visit friends island animal crossing

Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Visit a Friend's Island

One of the most exciting parts about Animal Crossing: New Horizons is having the ability to connect with friends online and visiting other islands.

It may have been quite some time now since Animal Crossing: New Horizons first launched for the Nintendo Switch, but there are still plenty of new players that are just getting their feet wet with the long-running life-sim series from Nintendo. One of the most notable features from the latest entry allows players to visit their friend's islands via the in-game airport.

In order to visit another island in the game, players will need to be connected online first and foremost. Going to other islands that are owned by other players will be impossible without a stable connection. Once that's done, Animal Crossing: New Horizons island goers will have to make sure that they have a Dodo Code from their friend.

To get this Dodo Code, players will need to speak to Orville at the local airport and tell him that they want visitors. Once this is done, a Dodo Code will be given out and will need to be sent to the friend who is trying to fly out of their island.

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By simply speaking to Orville and telling him "I wanna fly," the player will then be prompted to choose an island that's accepting visitors, and then the Dodo Code will have to be input. Once that is all set up, players will soon be on their way to their friend's digital Animal Crossing island. Keep in mind that the online connectivity in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a bit strict in what players can and cannot do.

For example, if one person is coming to visit another player's island, the owner of that island cannot be in a menu or in a conversation with a villager or NPC . And the island owner is also not allowed to move around any furniture, whether it is indoors or outdoors. Still, even with the limited functionality, players can have a fun time running around each other's island, hanging out on a beach, or just get inspired by all of the decorative items scattered about.

How Many Players Can Visit At Once?

Animal Crossing: New Horizons supports up to four players on one system locally and up to eight players online . This means that if someone already has eight friends on their island, other players will not be able to enter until somebody leaves the island.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is currently available as a Nintendo Switch exclusive.

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How to Visit Other Animal Crossing Islands

Visit the Airport to search for a friend, enter a Dodo code, or use a Nook Mile Ticket

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In This Article

Jump to a Section

How to Visit Friends in Animal Crossing

• Visit Other Islands in New Horizons
• Visit Harv’s Island in New Horizons

What Is Good Island Etiquette?

• Frequently Asked Questions

What to Know

• Go to the Airport and select I wanna fly! > I wanna visit someone > Search for a friend or Enter a Dodo code .
• To travel to a new random island, buy a Nook Mile Ticket from Resident Services and use it at the airport.
• To unlock Harv’s Island, establish three plots of land. After he invites you, choose Visit Harv's Island at the airport.

This article explains how to visit other islands in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Visiting other islands requires access to the airport, which opens up after completing the game's early stages. 

Once you know your Switch friend's island is open, either locally or online, or you have their Dodo code, you can join them at the airport. Here's what to do.

Go to the Airport.

Speak to Orville and select I wanna fly!

Select I wanna visit someone

Choose whether to join a local island or go online.

Local only works if your friend is playing the game nearby physically. 

Select either Search for a friend or Enter a Dodo code.

The former looks for friends on your friends list with open islands, while the latter requires you to enter a code given out by the host. 

Choose to join the island and visit.

How to Visit Other Islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons

Another way to visit an island in Animal Crossing New Horizons is to use Nook Miles to buy Nook Miles Tickets to a random island. On the island, you can collect resources you may not already have available on your island. Here's how to visit.

Go to the Terminal in the Resident Services building.

Buy a Nook Mile Ticket for 2,000 Nook Miles.

You may need to collect more Nook Miles by completing daily tasks.

Speak to Orville.

Select Use Nook Miles Ticket .

Travel to the new random island.

You can harvest trees and bamboo, collect fruit, collect flowers, and meet new villagers on the island. You can also invite the villagers back to your island.

Once you leave, you will never return to the same island, so don't leave anything essential on the island.

How to Visit Harv’s Island in Animal Crossing New Horizons

Harv's Island unlocks once you have established three plots of land for new villagers on your island. He appears randomly to invite you over. Here's how to visit. 

Select Visit Harv's Island .

Select Time for takeoff!

At Harv's Island, players can take photos in his photo studio setup. It's also possible to access an unlimited supply of all your items and fossils within the studio.

When visiting other people's islands, you should follow some polite rules. Here's a brief overview.

• Don't linger for too long. Like in real life, know when to leave. Don't outstay your welcome. If you've come solely to exchange goods, go once you've done so. 
• Respect the island. Don't trash another player's island by chopping down trees or picking all their flowers. Leave it in as good condition as you found it.
• Never 'leave quietly.' It's possible to leave an island 'quietly' by pressing the - button to leave, but this can be buggy and cause issues for players, especially if you've just traded items. Leave via the airport to ensure this does not happen.
• Communicate with the other player. It's friendly to say 'hey' and talk to the other player, as well as potentially leave a gift. After all, you're a visitor to their home!

There is no specific timeframe for Redd's visits, but you can expect to find him wandering about your island once every couple of weeks. Sometimes, you'll hear an announcement that Redd has arrived, while other times, you'll notice his Treasure Trawler and know he's there.

Flick randomly visits islands. He could arrive any day of the year, but he will always leave the next day by 5 a.m. When Flick visits your island, be sure to sell all the bugs you can to him to make as much money as possible.

To  get iron in Animal Crossing , your best bet is to use a shovel or axe to strike rocks you find on your island and hope an iron nugget appears as a resource.

To get a ladder in Animal Crossing , you'll have to progress through Tom Nook's tasks, such as paying off your tent, building your home, building Nook's Cranny, and building a bridge. After accomplishing these tasks, Nook will give you a ladder recipe.

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Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Visit a Friend’s Island

There are lots of steps, but the process isn't difficult!

In Animal Crossing: New Horizons , you can visit your friends’ islands and play together so long as you and your friends all have an active Nintendo Switch Online membership. In fact, up to eight players can hang out on the same island at once!

To visit a friend’s island, you’ll just need to visit the airport on your island. Here’s how this works. (Please note that you can only start using the airport the day after you first begin playing New Horizons .)

Head into the airport and talk to Orville.

Select “I wanna fly!”

Choose “I wanna visit someone.”

You’ll need to choose between local and online play. If you want to visit someone who is near you in the real world, you can select “Via local play” (though online play will also work in this situation). If you want to visit someone in another place, select “Via online play.”

