tiles in different patterns.
If you see several houses and almost all of them have orange tiled roofs, you are likely to be in the western half of the country.
Similarly, if you see several houses and almost all of them have metal or plastic fake tiled roofs, you will probably be in the eastern half of the country.
Villages near the Hungarian border will often be built in the same style as villages in Hungary. This style can be summarised as having long, straight streets with single-storey houses being evenly spaced along the road, typically having the short side of the house facing the road. The vast majority of roofs will have orange tiles.
Elaborately decorated wooden gates are commonly found in the region of Maramureș.
This type of window, shaped like a squinting eye, is most commonly found in the city of Sibiu.
Along with containing a large number of bollards, many intersections are unusually wide compared to other countries.
You can often see concrete support blocks at the bottom of utility poles, with wooden poles often being raised above ground by the support.
NOTE: Similar blocks are found in several Central and Eastern European countries.
The vast majority of urban housing in Russia are large rectangular apartment buildings made of simple concrete. Newer buildings in wealthier areas appear more modern.
Rural housing in Russia consists mostly of a basic wooden structure with metal roofs.
This style of richly decorated window frames is commonly found on traditional Russian homes, especially on log cabins. They are often painted blue.
Buildings made of white limestone brick are indicative of Dagestan, as well as adjacent regions.
Buildings built almost entirely of red brick are mostly found south, but other notable exceptions include Magnitogorsk, Orsk, and Omsk.
While mosques can be found everywhere in Russia, they are by far most common in areas with a Muslim majority, mainly in much of south Russia as well as Tatarstan and Bashkortostan.
Historical buildings in Mari El often have a unique architecture style. You will frequently see design patterns that include green roofs, red brick sprinkled with white stone details. Local churches commonly feature a similar style.
Vorkuta in far northern Komi Republic has dead-looking winter coverage, sometimes with reddish soil. The apartment blocks will typically have large northern apartment block foundations.
Utility poles with a mesh framework are usually found in Petrozavodsk, but can much less commonly be found in cities like Tolyatti.
This distinct decorative design of pedestrian sign holders is specific to Pskov Oblast.
The city of Nizhnevartovsk has these unique hanging pedestrian signs.
Rounded rectangular fences with a line through the middle are unique to Chelyabinsk Oblast and eastern Orenburg Oblast.
This fence with a thin rounded rectangular design at the top is found in the cities of Syzran, Tolyatti, and Samara. In Tolyatti it will commonly be painted yellow.
Decoratively designed fences usually with a bright orange colour are unique to Irkutsk.
Rwandan architecture features a lot of brick and concrete. Most houses in Rwanda are single family houses, which can have rather steep roofs. Houses also often have fences for protection. The most notable feature of Rwandan architecture are the ‘ventilation bricks,’ which are present in many houses.
Rwanda uses various different styles of white concrete waystones.
Villa neighbourhoods often have a lot of tall security fences and walls.
All motorcyclists in Rwanda are required to wear red vests and helmets.
Lamps are fairly consistent on National Roads in Rwanda, but other designs can be sometimes found on some sections.
Roads marked in green mainly use lamps, with lamp arms that have a slight curve near the end and extend past the lamppost.
Roads marked as red have lamps with shorter arms and a sharper bend near the top of the lamppost.
Roads marked with blue use lamps with a longer arm that curves for the entire length.
Grey roads rarely have lamps.
Much of the Kigali coverage is in the richer neighbourhoods. You will see a lot of luxury villas.
Most houses are made of wooden panels with a boxy look and often vivid colours.
Miquelon-Langlade is a small town in the north of St Pierre. It can be recognized by the houses with timber cladding painted in bold, vivid colours. A shadow of the ATV used to cover this town can also be seen.
Saint-Pierre is the capital and largest town. The coverage in this town is made with a sidewalk trekker. Larger buildings and more cars can be seen, with a more populated feel compared to Miquelon-Langlade.
A slightly hilly, grassy landscape with boxy houses spaced apart can be seen on Île-aux-Marins.
The 739m-tall Monte Titano dominates the surrounding landscape and is visible from almost every point in the Republic.
NOTE: Look for the three towers to safely identify it.
Just like Italy, most utility poles in San Marino are round and made of concrete. Wooden poles are also found in the country.
These elaborate pedestrian crossings, with painted blue crosswalks and hanging signs, are specific to San Marino.
Lime-green bins are particularly common in San Marino. In Generation 4 coverage some of them have been replaced by black bins.
The historic centre is covered by a Generation 3 trekker camera.
On top of the language, the Portuguese influence can also be seen in infrastructure, such as ladder poles and pedestrian signs with the same design as in Portugal.
Some wooden poles are painted blue on the bottom. You can also read the letters CST on them.
Taxis and minibuses are painted in a bright yellow colour.
The town of Trinidade has poles with red and white pole paint.
These simple black lamps with a solar panel at the top are commonly seen in Senegal.
Dakar is the largest and capital city of Senegal. It can be recognized by the denseness of the city and taller, more modern buildings.
