The Island

Going to the Island

This page explains how to go to the island resort. Tortimer will tell you about it, then Kapp'n can take you there.

Step 1: Upgrade to a House

When you first start the game, you live in a tent. Pay off your loan to upgrade to a house. Next, you have to talk to Tom Nook to get your next home loan, then pay it off with the ABD machine in the post office. You have to pay off this first house loan before you can go to the island resort.

Step 2: Talk to Tortimer

After you pay off the loan mentioned in the previous step, the next time you play, Isabelle will introduce Tortimer at the start-up screen. After this, go down to the dock on your beach to find Tortimer standing there. Talk to him and he'll tell you about the island. Note! If you forget to talk to Tortimer, just pay off another house loan to make him show up again.

Step 3: Wait a Day

After you talk to Tortimer on your dock, you have to wait until the next day. Then, go to the dock again. Kapp'n will be there in a boat.

Step 4: Pay Kapp'n to Take You to the Island

To go to the island resort, pay Kapp'n 1000 bells. Then you will hop into the boat and he will take you to the island.

Skip the Song?

If you don't feel like waiting through Kapp'n's sea shanty that he sings on the way to (and from) the island, press the B button repeatedly until he stops.

Things to do on the Island

When you are on the island, you can go on tours, collect fruit, and catch bugs and fish that might not be available in your village. Leila, the little girl Kappa, will buy things from you at 5% of their Re-Tail selling price. You can win medals by going on tours, then use the medals to buy things from Grams's souvenir shop. Sometimes she sells a membership to Club Tortimer, which allows you to go to the island with a random player over the Internet.

Sending Things Home with the Box

To send things back to your town from the Island, open the box to the right of Leilani's counter (near the top left). Anything that you put in the box is sent to the basket on the dock in your village. Note! If you have anything in your pockets when you leave (except tools borrowed from Lloid), they will automatically be sold to Leila (at 5% of their value).

Island Tours

One day, Tortimer shows up at your dock. Talk to him, then the next day, Kapp'n will be there in a boat to take you to the island. When you are there, you can go on tours, which are like mini-games where you win island medals, which you can use to buy things in the island shop.

Going on a Tour

Talk to Leilani, the kappa woman in the orange dress at the top left to go on a tour. She will show you a list of tours that you can go on. Once you choose the tour, sit down in one of the four chairs below the tour desk. If you are playing with other players, they can sit in the other chairs to go on the tour with you.

Getting Fruit, Bugs, and Fish from Tours

You can get fruit, bugs, and fish during tours that you can keep after the tour and send back to your town using the box near Leilani. However, you can only keep items after the tour if those items weren't the objective of the tour. For example, if you are on a bug-catching tour, you won't be able to keep the bugs that you catch during that tour.

The fruits available during island tours are bananas, mangoes, lychees, lemons, coconuts, and durians. You CANNOT find persimmons during island tours. They show up in the fruit maze tour, but you can't keep the fruits from that tour. Persimmons can only be purchased from the department store.

Tours

The following are the tours that you can go on, with explanations of each.

Hide and Seek

In the hide and seek tour, four villagers (not your own, but those who live on the island) will hide behind buildings and trees. You have to find all four to win. The number of medals you get depends on how quickly you found everyone.

Flower Planting

The objective of the flower planting tour is to go around the island and take the flowers that you find, then plant them in the square near Tortimer. The tour ends when you have filled up the square with flowers. The number of medals you get depends on how quickly you filled up the square. In more difficult versions of this tour, you need to plant flowers of a specific color, and specific species.

Balloon Popping

In this tour, there are no trees on the island, and you are automatically equipped with a slingshot. The map in the touch screen shows you where there are balloons floating through the sky. There is also a wind indicator in the touch screen that tells you which direction the balloons will be moving in. Run to the areas with the balloons and stand near the shadow of a balloon. Stand just to the side of the shadow so that the balloon will be moving toward you. Then use the slingshot to pop the balloon. Rabbit balloons are worth more points. The number of medals you get depends on how many balloons you popped.

