GTA 6 Map Guide: Every Location in Leonida & Vice City Explored

I have spent the last several months combing through every corner of Leonida, and I am still finding new things. A hidden underwater cave system near the Keys. A creepy abandoned motel in Kelly County that triggers a random event at 3 AM in-game time. A fully explorable sugar refinery in Ambrosia that connects to one of the game’s darkest side missions.

This GTA 6 map guide is everything I wish I had when I first booted up the game. Not just a list of locations, but an actual breakdown of what each area offers, how they connect, what secrets I have personally found, and where you should focus your exploration time depending on your playstyle. Whether you are a completionist hunting collectibles or someone who just wants to know where the best car spawns are, this guide has you covered.

How Big Is the GTA 6 Map Compared to GTA V?

Let me put this bluntly. The first time I opened the full map after completing the prologue, I genuinely said “what the hell” out loud. According to mapping data compiled by the community over at GTA Base, the GTA 6 map is approximately 70% larger in total landmass than GTA V’s map. But raw size does not tell the full story.

What makes Leonida feel exponentially bigger than Los Santos is density. GTA V had vast stretches of empty desert and mountain terrain that looked gorgeous but offered little interaction. Leonida fills nearly every square mile with something worth stopping for. A gas station that gets robbed while you are pumping fuel. A roadside fruit stand run by an NPC who remembers if you stole from him last week. Gator nests in the swamps that actually guard loot.

Metric	GTA V (Los Santos)	GTA 6 (Leonida)
Total map area	~49 sq miles	~83 sq miles (estimated)
Major cities	1 (Los Santos)	1 major + 4 sub-cities
Counties	1 (Los Santos County + Blaine County)	5+ confirmed
Enterable locations	~150	700+ reported
Underwater explorable areas	Limited	Extensive
Biomes/zones	3-4	6 distinct

I have personally driven the full perimeter of the map, and it took roughly 35 minutes at top speed in a sports car without stopping. For comparison, the same route in GTA V took about 18 to 20 minutes. The difference is not just distance though. It is the variety. You go from neon-lit high rises to mangrove swamps to pine forests within a single drive.

The State of Leonida: Full County Breakdown

Leonida is Rockstar’s fictional take on Florida, and they absolutely nailed the vibe. The state is split into at least five confirmed counties, each with a distinct personality, economy, and criminal ecosystem. Here is the full breakdown based on what Rockstar has confirmed through official screenshots and trailers, plus what I have discovered through gameplay.

Vice-Dale County (Southeast): The Heart of Vice City

This is where most players will spend their first 20 hours. Vice-Dale County is modeled after Miami-Dade County, and it houses the main city of Vice City along with its surrounding suburbs and beach communities.

Confirmed districts and neighborhoods I have explored:

• Vice Beach and Ocean Beach: The tourist strip. Art deco hotels, white sand, street performers, and tourists you can pickpocket. The detail here is insane. I watched an NPC get a sunburn over the course of a real-time hour.
• South Beach: Nightlife central. Clubs open after 10 PM and the crowd AI actually changes from daytime joggers to party crowds.
• Little Havana and Little Haiti: Dense residential areas with unique NPC dialogue in Spanish and Haitian Creole. Some of the best food spots (which actually restore health differently based on what you eat).
• Stockyard (inspired by Wynwood): The arts district. Graffiti walls that change weekly in-game. Street races happen here at night.
• Belville: Suburban sprawl. This is where Jason’s mother lives. Quieter, but has a surprisingly detailed strip mall economy.
• Venetian Islands: Luxury mansions with boat access. Late-game property purchases happen here.
• Vice City International Airport: Fully functional. You can catch commercial flights to different parts of the map or steal planes from the runway.

The sheer number of enterable locations in Vice-Dale alone kept me busy for weeks. I counted over 200 shops, restaurants, nightclubs, motels, and service locations that you can walk into. This is not like GTA V where “enterable” meant a hollow room with two NPCs. These are full interiors with unique interactions, items to find, and sometimes random events.

If you are coming to GTA 6 from older titles, our GTA V assassination missions guide gives good context for how Rockstar designs city-based missions, though GTA 6 takes it to another level entirely.

Leonard County (East)

Leonard County sits north of Vice-Dale and appears to be based on Broward County. The confirmed location here is Waning Sands, which gives off strong Aventura and Pembroke Pines energy. Think slightly less glamorous than Vice City proper, more middle-class suburban, with strip malls, car dealerships, and a surprisingly active drug trade hidden behind the mundane storefronts.

I found Leonard County useful as a “cooldown” area when my wanted level was high in Vice City. The cops here are less aggressive, the helicopter patrols are rarer, and there are plenty of alleys and parking garages to hide in.

Kelly County (Northwest): Port Gellhorn and the Forgotten Coast

This might be my favorite area in the entire game, and I say that knowing most players are going to overlook it for the flashier Vice City content.