The distinct Vršac Mountains can be seen east of Vršac near the Romanian border. The mountains protrude out from a flat landscape and vineyards can commonly be seen to the south of the mountains. The Vršac Castle can also be seen atop the mountain.
Singapore is a highly developed city-state, characterised by an overall cleanliness and orderliness.
Main roads are often divided, and commonly feature black-and-white curbs and double yellow outside lines. You will often see tall apartment blocks nearby.
NOTE: In many cases, this “general look” is all you need to easily identify Singapore. Nevertheless, we have listed some more specific tips below.
Almost all Singaporean traffic lights follow this design and are supported by a curved sheet of metal containing several holes.
The Tuas planning area is an industrial area that is characterised by straight roads, industrial complexes, cranes and shipping containers, making it recognisable.
Two support bars holding up the metal bar on pole tops, resembling an upside down triangle, can sometimes be found in Slovakia and Czechia.
NOTE: This is also found in Germany, Albania, Serbia and Romania.
Lamp posts with a thick base mounted by opposing pairs of bolts are common in both countries. The exact shape of the base may vary.
Like all of the former Eastern bloc, prefabricated panel apartment buildings are a common sight in urban areas. What distinguishes Slovakia and Czechia is the relatively good maintenance often combined with vibrant colours and patterns. Some smaller buildings also adhere to this style.
NOTE: To a lesser extent, you can find this kind of architecture in neighbouring countries, like Poland and Hungary.
Roofs with diamond shaped tiles are common in both Slovakia and Czechia.
NOTE: This is also somewhat common in Hungary.
Window shutters are considerably more common in Slovakia than in Czechia.
NOTE: They are also very common in Hungary.
Many Slovak houses have the short side facing the road with the roof ending in a hip end.
NOTE: This is also very common in Hungary, but less common in Czechia.
Grey metal roofs are very common, particularly in the eastern parts of Slovakia.
NOTE: Apart from the most mountainous areas, it is far less common in Czechia.
It is somewhat more common to see wooden poles, and in turn, white concrete supports in Slovakia rather than in Czechia.
Note that because there are many variables, it may sometimes be inconsistent. Therefore, this information should preferably be used to help decide between a difficult fifty-fifty.
Yellow lamp posts with a blue base are mainly found in the east, with a notable exception being the city of Zvolen.
NOTE: This rule only applies to lamps with this exact colour arrangement. Other infrastructure with similar colour schemes can be found all over the country.
Bratislava and Košice are the only two cities with trams, using a red and a yellow-blue-white colour scheme respectively.
NOTE: Buses in Košice and Bratislava use the same colour schemes, however red buses can also be found in Prešov.
Trolleybuses in Žilina use a green-yellow-white colour scheme. The trolley supporting electricity poles, often doubling as lamps, are painted with matching yellow and green colours.
Čičmany, in the westernmost parts of the Žilina Region, is easily recognized by the dark brown wooden houses, whose walls are filled with art consisting of white lines.
Slovenian architecture takes much inspiration from alpine architecture, with light coloured walls, dark wooden details and semi-steep roofs. The most common roof shape is half-hipped roofs.
This type of shed, called a kozolec, made of thin wooden beams with noticeable gaps in between, is very typical for Slovenia.
Near the coast you get a landscape similar to the rest of the Adriatic coast; white cliffs with bushy vegetation, vineyards and Mediterranean architecture.
Similar to Celje, Trbovlje also features the city’s coat of arms, which is a blue and green shield with a black crest.
Suburban houses in and around large cities will often be surrounded by high walls, fences, and gates to deter criminals.
Trident pole tops are almost unique to KwaZulu-Natal.
Poles with 2 diagonal bars forming a ‘<’ shape can be found mostly in the northeastern provinces, most commonly in Limpopo and North West.
While this lamp and arm can be found uncommonly across the country, Durban uniquely has this bump on the top. You may, however, still see the standard lamp and arm.
Poles or any public infrastructure will often be plastered with dodgy adverts for abortion services or penis enlargement pills in and around Gauteng, in particular in Johannesburg and Emalahleni.
Abandoned, rusted machinery can be seen in Grytviken.
Grytviken is the only pinpointable trekker in South Georgia. Therefore, this trekker appears in pinpointable maps like A Community World.
A church and another building made of white painted wood can also be seen in Grytviken.
Most poles have a tapered “spike” on top.
Korean buildings have very distinctive house numbers. They are blue and usually are shaped quite literally like a house. The full address of the building is written on them, in both Hangul and Latin script.
Some places have unique house numbers, which you can use to region-guess. More information about this can be found in the spotlight section.
Red brick is a very common building material in South Korea.
Many buildings have traditional tiled roofs like these. These often have decorative elements on the corners, and tend to have sides that curve slightly upwards. Blue roofs are quite common.
Jeju also has a lot of rock walls, made of dark volcanic rocks.
“French style” poletops are common in Spain. They are shaped like an upside down triangle, with a horizontal top bar that is curved slightly upwards. They are usually found on top of tall ladder poles or medium sized steel poles.