If you chose “Via online play,” Orville will tell you he needs to connect to the internet. Select “Roger!” to continue.

Once the game connects to the internet, Orville will ask if you want to search for a friend or enter another user’s Dodo Code. For our guide, we’ll select “Search for a friend.” (Dodo Codes can be used by friends, or you may be given a Dodo Code by a stranger if they’re allowing you to come over to sell turnips, etc.)

Orville will then search for any of your friends’ islands that are currently accepting visitors. If there’s only one, Orville will tell you about it and ask if you want to go there. Select “Let’s fly!” to travel to that friend’s island. If multiple friends have their islands open for visitors, you’ll see a list that will allow you to choose which one to visit.

From there, the game will take care of the rest, and you’ll see a cutscene as you arrive on your friend’s island!

Once you’re there, you can talk to your friend(s) through in-game text chat, or through voice chat by using the Nintendo Switch Online mobile application on iOS and Android devices. You can even use a headset to improve your voice chat experience, such as these Cloud Earbuds from HyperX .

And that’s all there is to it! If you want to invite your friends to visit your island instead, we have a guide for that as well. Check it out !

To learn more about Animal Crossing: New Horizons , or to view more of our guides for the game, check out our previous coverage .

Disclosure: Nintendo gave SuperParent a code for Animal Crossing: New Horizons for coverage purposes. HyperX is a sponsor of SuperParent.

Brandy Berthelson has been writing about video games and technology since 2006, with her work appearing on sites including AOL Games, Digital Spy, and Adweek. When she’s not gaming, Brandy enjoys crafting, baking, and traveling with her husband.

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Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Visit Other Islands

A key part of Animal Crossing New Horizon ‘s gameplay is being able to travel to other islands – both unexplored and inhabited by other players – to see what they’ve got to offer. You may be unclear on how to do this though, which is why we’re here to help with a guide on how to visit other islands .

How to Visit Other Islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons

To visit other islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons, you’ll need to redeem Nook Mile Tickets for 2,000 Nook Miles each.

Nook Miles are a form of currency in New Horizons rewarded to you for completing a variety of challenges, from cleaning up the island of weeds to greeting every resident on an island in a single day. You can check to see what these challenges are from the Nook Phone.

Note that you won’t be able to purchase things from the terminal until you’ve completed the early ‘tutorial’ portion of the game, so just keep going and you’ll eventually be notified when you’re allowed to browse the terminal items.

Redeeming Nook Mile Tickets

After collecting enough Nook Miles in Animal Crossing New Horizons, you can then use them at the terminal in the Resident Services building to purchase Nook Mile Tickets – items which, when used at the airport, allow you to visit other islands which contain new sights and rare resources for you to discover and claim for your own.

With some Nook Mile Tickets in your possession, head to the airport and speak to the NPC Orville inside. They’ll give you the option to redeem your tickets to travel to new islands and see what else the world has to offer.

How to Visit Other Players’ Islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons

As for how to visit other players’ islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons, it’s a slightly simpler process as you won’t need Nook Mile Tickets.

After reaching the point in the game where you have access to the Airport, speak to Orville and select the “I wanna fly!” option. From there, you’ll be able to choose whether you want to visit the island of another player locally or online.

You’ll want to choose local if the player whose island you want to visit is in close proximity to you. Online, meanwhile, should be selected if they’re a decent distance away from you, or if you want to visit a random person’s island.

Choose whichever option best applies to what you want to do, an then wait for Orville to provide you with an island to fly to. Confirm the island as your destination, and you’ll be sent flying to a new island via plane.

Time needed:  3 minutes

So, to recap how to visit other players’ islands:

He’ll be the NPC behind the desk.

This will begin the process of traveling to other islands.

Local islands are those tied to players close by to you, while online can take you to islands “far away” from you via an internet connection.

After a bit, he should provide you with another player’s island to travel to.

And that’s all there is to know about how to visit other islands in Animal Crossing New Horizons . For more on the game, check out our guide wiki . It has plenty of useful info on topics like what the download and install size is and what the preload and unlock times are.

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Animal crossing new horizons: what to do when visiting friends (& what not to do).

Visiting friends in Animal Crossing New Horizons is not only fun but helpful. This guide will layout the Dos and Don'ts when visiting friends

Animal Crossing New Horizons  allows players to visit each other's islands, but there a certain etiquette that comes along with every visit. This guide will provide players tips on what to do and not do when visiting another player's island.  Animal Crossing New Horizons  is the most social game to exist in the franchise yet. Nintendo allows up to four players to share a single island on one console and permits up to 8 players to visit each other on one person's island. Players can host little parties, exchange items, and even help the host player make decisions on how to improve their island. Players are allowed to visit each other's fully customizable islands just to hang out. This is a great way to meet new players as well.  Animal Crossing New Horizons is a strange game as in when players visit the island, there isn't actually much to do besides sit around, fish, and catch bugs, but that's kind of the point. There's something about  Animal Crossing where playing the game amits this vibe and only players of the series can really understand it. Multiplayer is really about doing nothing together, and in some odd way, its the best for that. Although, there are certain unspoken rules that should be followed when visiting another player's island.  Animal Crossing New Horizons  is a positive game, but when negative players come to taint the experience, it can ruin it for everyone. This guide will help players know what to do and not do when visiting another player's island.

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Animal Crossing New Horizons multiplayer feature is added once the player unlocks the airport. The airport can be located at the bottom of each island and can take players to friend's own islands. This unlocks after the first full day in the game and also plays a vital role in attending Nook Tours. Nook Tours are special areas where players can purchase a Nook Ticket to attend an alternate island experience. Here, players can take whatever resource they like without any negative effects on their own island. This is a great way to stockpile materials for crafting and potentially run into fruit the player doesn't have residents to their island. Also, players can meet new villagers on these Nook Tours and invite them over to move onto their own island as a permanent resident. Friends can also meet these new villagers when they come to visit. This is helpful for gathering Nook Miles. Gathering Nook Miles also happens when visiting a friend's island. Want to keep collecting Nook Miles from visiting friends? Don't upset them! This guide will help players with the island etiquette with what to do and not do when visiting friends.

