What are Gold PokéStops and what do they do in Pokémon Go?

A new type of PokéStop suddenly started appearing in the game after Dratini Community Day Classic concluded back in November, bringing with it mysterious coins and an unknown Pokémon. This was the first reveal for Gimmighoul ahead of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s launch, though the Gold PokéStops that were included in this tease didn’t really do much at the time. 

Initially, the Gold PokéStops were simply a slight visual change to a normal PokéStop. The only difference was whenever players would spin the Photo Disc, they could obtain a “????? Coin” and would soon find that a Gimmighoul (Roaming Form) would appear. 

Related: How to catch Gimmighoul in Pokémon Go

Months removed from this initial mystery, we now know exactly what Gold PokéStops do and how to activate them in Pokémon Go. 

What do the Gold PokéStops do in Pokémon Go? 

Gold PokéStops will still appear in Pokémon Go on occasion, but now, it is mostly tied to the larger Gimmighoul crossover content and players will need to activate them on their own. 

To do this, players must first connect Pokémon Go to their copy of Pokémon Scarlet or Violet. From there, they can send Postcards to their Nintendo Switch and unlock the Coin Bag—a special item that, when used, will cause Gimmighoul to spawn more frequently for a limited time. 

Players can send a Postcard to Scarlet or Violet once per day, and doing so also gives them a chance to obtain additional Gimmighoul Coins and new Golden Lure Modules. 

Applying a Golden Lure Module to any PokéStop will turn it into a Gold PokéStop. This will result in Gimmighoul occasionally appearing around that PokéStop and the Photo Disc giving out Gimmighoul Coins for spinning it.