NOTE: As the name suggests, French poletops are also very common in France.
The Pyrenees is a large mountain range on the border between Spain and France. Its mountains are some of the highest in all of Spain. It can be recognized by its light grey rock and abundance of pine trees. Local architecture features many rock walls.
NOTE: Andorra and the French part of the Pyrenees look very similar in terms of landscape and architecture. Also consider that the exclave of Llívia is part of Spain.
Towns built on a mountain face, consisting entirely of white houses, are very common on the south coast of Spain, around Málaga.
Most kilometre markers in Spain are either rectangular or square in shape. This can be a good clue to exclude half the country if you can see one in the distance.
There are also some unique designs.
Andalusian markers are especially tall, featuring an extra stripe with the name of the governing body responsible for the road.
Madrid markers are square and feature the regional flag at the top.
Markers in Biscay are bigger than usual and feature a semi-circle shape at the top.
NOTE: National roads will always have a red rectangular marker.
In Castilla la Mancha you can find stone markers with the region’s coat of arms lining up fields. It can be recognized from afar by the blue coloured left side and the unpainted right side.
Poles with a steel mesh structure making rectangular shapes instead of the typical triangles can be found in the southern half of Spain, and are particularly common in Murcia and southern Alicante.
There is a large part of north-west Spain where you will find almost exclusively slate roofs (recognisable by their almost black colour). This type of roofing can be seen sparingly all the way to the west coast of Galicia, but ends rather abruptly on the east.
Slate roofs can also be found in the Pyrenees near Andorra, and in the mountain ranges north east of Madrid.
In Galicia, these unique granaries called “horreos gallegos”, or “cabazos”, are very common. Note that they can be made from various materials, but the shape remains the same.
In Asturias, “hórreos” are bigger, generally with a square design, and are built above four pillars, with or without walls. You will sometimes find a rectangular variation, usually built on top of six or eight pillars called “panera”.
If you find an “horreo” with a slate roof, you will be in western Asturias.
Large white houses with wooden frames are common in the Basque Country, the Basque part of Navarra, and Cantabria.
Traditional farm houses called “masías” are common in Catalonia, eastern Aragón and parts of the Valencian Community.
They are usually made of stone and stand isolated or as part of a small complex.
Within the centre and south of Spain, towns made completely out of white painted houses are very common in Andalucía and Extremadura.
You can still see a fair amount of white painted houses in Castilla la Mancha but streets where every house is white will not be common.
Low rock walls are extremely common on the Balearic Islands.
NOTE: Another Mediterranean region with a similar amount of rock walls is the area around Bari in Italy. This region can sometimes look similar to the Balearic Islands.
The stereotypical Balearic house is painted completely white. You can find flat roofs, but tiled roofs with a small incline are the most common.
Off the north coast of Lanzarote, you will find the small island of La Graciosa. The island’s landscape is completely barren, and the entire coverage features overcast weather. There are two towns on the south coast of the island, with white flat-roofed houses like the east Canaries.
The two Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla in North Africa, which are partially surrounded by Morocco, both have coverage. They often catch beginning players off-guard, so it is good to be aware of them and their location.
Ceuta features north African architecture, consisting of mainly flat roofed houses in warm colours, ranging from pale yellow to red.
Almost all of the Generation 4 coverage in Ceuta features a bright blue sky in sunny weather with occasional clouds.
Melilla also features similar North African architecture. The coverage in Melilla has a hazy look, with a significantly less saturated sky than Ceuta. Most of the coverage is cloudy or overcast.
Melilla has little rural coverage, mainly by the Morocco-Spain border.
The city of Bilbao uses this unique street sign, with a very elaborately decorated frame. It is not found anywhere else in Spain.
Sri Lanka typically uses concrete utility poles. Two pole types are common and distinctive:
Square poles with small pinholes in the sides. These pinholes are limited to the top part of the pole.
Poles with large see-through holes in the lower half of the pole (“holey poles“). These poles are unique to Sri Lanka.
NOTE: The square poles with small pinholes can look very similar to those found in Thailand. However, in Thailand the pinholes extend all the way to the bottom of the pole.
Tall, white concrete waystones with an indented section near the bottom containing a yellow road number, are unique to Sri Lanka.
Houses often have orange or red tiled roofs. Due to wear and tear, these tiles often have an almost brown tint to them.
NOTE: Similar roofs are also common in parts of Indonesia.
Longyearbyen is the largest settlement on Svalbard, with many boxy, minimalistic buildings around the town.
Pyramiden feels more abandoned compared to Longyearbyen. Multi-storey soviet-style apartment blocks can be seen, however, with a lack of human-activity. As the name suggests, many pyramidal mountains can be seen in the distance.
Of the three towns, Barentsburg feels the most desolate. Distinct, multi-coloured apartment blocks can be seen near the top of the hill. Coverage is also more overcast and gloomy than Longyearbyen or Pyramiden.
This boat with a wooden deck can be seen in these places.