Do: Bring Fruit When Visiting Friends in Animal Crossing New Horizons

In  Animal Crossing New Horizons , the player will begin their island adventure with 1 of 6 fruit, Cherries, Oranges, Coconuts, Peaches, Apples, and Pears. Players can find other fruit by visiting other islands using the Nook Miles, but the best way to go about gathering new fruit is to trade with another player. When heading to another island, bring along your islands resident fruit, the other player might have other fruit they would like to share with you. Fruit from other islands sells for much more than the native fruit from Timmy and Tommy. This is a great way to populate the island with a wide variety of fruit.

Do Not: Take Fruit Without Permission in Animal Crossing New Horizons

It is almost a reflex for players to see a tree with fruit on it to go right ahead and shake the tree. While this is acceptable on the player's own island, this can upset the island owner if they were planning on doing something with this fruit. In most cases, players will respond positively if asked if they can have fruit. The  Animal Crossing community is amongst one of the kindest in all of gaming, so sharing is only second nature to their positive personas.

Do: Bring A Vaulting Pole And Ladder in Animal Crossing New Horizons

This is a perfect act of kindness for new players especially. When new players begin their island, they only have access to very few locations due to lacking the proper tools to explore. Eventually, the player will unlock the ability to craft a vaulting pole, then later a ladder. To help new players begin their journey, why not bring them a vaulting pole and ladder. This will allow them to go around and do every possible thing on their island. It does take a few hours to unlock the vaulting pole and ladder and can be a breaking point if players decide to keep playing or not. Help them out by bringing these helpful items.

Don't: Leave Holes in Animal Crossing New Horizons

Island hosts can add other players to their best friends lists, giving them the ability to dig holes on their island. While players are visiting, they may stumble across a clam buried underground in the beaches. Players can dig these up and turn them into fishing bait. While it is cool to collect items from another player's islands, it is recommended to clean up the holes left behind from digging. This can be a real annoyance to players who want to keep their island clean. Make sure to fill the holes after collecting the item.

Animal Crossing New Horizons  is a game about building a community, not only with the local residents but the ones in the real world too. The island life can be a bit lonely, so going off to visit other friends is the best way to be alone together. There's something special about  Animal Crossing New Horizons that can only be explained by players of the games. It manages to successfully take dozens of hours from players without noticing. It's hard to imagine that players can put hundreds of hours into a game about fishing and catching bugs, but that's still a low bar for playtime.  Animal Crossing New Horizons is one of the most addictive games to release in 2020.

More:  Animal Crossing New Horizons: How to Heal Sick Villagers

Animal Crossing New Horizons  is available now on the Nintendo Switch.

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The Do's And Don'ts Of Visiting Friends In Animal Crossing: New Horizons

One of the true pleasures of Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the sense of connection. It’s not just that Nintendo’s life sim has achieved near-universal ubiquity in a matter of days. It’s the fact that you, alongside up to seven other players, can go and visit a friend’s island. There, you can do what you’d do on your island: fish, catch bugs, play dress-up. Except you’re doing it together. Right now, with togetherness in the real world a fleeting resource, few things could be more welcome

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But like state dinners, wedding receptions, and elevator rides, there’s an unwritten code of conduct here. One wrong move can easily ruin a good time. In the interest of keeping everyone’s cortisol low in this genial game, get your Emily Post on and follow the rules to a tee.

Put down the phone.

When someone’s trying to visit your island, make sure everyone—including any other guests who have already arrived—has their Nook Phone tucked away. Otherwise, another guest won’t be able to fly to your island. Orville will relay to your scheduled visitor this vague message, “Wuh-oh! Looks like we’re getting interference… Hang on,” and refuse to book them a plane. Just wait until you’re all together to pull out your phones. That’s more like real life, anyway.

Don’t go into buildings at the same time.

Entering or exiting a building at same time as one of your fellow players can cause lag and other connectivity issues. While you’re at it, don’t try shopping from the same vendors at the same time, either. Only one player can talk to any given shopkeeper at once. This can cause strife if, say, one player wants to buy a whole tuxedo but, before they get around to purchasing the slacks, another player has struck up dialogue with Mabel. In short, wait your turn.

Don’t be a bully.

Tom Nook’s Getaway Package doesn’t have a security force. There are no laws. The closest thing to a bouncer in this game is that antisocial dodo with sunglasses who fires off faux military lingo. In other words, there’s no easy way to kick someone off an island without kicking off all of your guests by ending the session.

Reporting someone—which you can do by hitting the minus button and selecting “Report”—won’t immediately remove them. Delisting someone from your friends list will prevent them coming back, but it won’t kick them out of a current session. When you’re a guest, don’t abuse this immense privilege.

Here’s an example, for which I admit full culpability: When I first started playing, I visited a friend’s island. She was farther along than me—had a ladder, a vaulting pole, an upgraded ax, all that jazz. I still had flimsy tools and very much wanted an upgraded shovel. Understandably, she said no, on account of the fact that I had nothing useful to trade. So I started stomping on all her flowers. Soon enough, she gave me a sweet shovel, with one condition: I leave her island, stat. You shouldn’t do what I did! It’s mean!

There are other ways you can pressure people into lopsided trades, so long as you’re on their best friends list. You can plant trees all over the place. You can dig a bunch of holes in front of their house. You could even go full MI-6 blacksite operative and start chopping down trees. These tactics are all mean, too! Don’t do them!

Plan ahead.

When you’re on someone else’s island, you can’t access your storage. If you want to gift or trade something—say, a brand-new shovel, extra clothes, or some of your island’s native fruit—to your host, be sure to bring it with you before you go. Otherwise, you’ll either have to build it from scratch or head all the way back to your island. Both moves are total time-wasters.

Similarly, you can’t decorate while someone is visiting. If you’re hankering to show off your Throwback Race-Car Bed or Mini Fridge, put that stuff on display before guests arrive.

Ask before you take.

As you walk around someone’s island, you’ll probably see a ton of stuff that you want. There are fossils and pricey bugs . Each beach brims with seashells you can sell for bells. Taking any of this stuff without permission is frowned upon. But the gravest sin is to steal fruit that isn’t native to the host’s island. For instance, a host’s island might have plenty of pears (ew) and just one peach tree, which they certainly got elsewhere. You might want those peaches; I understand the impulse . Stand down.