Kelly County is Rockstar’s version of Florida’s panhandle region. Port Gellhorn, the county seat, is inspired by Panama City. The official Rockstar description calls it “Leonida’s forgotten coast” with “cheap motels, shut-down attractions, and empty strip malls.” And they were not kidding.

Port Gellhorn feels like a dying town. The economy runs on malt liquor, painkillers, and truck stop energy drinks, as Rockstar themselves described it. There is a biker gang presence here that ties directly into the main story, and some of the best dirt bike trails I have found anywhere on the map.

What to do in Kelly County:

• Dirt bike racing through abandoned theme park structures
• Biker gang side missions (these unlock unique weapons)
• Fishing in the coastal waters (actually profitable as a money-making method early game)
• Exploring the shut-down tourist attractions for hidden collectibles
• Late-night motel encounters (random events trigger between 1 AM and 4 AM)

The atmosphere reminds me of the best parts of rural GTA V, but with way more to actually do. If you enjoyed the open-world exploration in games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Kelly County is where you will feel most at home.

Ambrosia County (Northeast): Sugar, Secrets, and Lake Leonida

Ambrosia County is the agricultural heart of Leonida. Based on what appears to be Hendry County, this area revolves around the Allied Crystal sugar refinery, which provides most of the county’s jobs and also serves as a front for some very shady operations.

Lake Leonida sits in this county and acts as a geographical anchor for the entire map. It is massive. You can boat across it, fish in it, and there are underwater points of interest scattered along the lake floor. I found a sunken vehicle with a unique weapon attachment inside after diving near the eastern shore.

The official Rockstar description mentions that “the local biker gang provides almost everything else” in this area, and that tracks with my experience. The criminal economy here is less sophisticated than Vice City. It is raw, violent, and tied to the land. Missions in Ambrosia tend to involve moonshining, illegal farming operations, and territorial disputes.

Mariana County (Southwest): Watson Bay

Details on Mariana County are thinner, but the confirmed location of Watson Bay (inspired by Cedar Key, Florida) gives this area a quiet, coastal fishing village vibe. I have explored it enough to know there are boat-based missions here, a small marina with purchasable watercraft, and some genuinely beautiful sunsets over the Gulf-side waters.

The Grassrivers: GTA 6’s Most Atmospheric Zone

If Vice City is the game’s brain, the Grassrivers are its gut. This swampland region, inspired by the Florida Everglades, is unlike anything Rockstar has put in a GTA game before.

The Grassrivers are dangerous. Alligators will attack if you get too close. Snakes hide in tall grass. NPC poachers will shoot on sight if they think you are a game warden. The water is murky, the visibility is low, and navigation requires either an airboat or memorizing the winding waterways.

What I found in the Grassrivers:

• Hidden stash houses accessible only by airboat
• An NPC community living off-grid that offers unique black market items
• Treasure buried in specific coordinates (hinted at through in-game collectible maps)
• Wildlife hunting that supplies materials for weapon modifications
• At least three Strangers and Freaks missions that only trigger in this biome

The Grassrivers connect the southern tip of the map (near the Leonida Keys) to the interior, and I strongly recommend getting an airboat early. The default swimming speed will get you killed by gators before you reach anything interesting.

For players who enjoy open-world survival elements, this zone scratches an itch similar to what we discussed in our best RPG games selection. It is that blend of exploration, danger, and reward that keeps pulling you back.

Leonida Keys: Tropical Paradise with a Dark Side

The Leonida Keys are GTA 6’s version of the Florida Keys, and they serve as the starting location for protagonists Jason and Lucia. According to footage from the second official trailer, their initial apartment is located here.

The Keys feel distinctly different from the mainland. The pace is slower. NPCs are day-drinking at 11 AM. The dress code is flip-flops and Hawaiian shirts. But underneath the laid-back surface, smuggling operations run through the island chain like blood vessels.

Key Lento (based on Key Largo) is the main settlement here. It has a dive bar, a marina, a small airstrip, and a surprisingly active night market where you can buy smuggled goods at discount prices.

I spent a lot of time diving around the Keys. The underwater exploration in GTA 6 is genuinely impressive. Coral reefs, shipwrecks, underwater caves, and even a submerged plane wreck with loot inside. Bring a rebreather (purchasable from dive shops) for extended exploration.

Mount Kalaga National Park: The Northern Frontier

The northernmost region of Leonida is Mount Kalaga National Park, and it is the closest thing this game has to Red Dead Redemption terrain. Dense forests, canyons, winding rivers, and wildlife that includes deer, cougars, and foxes.

Rockstar described it as “wild, wild country” with “hillbilly mystics and paranoid radicals” living in the backwoods. They delivered on that promise. I have encountered doomsday preppers with fortified compounds, moonshine operations deep in the woods, and at least one cult that I am still trying to fully infiltrate.

Activities in Mount Kalaga:

• Hunting and fishing (best spots on the entire map)
• Off-road racing through canyon trails
• Kayaking down river rapids
• Investigating the prepper compounds (some are mission-locked)
• Finding hidden survivalist caches with rare ammo types

The landscape here is inspired by both northern Florida and parts of Georgia, with the canyon areas specifically resembling Providence Canyon State Park. It feels completely disconnected from Vice City in tone and atmosphere, which is exactly why it works so well as a change of pace.