This boat can be seen east of Pyramiden, and can be identified by the slanted front of the wheelhouse.
Lamps attached to wooden poles in Sweden are normally mounted slightly below the top of the pole with a double bolting.
NOTE: Within Scandinavia, Finland also uses double bolting. However, Finland’s lamps are mounted at the top and are much straighter.
Houses in the Swedish countryside are most commonly wooden and often painted with a distinct dark red paint, which is almost exclusively found in Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Urban architecture is usually modern and made of concrete and bricks, while suburban buildings are commonly freestanding single family houses built of either wood or brick.
This type of traditional wooden fence, made out of thin spaced out vertical tree trunks and slightly diagonal trunks stacked on top of each other, is commonly found in Sweden.
NOTE: Similar fences can be found in other Nordic countries, particularly in Norway near the Swedish border, but are significantly less common.
Rock walls are mainly found in the south, with the largest concentration being in several coastal areas, on Öland, and on the southern and northern tips of Gotland.
Beware that rock walls around churches and cemeteries are common further north.
Traditional Swedish fences are typically made of thin round tree trunks and branches. However, on Gotland these fences are typically made of larger trunks that have been cut into sharp-looking wedges.
Grey metal roofs on residential buildings generally get more common the further north in the country you get. Note that metal roofs on barns and sheds can be found significantly further south.
Houses in Skåne commonly have either a white stone, or a red brick wall with a coloured wooden triangle beneath the roof on the sides. Similar houses with other materials (such as grey brick) for the walls can be found elsewhere in the southern half of the country.
Half-timbered houses can be found mainly in the southern half of Skåne, but also in the northern half and southern Halland. It can also be found in Visby on rare occasions.
A lot of single family houses in Skåne are built out of red brick. They typically look slightly older than red brick houses in other parts of the country.
NOTE: Red brick architecture is also very common in Denmark.
Corrugated square metal roof panels with moss growing on them are typically found in southern Sweden, particularly in Skåne and Blekinge. It is mainly found on large barns, and the roofs are often very steep.
Grey diamond-tiled roofs are mainly found in Skåne, Blekinge, Öland, and occasionally on Gotland.
NOTE: Gotland and Öland are normally more easily recognised from landscape alone. Houses in western and southern Skåne typically use a lot of stone and bricks, while houses in northeastern Skåne and Blekinge are mostly made of red painted wood.
While houses in Sweden are mostly very colourful, on the west coast they are commonly much lighter. There are an especially large number of white and light yellow houses along the coast between Gothenburg and the Norwegian border.
Dense rows of very small red sheds are commonly found in coastal towns on the northern west coast.
Central Dalarna has a strong tradition of wooden craftsmanship, and as a result much of the architecture has a unique, picturesque look to it. Most commonly, you may find red timbered houses, portals made of logs, and so-called härbren which have a very distinct design.
NOTE: Similar buildings can be found elsewhere in the country, but it is by far most common in central Dalarna.
Hälsingland has many big, mostly red, farmhouses. They are characterised by many large windows, 2–3 floors, and the front facade being long and grand-looking. Barns can also be seen having an unusual amount of windows in the region.
Along the northern coast you will commonly encounter agricultural sheds which are either octagonal or rectangular, with the walls noticeably leaning outwards. They will typically be made out of red-painted logs.
Houses on Gotland are commonly made of limestone and often have a dirty-looking white facade. Churches on Gotland are very distinct looking, with either grey walls or white walls with grey corners, a large portal around the door and small windows typically divided in two by a pillar.
This type of uneven stone brick is typically found in houses and rock walls on Öland, and less commonly in rock walls on Gotland.
Many regions have their own distinct type of bus shelters, which may either replace or complement the bus stop signs. This image contains the ones which are most common and easily recognizable.
NOTE: Every region has multiple types of bus shelters, these are simply the most common.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Near the coast north and east of Uppsala, you can come across old factory towns called Walloon mills. They typically consist of long rows of identical residential houses, which can either be made of brightly coloured stone or red wood, as well as small belfries, mansions and factory buildings, which are typically made in similar styles as the residential buildings.
Buildings made fully or partially out of blue or green slag stone can occasionally be found in the mining region of Bergslagen.
Numerous small grey, and sometimes red, wooden windmills are spread across Öland. The island has more windmills than any other region in the country.
Red brick chimneys with either a crown-like top or wide rectangular holes can be found close to lake Siljan in Dalarna county. It is somewhat common for these chimneys to be painted white.
Visby is the only preserved Hanseatic town in Sweden. The inner town can typically be recognised by the cobblestone streets, combined with the small, brightly painted stone houses and an abundance of roses following the house walls. It is also quite common to get a glimpse of the old Hanseatic wall surrounding the town.
The old town of Stockholm can be recognised by the old stone buildings, usually painted in warm colours, towering over the narrow cobblestone alleyways.
Trams can be found mostly in Gothenburg, secondly in Norrköping and Stockholm, and rarely on Generation 4 coverage in Lund.
Black bus shelters with this specific design, mainly recognised by the square ridge along the back of the roof, can be found in Västerås and Umeå.