Stealing the peaches robs your host of a cash flow. Each piece of native fruit sells for 100 bells. Non-native fruit, however, goes for 500 bells a pop. Your host could also be saving those peaches to create a grove. Planting three peaches begets three peach trees (and nine peaches). Planting those nine peaches creates 27 trees. You can see how the dollar signs add up. Seeing as it takes three days for fruit to regrow on trees, stealing those three peaches means you’re setting back your host’s plans by at least three days.

Maybe your host is willing to share. Who knows! The point is: Ask first.

Watch your wi-fi.

When someone leaves an island without going through the official channels—meaning only the airport—you’ll get an alert that “someone quietly left.” Maybe the wi-fi cut out or the Switch disconnected from the internet due to a wayward press of the power button. Regardless, the game will then reload. All players with a steady connection will stay on the host’s island, but any progress made in that session will revert. Dug holes will get refilled. Purchases will be refunded. Chopped trees will grow back.

To be sure, there’s not much you can do about fickle internet service. At the very least, keep cats, babies, and other unpredictables away from the router. It also helps to remember not to suspend the game using the Home button.

And for the love of K. K. Slider , stop stepping on the flowers.

More ways to make friends and not alienate people:

Animal Crossing: New Horizons - 10 Ways to Make the Most Out Of Your Friend's Island Visit

Taking a vacation on a friend's island is one of the most unique aspects of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and here's the best way to take advantage.

One of the most appealing features of the latest  Animal Crossing   is the ability to vacation to another player's island. With the airport and your trusty in-game phone, you can take a flight to a friend's island with no hassle. Meanwhile, Dodo Codes allow you to check out the islands of an online acquaintance or even a stranger. This social element is made all the more interesting given the relatively unique conditions of each island

Still, many find it tough to pinpoint just what sort of activities one can take part in when wandering around a friend's foreign lands. After all, there are some limitations - especially for those not tagged with the "best friend" moniker.

RELATED: 10 Things We Wish We Knew Before Starting Animal Crossing: New Horizons

With this list, we'll highlight 10 of the wisest, most productive things you'll want to focus on during these visits. Most of these will help work towards the prominence of your own island in addition to helping you gather more wealth.

10 Communicate With Reactions

This one can be filed under "productivity" rather than wealth/resource gathering. And while it's a subtle action, using the reactions wheel can save quite a bit of time compared to the several seconds it takes to peck out chat messages.

If you wished to, say, get a friend to come to a certain spot or pick up an item, you can simply hold the "R" button and bust out a reaction instead of typing a lengthy message.

Obviously, these have their limitations, but they can make for a simple and often amusing means of basic communication.

9 Talk To Villagers

One neat aspect of  New Horizons  is the huge lineup of new villagers . In fact, there are over  400  of them, which means there's a very good chance villagers on your friend's island will be different than yours.

Take advantage of this by chatting them up, as you'll be able to meet some new characters. you'll even have the chance to recruit them to your island if you get friendly enough. This can be useful if your buddy isn't keen on a particular neighbor, or you're looking to populate your island. Of course, you'll want to run it by them first before snatching their potential virtual pal.

8 Check Out The Museum

With hundreds of bugs, fish, and fossils to nab, the museum can be a cool spectacle to behold. One of the most entertaining sights to see when visiting a friend is their museum, as they'll likely have a display of these collectibles that you've yet to see.

RELATED: Animal Crossing: 10 Hardest Fish To Catch (& How To Catch Them)

Have them give you the tour while you read the signs and snap some photos for future reference.

7 Fishing And Bug Gathering

With so many fish and bug varieties, there's always the potential to secure new ones. Still, you'll probably come upon quite a few repeats. This can particularly be the case when fishing and bug-catching several times during the same season or time of day.

Yet, doing these actions at a friend's island will further randomize the findings, giving you a better chance you'll stumble upon something new.

You can even make a fun contest out of it to see who can land the most bugs and fish in a given timeframe.

6 Mine Stones

Rocks can produce clay, stones, and iron nuggets in relative abundance. Still, the fact that your island will only have 4-5 rocks at a given time (which only refresh once a day), means this these are fairly limited resources.

But when visiting a friend's island, you can utilize the extra rocks for additional goodies. This is helpful, as many of the items these rocks yield prove useful. So bring an ample supply of tools and have fun mining!

5 Trade Items

You'll want to take advantage of the wealth of items, tools, resources, and furnishings  New Horizons  provides. If your AC  friend has put in a decent amount of hours, chances are they'll have some goods that pique your interest, and vice-versa. At the very least, you're likely to find some new DIY recipes you can learn, either from their shop, or directly from their personal stash.

Spend a bit of time swapping some items, simply by dropping them on the ground from your inventory.

4 Give Mystery Gifts

You can make the previous entry a bit more interesting, and even initiate a sort of "Secret Santa" party gift exchange. Yes - you can, in fact, wrap up items and drop them as unknown gifts for other players. This can be especially amusing when you've got multiple people kicking it on your island.

RELATED: Animal Crossing: 10 Tips For Using Nook Miles

To do this, simply purchase some wrapping paper at Nook's shop and wrap an item of your choosing.

3 Identifying And Selling Hot Items

Aside from basic layouts of rivers and hills, islands in  New Horizons  come with unique dynamics. This includes the daily-rotating "Hot Item." Assuming your friend has gone through a few days in the game, this feature will be available to visitors.

You'll want to take advantage of this, as it's highly likely their Hot Item will be different than yours. This means you'll be able to sell multiple items for double the usual price, so stock up and get selling!

2 Take Part In The Stalk Market

Speaking of selling - another Bell -earning feature you can exploit is the Stalk Market. Like our previous entry, the conditions of turnip prices elsewhere likely differ from your own.

Thus, you can have a friend inform you when theirs are particularly high, which you can utilize to your benefit. Staying up to date on the fluctuating value of their turnips  and  your own will give you an extra edge in profiting from them. This can also be useful as a way of salvaging your turnips if you run into a rough week of decreasing value.