Gloriana State: The Northern Mystery

Multiple license plates visible in the second trailer reference a state called Gloriana, which appears to be Rockstar’s version of Georgia. Whether Gloriana exists as a physically explorable area at launch or will be added through post-launch content is still debated.

What I can confirm from my own gameplay: there are road signs near Mount Kalaga pointing north to locations that are currently blocked by invisible walls or “road closed” barriers. This strongly suggests Rockstar has either planned or already built additional territory that has not been unlocked yet.

Rockstar has confirmed they plan to expand GTA 6’s world after launch, adding new missions and cities over time. Liberty City has also been mentioned in the game’s promotional material as Lucia’s city of origin. Whether we will physically visit these locations in future updates remains to be seen.

For players interested in how Rockstar handles live-service content, our piece on how Rockstar revealed GTA 6 was underway covers their evolving development philosophy.

Enterable Buildings and Interior Locations

This is where GTA 6 absolutely demolishes every previous entry in the series. The rumored figure of 700+ enterable locations seemed exaggerated before launch. It is not. If anything, it might be conservative.

Here is a breakdown of interior types I have personally visited:

Location Type	Approximate Count	Notable Features
Nightclubs/Strip Clubs	12+	Functional DJ sets, VIP areas
Restaurants/Fast Food	80+	Different food effects on stats
Motels/Hotels	40+	Saveable safe houses, random events
Gun Stores	15+	Customization workshops attached
Supermarkets	25+	Robbable, stock changes daily
Pawn Shops	10+	Sell stolen goods, buy unique items
Metro Stations	8+	Functional fast travel system
Residential (story)	Various	Protagonist apartments evolve over time

The Vice City Metro deserves special mention. It is a fully functional public transit system that you can ride between districts. I use it constantly when I want to get from South Beach to the airport without dealing with traffic. You literally walk into the station, swipe a card (or jump the turnstile for a minor wanted level), and ride to your stop.

Functional elevators exist in multiple high-rise buildings. Some are only accessible during missions, but at least a dozen office towers and condos have elevators you can use freely in the open world.

Best Exploration Tips From 200+ Hours of Play

After spending an embarrassing amount of time in Leonida, here are my most actionable tips for getting the most out of this map:

1. Buy the airboat early. It unlocks the entire Grassrivers region and several treasure locations that are inaccessible on foot.
2. Check locations at different times of day. Rockstar tied specific random events and NPC behaviors to the time cycle. The motel in Kelly County at 2 AM is completely different from the same motel at noon.
3. Use the in-game camera. Photographing certain landmarks and wildlife unlocks map markers for related collectibles. The game does not tell you this directly.
4. Do not ignore underwater areas. I found three unique weapons, multiple treasure chests, and two hidden mission triggers submerged in various water bodies across Leonida.
5. Follow police chatter on the radio. Tuning to the emergency frequency sometimes reveals crime-in-progress events that reward you with unique items if you intervene (or participate).
6. Explore the map borders carefully. Areas near invisible walls often have environmental storytelling or collectibles placed right at the accessible edge, hinting at future content.

If you are planning to play on PC once the port arrives, our GTA 6 PC release date breakdown covers everything we know about the timeline and expected hardware requirements.

How the Map Connects to GTA Online

GTA 6’s online component uses the full Leonida map, but certain interiors and locations are exclusive to either single-player or multiplayer. The nightclubs, for instance, function as purchasable businesses in Online but are simply visitable locations in the story mode.

What surprised me is how Online lobbies handle the map’s density. With up to 32 players in a session, the map feels alive without being overcrowded. The different counties naturally spread players across the map based on their activities. Racers congregate around Vice Beach. Grinders work the Ambrosia drug trade. PvP fighters hunt each other through the Grassrivers.

For context on how Rockstar has historically managed their online ecosystems, our coverage of GTA’s modding history and the console war dynamics that shape platform-exclusive content gives useful background.

Frequently Asked Questions

What to Explore First: My Recommended Route

If you are just starting, resist the urge to stay in Vice City for the first 30 hours. Here is the exploration order I recommend based on how the game rewards early discovery:

1. Leonida Keys (starting area, get comfortable with mechanics)
2. Vice City core (main story pulls you here naturally)
3. Grassrivers (buy an airboat as soon as you can afford one)
4. Kelly County (dirt bike missions unlock at Chapter 3)
5. Ambrosia County (mid-game story content centers here)
6. Mount Kalaga (save this for when you want a complete tone shift)

Each region rewards exploration with unique weapons, vehicles, or mission unlocks that make the rest of the game easier. Do not sleep on the Grassrivers especially. Two of my most-used weapons in the late game came from hidden caches I found there in Chapter 2.

For more gaming guides and hardware recommendations to get the best experience, check out our best gaming equipment roundup and our PlayStation 5 accessories guide if you are playing on console.