Sundsvall is known as Drakstaden (the Dragon City) in Sweden, which can be seen referenced in the form of dragon statues in the central parts of the city, and on signs.
Swiss and Alpine architecture in general largely consists of stone buildings painted in light and warm colours, often combined with wooden parts and details. Roofs are typically tiled and of a gable type. It is extremely common for windows to have wooden shutters which open horizontally in two parts.
These bus stop signs, with thick metal signposts going around them, are unique to Switzerland.
Not unexpectedly, seeing typical Italian architecture in Switzerland should imply that you are in the Italian-speaking areas in the south, principally the canton of Ticino.
The architectural style is characterized by, typically very smooth, orange-yellow stone walls with multiple floors and orange or brownish tiled roofs. Green and brown Italian-style window shutters are common.
Large houses with thick roofs, which are shaped like an arch underneath, are common around Bern.
Elaborate timber frames, which are commonly painted red, are found in the northeast.
NOTE: Simpler timber frames in other colours can be found in other parts of the country.
Around Appenzell, most houses will consist of a large living house connected to a long barn, such that the roof of the living house and the barn are at a 90° angle.
The front facade of the living house will often be divided into small squares, with each window being perfectly contained within a square.
In the canton of Graubünden, you will often come across houses entirely made of stone, with, most commonly white, decorative painted details around windows and the edges of the house.
Olive green infrastructure, particularly signposts, sign borders and sign backs, are found in Basel-Landschaft.
In place of bollards, reflectors in the canton of Glarus will often be attached to fences following the road.
These blue street signs, with rounded edges on the sides, are unique to the city of Sankt Gallen.
Downtown Bern can be recognized by this specific architecture. Grey toned buildings, typically with four floors and large, somewhat rounded openings lined up on the ground floor are common.
These mirrors with orange hoods are frequently featured in intersections and bends.
Concrete drainage ditches are commonly found on the side of roads.
Architecture in Taiwan varies in designs, ranging from cramped, multiple-story housing to flat, single-story houses with backyards. Many residential buildings have a very boxy look. A lot of walls are covered in tiles, usually white. Sheds made out of tin are also featured, commonly painted in a light green colour.
Old and disorganised housing units as well as tall dingy-looking apartment blocks are frequently seen in the urban areas of northern Taiwan.
Taoyuan features these red brick and sometimes red tile apartment buildings.
NOTE: They can also be commonly spotted in the greater Taipei area and rarely in other urban areas but are most common in Taoyuan.
In Yilan, you can find these rich multiple-story villas.They come in all types of designs and are often gated.
White-tinged cream coloured houses are frequently seen in Penghu.
You can find these small, traditional-looking houses in Kinmen.
Similar to the blue plaques found on utility poles, Taiwan also features stickers to ID the locations of lamps. These can be found on both lampposts and utility poles with lamps attached to them.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Kinmen often features lampposts with red and white diagonal stripes.
NOTE: Red and white striped markings are also found on the main island, especially in cities and urban areas.
Similarly, lampposts with red and white diagonal stripes on a trapezoidal base are frequently found in Kaohsiung City.
In Yunlin, you can find poles with a thicker support below the pole top.
Many traffic control boxes in Changhua County are marked with large yellow stickers. You will find these boxes at intersections.
These green square stickers are typically seen on every pole in Chiayi City.
Thai poles are square and have small holes running vertically up the pole.
NOTE: You will see similar poles in Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Laos. Make sure to look for other clues before guessing.
Street light poles have red-and-black or black-and-white stripes on the bottom.
Thailand has very distinct long, thin lamp posts that hang over the side of the road.
Gray corrugated metal roofs are most commonly found in the north and south of the country, but can occasionally be found throughout the country.
Regular poles with a Chilean style indent are found around Bangkok.
NOTE: Larger and thicker poles with indents are found on highways all throughout the country.
The island of Phuket is very touristy and wealthy. You will often see modern buildings, resorts, and heavy traffic among hills.
Street signs shaped like a helm are exclusive to Pattaya City.
Western Rayong province features a northeast-southwest grid filled with modern and industrial buildings among fields of rubber trees, cassava, and pineapple.
Doors, windows, gates and other architectural elements are sometimes painted with this specific traditional shade of blue.
NOTE: This shade of blue can be found all over the country, but is especially common on the island of Djerba, where buildings tend to be older and more traditional.
Red and white striped curbs are common in Tunisia.
NOTE: Similar curbs are also common in Israel and Palestine. Make sure to look for additional information!
The island of Djerba can sometimes have a distinct vibe. There tend to be a lot of palm trees. Whitewashed, traditional buildings with blue doors and windows are common.
NOTE: Not all locations on the island will have this distinct vibe. A lack of a follow car is another good way to confirm that you are on Djerba.
Trekkers can be found all over the country, even in places far away from the area with car coverage. Coverage includes archaeological sites, forts, mosques, and a Star Wars set, among other things.
Metal poles, either in the shape of a ladder or with a mesh pattern, are extremely common in Turkey.