1 Stock Up On Fruit

One of the main goals of visiting a friend's island - besides the great company, of course - should be gathering foreign fruit. Obviously, you'll first have to make sure your buddy's fruit is different than your own. Assuming this is the case, you and your friend can take advantage of this by collecting fruit from each other's islands.

This is because foreign fruit is sold at a whopping 500 Bells, versus the usual 100 Bell price for native fruit.

NEXT: 10 Gorgeous Animal Crossing: New Horizons Island Designs

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'Animal Crossing: New Horizons' Online Guide - How to Connect with Friends and Visit Islands

Plenty of Nintendo Switch games allow for players to play together online and Animal Crossing: New Horizons is no different.

With each player having their own private island, New Horizon allows for plenty of opportunities for travel and adventure between friends and even strangers. If you want to learn how to connect online and visit your friend's island—or have them visit you—read along for our guide on Animal Crossing: New Horizons online capabilities.

HOW TO CONNECT WITH FRIENDS IN ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW HORIZONS

First and foremost, players looking to go online and interact with their friends will need a subscription to Nintendo Switch Online. This will allow for each player to hop onto a server and interact.

Secondly, the Dodo Airline airport needs to be ready for your island. This is normally up and running on your second or third day on your island. This will give you plenty of time to learn the ins and outs of life on a private island.

Once the Dodo Airline is ready, you can talk to Orville, who will give you a rundown of how online connection works.

In short, you can either go visit someone's island or invite others to yours. In this section we'll talk about visiting other player's islands. To do so, talk with Orville and tell them you want to visit an island.

He will ask you if you want to connect with someone via local multiplayer or online. If you select local, simply be on the same wifi as the person you want to visit. Animal Crossing will connect with that user and you'll be able to travel to it.

If you select "search for a friend" you can use a Dodo Code to connect with a friend from anywhere in the world. A Dodo Code is a five-digit code that will allow access to an island. Your friend will have to generate their own Dodo Code—how to do this will be covered in the next section—and you need to input it. Once completed, you'll be able to travel to that island.

Otherwise, you can just "search for a friend" to visit. If that friend is online playing Animal Crossing , you can visit their island if they have their gate open. If not, then you'll be told that there is no island you can travel to right now.

INVITING FRIENDS TO YOUR ISLAND

If you want to invite people to your island, you'll need to talk to Orville and say you want to have visitors.

You'll need to specify if you want to invite via local play or online play.

If you select online play, you'll be connected to the server and have the option to invite "all your friends" or "invite via dodo code"

A Dodo Code is a five-number code that anybody you want to invite will need to use to access your island. It's only good for this visit. From there, you have to choose whether to select "only friends" or "the more the merrier" which is essentially anyone.

Once you've selected, a Dodo Code will be issued. Give this code to your friends to input on their end to visit your island.

If you select "all your friends," Orville opens the gates and allows any friend who is online to travel to your island. Then comes the waiting game as you'll be notified if a visitor arrives on your island.

SENDING CARDS

On the card rack to the left of Orville, players will have an opportunity to purchase cards for 200 Bells. You can send these cards to a resident on your island or to your "future self."

Certain card styles are available for a limited time. Once you purchase, you can write or design anything on it to send to the recipient.

A resident or your future self will receive the card after some time has passed. It's a neat little way to communicate with others in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now for Nintendo Switch.

Have you had trouble connecting with a friend? Any tips we missed? Let us know in the comments section.

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Phillip Martinez is a game and culture reporter for Newsweek. Prior to joining Newsweek in 2018, he was a reporter and editor for iDigitalTimes and Player.One. A Bronx native, he graduated with his Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from St. John’s University in 2010. An avid Nintendo fan and wrestling mark, he’s always looking to become a Pokémon Master while fantasy booking this year’s WrestleMania. You can contact him at [email protected]

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How-To Geek

How to connect with friends in "animal crossing: new horizons".

Are you itching to connect with other players in "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" on the Nintendo Switch? Here's everything you need to know about connecting with your friends!

Quick Links

Unlock the dodo airlines airport, how to connect with friends locally, use the dodo code to invite friends, how to connect with friends using nintendo online, using the best friends list, using postal services at dodo airlines.

You've settled into your new island in Animal Crossing on the Nintendo Switch and now you're ready to show it off to the world. Here's how to unlock the different multiplayer features in Animal Crossing: New Horizons .

On day 2 of your new island, Tom Nook will announce in the town plaza that access to the airport is now available. Head to the Dodo Airlines and talk to Orville, the bird behind the counter.

Orville will spill all of the details about what the airport does. When he's finished, select "I want visitors".

From here, Orville will lay some ground rules. He will remind you that names, the in-game chat, bulletin-board posts, the look of the island, rooms in homes, and custom designs and other content are all visible to other players---all of this can be found in Nintendo's Code of Conduct website.

When you finish reading the short terms and conditions prompt, you'll be asked if you want to invite visitors for online play.

Related: What's Included with a Nintendo Switch Online Subscription?

Local play does not require an internet connection or a Nintendo Online subscription . If you choose to visit friends over an internet connection, you will need a Nintendo Online subscription.

After confirming your preferred connection, the game will save and you'll be asked who you would like to invite.

Choosing to play locally does not require an internet connection, and for extra security, you can give other players a temporary Dodo Code (more on that below) to join the local connection.

Any player with their account connected to the Nintendo Switch can start the game or join the pre-existing established island.

After new players have finished the Dodo Airlines Airport tutorial, they will receive a new app on their Nook Phone called "Call Islander." This app allows players to invite other residents who live on the island for co-op play, also known as Party Play.

Each player can have their own house on the island. Up to eight players can live on the island at once, but Party Play only allows four people to play at once.

To use local play, you and the other player must be on the same Wi-Fi network---think "couch co-op."

Related: How to Play Couch Co-Op in "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" (with One Switch Console)

The player who started the invite will be labeled the leader while the other residents that join will be labeled followers. Followers can only assist the leader with tasks such as picking up seashells, fishing, and catching insects. Each player must have their own joy-con controller.

The Dodo Code is a nifty way to invite players who aren't on your Nintendo Switch friends list---Orville will give you a temporary five-character code to share with other players---no strings attached.

Using this feature for the first time will also unlock the Best Friends List on your Nook Phone (more on that below).