Shell Finding

In this tour, you are automatically equipped with a wetsuit. Go walk into the ocean to swim. Tap A to swim forward. Look for bubbles and shadows in the water. Dive by pressing Y when you are near a shadow. While underwater, tap A to swim toward the shadow. When you are on the shadow, tap A to catch it. If you found a shell, it counts toward your points. If you found something other than a shell, such as a seahorse or urchin, it does not count toward your total. You have to get at least 3 shells.

Borrowing Tour

In this tour, your inventory has a list in it. Open your inventory and read the list. It is a list of furniture that you need to find in the cottages around the island. Go to the cottages and try to find the furniture from the list. Press Y to pick up the furniture. You can keep it in your inventory. If the furniture matches an item in the list, there will be a check mark next to it in the list. When you have found all of the furniture in the list, talk to Tortimer to end the tour.

Bug-Catching Tours

There are several types of bug-catching tours. One of the tours just asks you to catch as many insects as possible, of any type. Other tours will ask you to catch specific types of insects. Be sure to catch the correct types.

Fishing Tours

There are several types of fishing tours. One of the tours just asks you to catch as many fish as possible, of any type. Other tours will ask you to catch specific types of fish. Be sure to catch the correct types.

Deep Sea Creature Catching Tours

There are several types of tours for catching deep sea creatures. One of the tours just asks you to catch as many deep sea creatures as possible, of any type. Other tours will ask you to catch specific types of deep sea creatures. Be sure to catch the correct types.

Fossil Finding Tour

In this tour, there are two houses in the top left. The left house contains fossils. The right house is empty. Check on the fossils in the house to find out what they are. Then go around the island digging up fossils with the shovel. When you find the fossils that match the types in the house, go into the empty house on the right and put the fossils in the same positions as you found them in the house on the left. Then the tour will end and you will get medals based on how quickly you completed the fossil display.

Item Matching Tour

This is a memory game where there are pairs of items and you have to match the pairs. Items are buried in the ground. You are equipped with a shovel. You have to dig up an item from a crack in the ground, then find the matching item in another crack in the ground. If the next item you find doesn't match what you dug up first, you will automatically bury it again. Match all of the items to end the tour.

Fruit Maze Tour

A maze will be set up on the island, made of bushes. Tortimer will ask you to find a specific number of a specific type of fruit. Harder versions of this tour require you to find multiple types of fruit. Go through the maze and look for that type of fruit. Only pick up the type that you need! You aren't allowed to take any type except what Tortimer asked for. Once you have the exact number of the exact type of fruit that Tortimer asked for, and no other fruits, talk to Tortimer to end the tour. Tip: Don't run too close to the bushes because they will slow you down.

Hammer Time

You are equipped with a hammer. You have to chase around a remote-controlled Cornimer toy and hit it with your hammer as many times as you can before the time runs out.

Gem-Finding Tour

There will be many rocks around the area. You have to use your shovel to break as many rocks as possible to find as many gems as possible. One type of gem will be worth three points, and the rest are worth one. Some rocks are normal rocks, so you might want to mark them (e.g. dig a hole in front) so you don't try to break it again.

Club Tortimer

Club Tortimer lets you visit the resort island with other players over the Internet.

Club Tortimer is an exclusive club that gives you access to online features on the resort island. A Club Tortimer membership allows you to visit an online version of the island where you can join other players over the Internet and find exclusive Club Tortimer items in the souvenir shop.

How to Join Club Tortimer

When you visit the resort island, Grams sometimes sells a membership to Club Tortimer for 50 medals. Her selection changes every day, so check back each day until she sells the membership. Be sure to go on island tours to earn the medals so you can buy the membership!

How to Visit the Club Tortimer island

After you purchase a Club Tortimer membership, you can tell Kapp'n that you want to go to the Club Tortimer island. After the boat ride, you will be on the island with at least one random player from the Internet. You can use the chat feature to talk to the other players. You can go through the south exit of the island house to catch bugs and fish with the other players, or you can go on island tours with the other players and compete to win medals.

How to Get Exclusive Club Tortimer Items

You can get exclusive Club Tortimer items simply by visiting the Club Tortimer island. Check the souvenir shop there to find exclusive items available only through Club Tortimer!