Tall and somewhat square apartment blocks are very common in Turkey.
Turkey is a Muslim-majority country, and as such mosques can be found in most towns. In particular, tall minarets are extremely common and a good clue for the country.
Tiled roofs are mostly found in the western two thirds of the country.
Note that for this and the following roof-related tips to be reliable, the majority of all visible roofs should preferably be of that type.
Flat roofs are mostly found in the southeast and to a lesser extent along the south coast.
Metal roofs are most common in the east.
Sheet metal roofs shaped like low pyramids are mainly found far east, particularly in the general area surrounding Lake Van.
Many buildings in the Nevşehir Province are built by large, light and unevenly coloured, sandstone bricks.
Vertical water tanks can be found in most of Turkey, but are notably uncommon along the south and west coast.
Horizontal water tanks placed on top of vertical water tanks are primarily found in a line following the south coast and going up to Elâzığ.
Square water tanks with angled corners are found in the south, approximately from İskenderun to Sanliurfa.
White spherical water tanks can be found in the southeast, mainly south of Batman.
Street signs in the Izmir Province are dark blue, noticeably bulge outwards and very commonly have the emblem of Izmir in white at the top of the sign.
Around the city of Bodrum you will commonly find this type of whitewashed buildings with flat roofs, often combined with blue details or unpainted stone walls.
Göreme, west of Kayseri, can be recognised by the tall sandstone monoliths with ancient dwellings carved into them.
Kampala is a fairly busy-looking city, with many signs, narrow unpaved roads and typically fairly small, one-storey houses. Like many African countries, houses will often be surrounded by tall walls, commonly with barbed wire on top.
In the city centre of Kampala, you will see paved roads with black-and-white curbs. In contrast to the rest of the city, the city centre looks richer and very built-up, with lots of multi-storey buildings.
The city of Entebbe, southwest of Kampala, can often be recognized by feeling slightly emptier than most of the capital, with more greenery and somewhat fancier houses. The area also has significantly more street signs than the rest of the capital.
Katwe village is the only significant settlement outside of Kampala with Street View coverage.
NOTE: Much smaller villages, safari lodges and single houses with coverage can be found elsewhere.
Ukraine primarily uses square concrete poles. They can have a variety of different pole tops, and sometimes have white paint at the bottom.
These poles are similar to the ones found in other post-Soviet countries like Russia and Lithuania.
Poles often have diagonal support beams.
You can also find wooden poles, sometimes with concrete support blocks at their base.
In bigger cities and towns, you will often see big Soviet-era apartment blocks. These are often made of light grey brick. They tend to look fairly rundown and poorly maintained. Some are made of concrete prefab units that are stacked on top of each other.
These apartment buildings are similar to those found in Russian cities. You can also find this style of building in the Baltic countries, but these tend to look better maintained.
Single-family homes are very common in suburbs and small towns. These neighbourhoods are often heavily vegetated and tend to look rundown. Most roads are unpaved. Buildings are usually made of bricks, often have corrugated roofs, and are invariably surrounded by fences.
Bus stop shelters with a vibrant yellow-and-green paint scheme, featuring sunflowers and the name of a local brand (Оліс), can be found in the Mykolaiv and Kherson oblasts.
Within Ukraine, this visual glitch is unique to the city of Ivano-Frankivsk.
In addition, the villages in this region look similar to Hungarian architecture. Settlements are fairly linear and organised, with predominantly single-storey houses that are closer to the street. Many roofs have orange tiles or diamond-shaped slate tiles that are similar to roofs found in central European countries like Hungary, Czechia and Slovakia.
Google sent a special car trekker to the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, where the nuclear disaster happened in the 1980s. This car goes from Ivankiv all the way to the abandoned town of Pripyat.
On most of the road to Pripyat, you will not really be able to tell that you are inside the Exclusion Zone. However, inside Pripyat you will see completely abandoned and overgrown buildings, giving the place an eerie look.
Houses in residential areas are typically made of light-coloured stone. Reddish stones are often used for sidewalks.
The skyline of Dubai is dominated by numerous skyscrapers, including the iconic Burj Khalifa.
The city of Al Ain has several trekkers, far away from the area with car coverage: two forts (Qasr Al Muwaiji and Al Jahili) and a zoo.
This racetrack coverage is found slightly east of Abu Dhabi.
Poles in the UK occasionally have a metal crossbar near the top with two diagonal supports forming a triangle shape.
NOTE: Ireland, as well as Sweden and Finland also use similar crossbars on some poles.
Rural metal gates with square corners are very common in the UK.
NOTE: This is mainly useful to distinguish it from Ireland, where similar gates typically have rounded corners. Gates in Northern Ireland also typically have rounded corners.
Terraced houses (row houses) are very common in the UK. This housing type shares walls on both sides with neighbouring homes. You will also see a lot of semi-detached houses, which share just one side wall with another house.
NOTE: 61% of the population lives in terraced or semi-detached houses, significantly more than most other European countries. The only European countries where terraced houses are this common are Ireland and the Netherlands.