Players who visit your island with a Dodo Code won't be able to cut down your trees or take anything off the island (except fruit that drops from the fruit trees).

When you're finished playing, ask Orville to close the gate and the players will be asked to leave the island.

Choosing Online Play when visiting the airport lets you connect to anyone who plays Animal Crossing: New Horizons as long as you both have a Nintendo Online subscription and access to the internet.

At the airport, tell Orville that you'd like to play online, and when asked who you want to invite, select "All My Friends!"

Orville will save your game and open the gates. Your Nintendo Switch friends can join your island by following similar prompts in their game's airport.

When interacting with other online players, you can choose to add them to the Best Friends List in your Nook Phone. Players labeled as a best friend can use any tool on your island (you've been warned).

Once they've accepted your friend request, you can message them using the in-game keyboard and invite them whenever they're online. And, if you have several people in your Best Friends List, you can invite them all as a group---this makes inviting a large party to your island incredibly easy.

Mail between villagers in the Animal Crossing franchise has always been a big deal, and now you can send customized mail to the people on your friends list.

When first visiting the Dodo airport, Orville will fill you in on the postal services he offers. Off to his right, you'll see a rack of envelopes that you can send to friends for 200 Bells.

You can also attach presents. Certain cards that correspond to specific events or seasons are available for a limited time.

Whether you want to play with friends in the comfort of your home or if you want to swing open the gates and open your island to the public, Animal Crossing: New Horizons has got you covered.

Related: Why "Animal Crossing" Is Great, and Why You Should Play It

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Do you need Nintendo Switch Online to have friends visit your island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

For those enjoying Animal Crossing: New Horizons, we highly recommend grabbing the Nintendo Online subscription so your Nintendo Switch can access the internet. You will unlock multiple features available in the game, such as being able to invite friends to your island whenever you connect to the internet. Is Nintendo Online required for you to invite friends to your island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

Can you invite friends to your island without Nintendo Online?

Regardless if you want to join a friend’s island or invite them to theirs, you will need to a Nintendo Online subscription to play with others in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It does matter if you and your friend are a good distance away from each other trying to play the game. When you visit your island’s Airport, make sure to choose the Online Play option

However, the exception to this is through local play. You can connect if you and another New Horizons player are on the same network and near each other. The big thing for this is to be relatively close to each other, such as being in the same room. We wouldn’t recommend trying to connect to someone else if you are across the house from each other, but it might work. You can access these functions by visiting your island’s Airport and asking to do Local Play instead of Online Play.

Alternatively, there’s the single-system multiplayer where you can invite another profile on your Nintendo Switch to visit your island. Both profiles will need to be registered to the same Nintendo Switch. This is not a split-screen function. Instead, you and the other players on the same Switch will share a screen, with a leader deciding where you all go on the island and what activities you do. You will need to be in the same room as everyone.

A majority of Animal Crossing: New Horizons players will want to have a Nintendo Online subscription if you’re playing with anyone outside of your house. However, if you live with someone or share the same Nintendo Switch, visiting someone else’s island is possible without purchasing Nintendo Online.

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Animal Crossing online multiplayer: How to add friends by visiting and inviting players in New Horizons explained

Everything you need to know about the multiplayer aspects of Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Multiplayer , with both the other human residents of your island and the players on other islands, is an important part of Animal Crossing: New Horizons .

You can play online with friends by inviting them to your island by using the airport - though the process takes a few steps before players will start arriving.

You can also play locally, too. There's Party Play , a new feature introduced with New Horizons, allows up to four player residents of the same island to play together, or simply have everyone play who has their own Switch and a copy of the game.

On this page:

Multiplayer in Animal Crossing: New Horizons explained

How to play online multiplayer in animal crossing, from visiting to inviting another player to your island in new horizons, party play and local multiplayer in animal crossing: new horizons explained, multiplayer restrictions in animal crossing: new horizons explained.

If you want to learn more Animal Crossing: New Horizons, then check out are guides on amiiboo support and amiibo support .

There are three forms of multiplayer in Animal Crossing: New Horizons:

• Party Play - for interacting with the players who you share your island with in local multiplayer
• Inviting Players - for inviting other players to come and visit your island both online and locally to different Switch systems
• Visiting Players - for visiting other player's islands yourself both online and locally to different Switch systems

Both inviting and visiting other players requires either a local wireless or Internet connection. You will need a Nintendo Switch Online membership if you wish to connect Animal Crossing: New Horizons to the Internet.

When it comes to inviting players to your island, you can have up to seven visitors at a time, meaning there will be eight players on the island in total.

You'll be able to communicate with visitors via NookLink, which will be available in the Nintendo Switch Online. This app is available on a range of smart devices and will allow you to communicate via both the keyboard and voice chat. It won't, however, be required for online play.

Party Play, however, can only be used with the other player residents of your island. It allows you to explore your island with three other players all on the same Nintendo Switch. It does, of course, require multiple controllers to work.

Eight players in total can live on one island at the same time, which means that Party Play allows half of the player population to play together.

To use Local Play, you and your visitor must be in the same place using the same connection. This makes Local Play the ideal for inviting or visiting your friends.

If you want to invite any visitors onto your island or visit a friend in Animal Crossing: New Horizons you need to go to the Dodo Airlines airport .

This airport will be located along the coast of your island and, after your first day of living there, will be open 24 hours a day.

This means multiplayer isn't available until your second day of playing . So if you started playing on Friday, you must wait until Saturday before multiplayer becomes available to you. Until then, Orville will say they need more time to set up.

Once you're in the airport, talk to Orville to begin the process of inviting a guest to your island or visiting another. For both activities, he'll give you the option of using either Local Play or Online Play.

By default, your island (and those of your friends) will be 'closed' off to other players. In other words, you need to turn multiplayer on for them to see you online, and means your friends can't simply stumble into your island without you asking.

To invite another player to your island, talk to Orville and open your gate . The other player(s) must then ask Orville to search for players who are online. If the gate is open, it will appear on the list.

Now head on over to start playing with them. This is the case if you are playing locally with another Switch and a copy of the game - having to open the gate to your island each time you want people to arrive.

This all requires some external communication to begin with, but once a friend has visited, it's worth adding them as a Best Friend, which is an app which is added the first time you play online.