Red brick buildings are common in many parts of the UK.
NOTE: Red brick architecture is also common in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark, as well as parts of northern France.
Suburbs in UK towns tend to have a recognizable look. They typically feature near-identical houses, often semi-detached, usually with well-manicured lawns. The road layout can be maze-like, with lots of cul-de-sacs and curvy roads.
Many British buildings have distinct-looking chimneys with multiple so-called chimney pots. These pots are usually round and brick-coloured.
Some buildings, both old and new, feature black-and-white timber framing.
NOTE: This is less common in Ireland.
It is common to see houses made of large blocks of sandstone or granite in Scotland. Granite buildings are common in Aberdeen, red sandstone is common in Glasgow and Dumfries, and yellow sandstone is common in Edinburgh.
Warning stickers wrapped all the way around the utility pole are specific to Northern Ireland.
The majority of poles and signposts in Birmingham have either yellow tape or yellow paint wrapped around them. Lampposts will also usually have this yellow sticker.
Small, rectangular manufactured homes, also known as mobile or ‘trailer’ homes, are popular in rural areas of the US. In general, mobile homes are more common in the Southeast but they can be seen anywhere in the country.
NOTE: This style of home can sometimes be seen in Canada, but to a much lesser extent.
Baptist churches are very common in the United States. Similar to mobile homes, these are more common in the Southern Plains and Southeast United States, but can be found in all 50 states.
NOTE: Baptist churches are rare in Canada.
Here are two common types of water towers seen in towns across the United States and Canada. They are typically very tall, and sometimes have the name of the town and state painted on them, so they can be useful for region guessing.
The Appalachian mountain range is a low mountain range that runs through the eastern states. The general landscape consists of low, forested mountains, with beech and oak trees being a common sight.
NOTE: Houses in the south generally have less storeys. New England architecture, commonly consisting of wood panelling, high roofs and a porch, is also more common toward the north, especially in New England.
Guardrails, signs, and signposts are commonly painted a medium brown colour in US National Parks, which are often located in the west. Guardrails that are painted brown can be made out of both wood and metal. Rock walls can also sometimes be seen in place of guardrails.
Here you can find a map showing where all US National Parks are located.
NOTE: There are occasional exceptions to this rule, so consider other clues before guessing in a National Park.
In rural areas of Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, short rock walls are commonly visible adjacent to the road.
NOTE: These rock walls can be found rarely in adjacent states.
Dark-coloured wooden fences with several horizontal wooden supports are common in farming areas of central and southern Appalachia, stretching from Pennsylvania to Georgia.
NOTE: These types of fences can be found elsewhere to a lesser extent, so use other clues before guessing.
Stilt houses can sometimes be seen on the coast. These are especially common toward the south, and on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
Similar in style to aforementioned stilt houses, houses with much shorter stilts are common in the western and central Gulf Coast. These houses typically feature short stilts made of concrete or wood (1-3 feet off the ground) and are primarily found in areas near the coast and any adjacent rivers.
Buildings with very large, sloped roofs are most common in the states of Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana. They can also be seen in neighbouring states to a lesser extent.
Houses in coastal New England often feature shingle walls, which are layered wood panels overlapping each other.
A similar style of panelling can also be seen, however, having a wider range than the one shown above.
Older three story wooden houses, also called ‘stacked triplexes,’ are very common in urban areas of the Northeast. They are most prevalent in New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.
NOTE: These types of houses are also somewhat common in cities in Atlantic Canada.
Brownstone buildings are typically row houses or government buildings made out of various types of brick and sandstone. They are most commonly found in dense urban areas of the Northeast US, as well as Chicago.
Buildings with red metal rooftops are most commonly found in the Mid-South and Southern Appalachia states of Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, and North Carolina.
NOTE: These types of rooftops can be found in other areas, so use other clues before guessing.
Very narrow, one-storey houses made out of wood are called ‘shotgun houses.’ They are most common in and around New Orleans (LA,) Houston (TX,) Louisville (KY,) and the state of Mississippi.
Pueblo Revival style houses are commonly seen in New Mexico. They are typically constructed of adobe or brick and concrete. They have rounded edges and flat roofs, and are usually sand-brown in colour.
NOTE: Pueblo style houses can also be seen in Arizona and Colorado to a lesser extent.
Spanish Colonial Revival Architecture can be categorised as buildings with lightly-coloured stucco walls and red clay-tile roofs. They can be found in the desert southwest states of California, Nevada, Arizona, and Texas. You can also find similar types of buildings in Florida and coastal Georgia.
Houses and commercial buildings in the interior Western US are often made of lots of dark wooden boards and timbers. Buildings at high elevations also commonly have metal roofs, to avoid snow build-up.
‘Buc-ee’s’ is a small chain of oversized gas stations located primarily in the state of Texas. These stores feature multiple rows of gas pumps, and a very large convenience store building.
NOTE: Some other nearby states have Buc-ee’s locations, but they are quite rare outside of Texas.
Many bridges are used to connect the various neighbourhoods of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. These expansive, steel bridges are commonly painted bright yellow. Additionally, Pittsburgh is easy to identify because of it being flanked by 3 rivers and steep bluffs on all sides.
Row Houses and other buildings in San Francisco are often in the style of Victorian architecture, with many bay windows, turrets, and ornate exterior details. These homes are built close together and can be very colourful.
Neighbourhoods all around the city of New Orleans feature many colourful, historic, shotgun-style houses.
Buildings in central areas of New Orleans often feature colourful facades with second story wrap-around balconies.
Historical areas of Miami and Miami beach are home to many historical, multi-story art deco buildings. These buildings are commonly painted in bright colours and are located near the coast.
The main island of Dry Tortugas National Park, west of Key West, can be identified by the hexagonal brick structure and the surrounding moat.
The Loggerhead Lighthouse, situated on the Loggerhead Key, has a brown top-half and a white bottom. The path on which the trekker walks on is also made of bright concrete, and many palm trees can be seen around the lighthouse.
Uruguay uses thick wooden signposts, which are typically painted white. They often have up to four rectangular notches at the back of the post.
NOTE: Thick wooden signposts can also be seen in Bolivia.
You can also see a variety of other pole designs, including:
Round poles with a pole top consisting of flat metal sheets
Square concrete poles.
Both of these pole designs are also good clues for Uruguay.
In addition, you might see simple wooden poles with one insulator, as well as very rarely some Argentina-style poles.
This green-painted stone kilometre marker is unique to Uruguay.
Many Uruguayan houses are made out of concrete, and are somewhat cube-shaped. Walls often have drab colours and tend to look weathered. Flat roofs are relatively common.
NOTE: Architecture in Argentina often looks similar.
These bins with orange lids are specific to Rocha Department. However, you can still find these black bins in both the Rocha and Canelones Department.
Montevideo is by far the largest city in Uruguay. More than half the Uruguayan population lives within its metropolitan area.
Its relatively massive size may not always be as apparent in its suburbs. However, if you are in a densely populated, highly built-up area, consider guessing in downtown Montevideo, as there are very few places like that in other parts of Uruguay.
Punta del Este is a seaside resort town with a recognizable look. It is an affluent and touristic place with a developed downtown that consists of many tall, modern apartment buildings. Its main attraction is its large, sandy beach.
Further away from the downtown area, you will see less highrises, but still a lot of expensive-looking villa neighbourhoods. Here, you will often see distinctive tall pine trees.
The small island of Isla de Flores is located off the coast of Montevideo. It has a trekker where you can see abandoned buildings, and usually also the lighthouse.
On the eastern side of the Midway Atoll, you can find a small village.
A unique blend of architecture is found on the United States Virgin Islands. The primary influences are European Renaissance, Spanish Baroque, Rococo and Victorian styles. Facades with large arches are common; as well as central plazas and courtyards.
Endu Pahakol, the only village with coverage on Ambrym Island, can be recognized by the small thatched huts and dark soil.
Holey poles, with holes either only on the lower half or almost all the way to the top, are common in Vietnam.
NOTE: The only other Asian country that commonly has holey poles is Sri Lanka, where the holes are significantly larger.
Poletops shaped like upside down trapezoids are common in Vietnam.
NOTE: These may look similar to the poletops found in central and northern Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Double poles, which can be of different varieties, are fairly common in Vietnam.
Utility poles often feature these light grey electricity boxes, which can have anywhere from 1 to 4 small indented windows. They have a very characteristic shape, where the bottom part slopes down slightly.
Thin spires on the roofs of houses are almost exclusively found in the northern half of the country.
Houses in the Red River Delta (the flat, densely populated area around Hanoi) tend to have a boxy look, typically tall with multiple storeys. These houses often feature gaudy details that borrow heavily from antique Greco-Roman architecture: pillars, pediments, classical-looking balconies, etc.
Note that similar houses are sometimes found in the direct vicinity of Ho Chi Minh City.
Houses in the Mekong Delta also have a boxy, concrete look, but are usually much less tall: they almost always consist of just a single, ground-level storey.
Traditional wooden houses are common in the northwest. They commonly have one or several of the following features:
Stilts holding up the house,
corrugated metal roofs,
triangular openings on the side of the roofs.
Wooden fences made out of sticks, or even bamboo, in a grid-like pattern, similar to fences commonly found in northeastern India, are found in the northern parts of Vietnam.
Poletops shaped like upside down trapezoids are common in central and northern Vietnam.
NOTE: Trapezoidal pole tops may be off-centre which is not the same as regular off-centre poles.
A poletop shaped like an A above a crossbar can be found in the centre of the country.
The historic town of Hội An, just south of Da Nang, can be recognised by the old yellow buildings typically with dark brown doors and details.
Sa Pa is a resort town deep in the northern mountains overflowing with touristy stores and restaurants with excessive signage, and palace-like grand hotels throughout the town. The architecture is a mixture of an affluent European style and a more typical southeast Asian style.