Doing so allows you to see when they are playing their game - but also allows them to make edits to your island, so be careful who you add!

Though you still have to go through the same process - going to the airport, opening the gate, and your friend going to the airport and searching for open gates - it means you can see in-game who is playing, and also message them to ask them to turn on multiplayer - without having to check your phone outside of the game.

Additionally, if you prefer not all of your friends to appear on your island, you can toggle between 'All my friends!' and 'Invite via Dodo Code' when you open you gate - which also allows you to invite non-Switch friends for a one-off visit.

Both of these features can be restricted by parental controls if needs be.

Party Play has been specifically designed for islands with multiple player residents, allowing up to four players to visit the island at the same time on the same console.

To begin Party Play, use your NookPhone and select Call Islander.

This will allow you to select up to three other player residents and they'll join you on the island. This means that up to four players can play Animal Crossing: New Horizons on the same console at the same time.

In classic Nintendo style, you will need to own a set of Joy-Con controllers for each player who wants to partake in Party Play.

Once the other players have been called, it's time to explore the island as a team!

Party Play works by assigning one player to be the Leader, while the other one to three players will be Followers. Initially the Leader will be the player who began the Party Play, but you can easily switch to another Leader at any point during Party Play.

The Leader decides where the party goes on the islands, with the Followers, of course, following along behind them. During this time Followers can complete activities, such as fishing, collecting resources or just having a lie down.

Talking to a resident or shopping, however, are tasks that can only be completed by the Leader. If a follower wants to complete one of these tasks, then all you have to do is switch leadership over to them.

Any item you collect as a Follower in Party Mode can be collected from the recycle box in the Resident Services building.

The Animal Crossing 2.0 update and Happy Home Paradise is here! We can help you with the new additions - including where to find Brewster , Gyroids , new villagers , ordinances , new fences , storage shed , new hairstyles , Froggy Chair , group stretching and Kapp'n boat tours . Cooking is now unlockable, so you need to know how to make both flour and sugar , as well as how to grow carrots, potatoes and tomatoes . Meanwhile, if you're new to Animal Crossing, our New Horizons tips can help with the basics. From the off, there's fish and bugs to catch , flowers and fruit to grow with. One long term goal is building your Happy Home Academy score . Finally, you need tools such as the new ladder and vaulting pole to fully explore.

There are number of minor restrictions you'll encounter when using the Animal Crossing: New Horizons multiplayer.

The first is that to live on the island, each player must have a Nintendo Account and have that account on the Nintendo Switch, which contains the island they want to live on.

Each player will have they own house (or tent in the beginning) and there will be no restrictions on their gameplay, expect for on their very first day on the island.

The Dodo Airlines airport will be shut for the entirety of your first day on the deserted island, which means you can neither visit or invite any other players.

It will, however, be fully functionally forever and open 24 hours once this first day has passed, so you don't have long to wait.

You might encounter the final restriction when you visit another player's island, or have a visitor yourself, and discover that you're unable to use a number of your tools, like the axe. This is to prevent you from purposely destroying another player's island by, for example, chopping down all the trees.

That said, you will be able to get fruit - it's important to get different varieties after all!

If you want to lift these restrictions for a specific visitor, then you need to register them as a Best Friend using your NookPhone.

Being someones 'Best Friend' in Animal Crossing: New Horizons will allow you to use any tool you like on their island. Just don't give into the temptation to destroy the island or, if you do, try to avoid being caught!

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How to add friends in 'Animal Crossing: New Horizons' and have them visit your in-game island

• You can add friends in "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" through the Nintendo Switch's Friend List.
• Invites for online play can also be sent to anyone with a one-time randomly generated "Dodo Code."
• Once a friend has been on your island once, you can become "Best Friends," giving them more privileges while visiting. 

Like the sandbox world of "Minecraft ," Nintendo's "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" is another game to flaunt your carefully crafted creation with friends.

Bringing friends to your island lets you meet new villagers, cultivate hybrid flowers, and learn unique crafting recipes. And of course, you can share beautiful island experiences — perfect for social distancing.

To get started adding and playing with friends on "Animal Crossing," you both need a Nintendo Online subscription and an internet connection. You can then invite friends to your island from your Nintendo Switch Friend List, or you can bring over guests by sending one-time invites in the form of unique "Dodo Codes" generated by the game. 

How to add friends in 'Animal Crossing' through a Switch code 

Add someone to your switch friend list.

You can bypass this step and use a one-time Dodo code invite instead (see below). However, adding users to the Friend List on your Switch can be handy for knowing when your friends are actively playing "Animal Crossing," thus available for co-op play. It'll also let you connect to them more easily in the future.

1.  Each Nintendo Switch user has a unique "Friend Code," a 12-digit number preceded by the letters "SW." The code can be found on the "Profile" section of your account.

2.  Select the "Friend List" category within your account page, and tap "Add Friend," then "Search with Friend Code."

3.  After you've entered their code and found the other "Animal Crossing" player you want to invite to your island, shoot them a friend request, and upon their approval, they'll be added to your Friend List.

How to open your island to online visitors

Next, you have to make your island available for online play by "opening the gate" at the airport. Head there and speak to the receptionist, Orville.

1.  Tell Orville "I want visitors" when he asks how he can assist you.

2.  Select the "Via Online play" option when Orville asks how you want to invite someone to your island. Make sure you have an internet connection at this stage.

3.  When asked who to invite, select the "All my friends" option.

From there, your gate will physically open, signifying that your island is ready for visitors. 

Although anyone on your Friend List can hop over as long as the gate remains open, your gameplay will remain the same.

How to add a 'Best Friend' after hosting an island visitor 

Upon having your first conversation with Orville about inviting guests, he'll mention and install the Best Friends List app onto your Nook Phone.

After a visitor has been to your island, you each have the option to request one another as a Best Friend. If accepted, you'll be added to each others' Best Friends List, and be given new privileges when visiting, like use of a shovel.

That means you might have to be careful who you add as a Best Friend. If a visitor is coveting your Blue Roses on the first trip, they'll have the privilege of digging them up on a future visit to your island as a Best Friend.

How to invite a friend to your 'Animal Crossing' island using a Dodo Code 

1.  To use a Dodo Code, initiate the same conversation with Orville at the airport, telling him "I want visitors."

2.  Select the "Invite via Dodo Code" when asked who you want to invite.

3.  You can elect to invite just friends from your Switch Friend List, or anyone with the "The more the merrier!" option.

4.  Orville will give you a five-character Dodo Code. This is the code you give anyone who you want to visit your island.

If you don't want people to use the code anymore, just tell Orville to shut the gates. That'll make the code expire.

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How to visit friends on Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Animal Crossing is back with a new game for 2020, and it really couldn’t have come at a better time. Here’s how to make Switch time social with Animal Crossing: New Horizons ’ multiplayer modes.

There are three ways to get together with friends and family in Animal Crossing: Party Play, local wireless, and online play. Read on to find out which route is best for you – and how to go about setting it all up.

Animal Crossing Party Play

Party Play is the best way to play if you and your family are all squeezed onto one Switch. Up to four people can play together in Party Play as long as you share the same island (though each island can actually host up to eight players).

How to start Party Play:

• Press the ZL Button to open up your NookPhone
• Press the yellow flag ‘Call Resident’ icon – you’ll only get this option when there are two or more users sharing your island
• Choose which players you want to invite and press ‘Confirm’
• Choose the controller type for each player – single Joy-Con, pair of Joy-Cons or the Pro Controller
• Read the information that pops up then hit ‘Close’
• When it’s time to wrap things, open up your NookPhone, click ‘Call Resident’ and end the multiplayer session

Animal Crossing local wireless

Local wireless lets you play with other nearby Switch users with their own copies of the game. This makes this method excellent for long car journeys and visiting the other islands in your household, with a player limit of up to eight individuals.

How to invite people to your island with local wireless:

• Go to the airport on your island and speak with Dodo
• Select ‘I want visitors’
• Read through the information and select ‘I understand’ once you’re done
• Choose ‘Via local play’ and hit ‘Roger’
• Select ‘Fling ‘em open’ to open your gate to nearby visitors. If you’d rather limit your island to specific visitors, click ‘Let’s set a code’ to create a four digit password to get in

How to visit other islands with local wireless:

• Choose ‘I wanna fly!’
• ‘Select ‘Via local play’ and then ‘Roger’
• Wait for Dodo to give you the correct island name and hit ‘Let’s fly’. You may be asked to provide a four digit Dodo Code if the other player has set one

Players can visit the airport at any time to go back to their own island or – in the case of the host – lock the gate to any additional visitors.

Related: Animal Crossing: New Horizons tips and tricks

Animal Crossing online

Online mode is perfect for social isolators and players who can’t reach their friends and family at the moment. This is the best multiplayer mode for long haul flights to far-away islands (read: playing with friends stuck in other towns or even countries). Two to eight people can play together in online mode, though you will all need a Nintendo Switch Online membership to team up.

• Choose ‘I want visitors’
• Select ‘Via online play’
• Read through the information then press ‘I understand’
• Hit ‘Roger!’
• Choose ‘All my friends!’ to open your gate up to visitors from your Switch friend list or ‘Invite via Dodo Code’ to get a five digit code to share with friends
• Close to gate to prevent any new visitors from coming in
• Hit ‘I wanna fly!’
• Select ‘Via online play’ then ‘Roger’
• Choose ‘Search for a friend’ to scroll through Switch friends with their gates open or choose ‘Search via Dodo Code’ to enter a code provided by a friend
• Wait for Dodo to give you the correct island name and hit ‘Let’s fly’
• Return to the airport when it’s time to go home

You won’t be able to access multiplayer on your first day in the game but the option is available 24/7 from day 2. That said, it’s worth adding friends to your Best Friend list if you want to know when they’re online to time visits effectively.

You can also message your best friends through the Nook Phone, but be aware the feature will also give them permission to mess with your island.

If you really want to feel like you’re visiting each other, you might want to consider setting up a video call at the same time. Apps like Houseparty , Zoom , FaceTime and Hangouts will let you talk face-to-face and give virtual tours of your island without hitting any character limits or awkward pauses as you wait for each other to type.

Hannah joined Trusted Reviews as a staff writer in 2019 after graduating with a degree in English from Royal Holloway, University of London. She’s also worked and studied in the US, holding positions …

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• Animal Crossing: New Horizons guide

Invite and add friends – Animal Crossing: New Horizons online multiplayer guide

It’s time to bring some friends into your town for multiplayer

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Share All sharing options for: Invite and add friends – Animal Crossing: New Horizons online multiplayer guide

So you’re super proud of the island you’ve created in Animal Crossing: New Horizons on Switch, and want to share it with the world … or at least some friends. Bringing people to your island is a little tricky at first (this is a Nintendo online game after all), but once you get the hang of it, it’ll be a breeze.

Just a reminder: If you’re connecting to other players online, you’ll need a Nintendo Online Subscription .

Head to the Airport

Starting on Day 2, head to the Dodo Airlines airport and talk to Orville , the bird behind the counter. Select the option “I want visitors.”

From here you’ll be asked if you want visitors for local or online play . Select online play.

Next, Orville will ask you who you want to invite.

If you’re already Nintendo Switch friends with someone who is also playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons , you can open your gate to your friends only, and they’ll be able to come. For Nintendo Switch friends, select “All my friends!”

If you’re inviting people who aren’t on your Nintendo Switch friends list, select “Invite via Dodo Code.” He’ll ask you who you want to invite via the code. Select “The more the merrier!”

Don’t worry: You won’t get swamped with people unless you share the code on social media or something.

Orville will confirm that you want a public code. Select “Yeah, invite anyone.”

The gate will now open and Orville will give you your temporary five-character Dodo Code .

Share your Dodo Code with friends

Anyone you share this code will with be able to join your town. They won’t be able to, say, cut down all your trees, but just be careful who you share it with.

Your friends can now use your Dodo Code by going to the Airport in their town and saying that they want to visit an online town. There’s no need to actively invite them, and you can continue playing as normal until they show up.

Add Best Friends

Once someone has been to your town at least once, make sure you add them as a Nintendo Switch friend (if they aren’t already). To do this, go to your Profile page on the Switch home screen (your player icon at the top left) and select “Add Friend.” Then select “Search for Users You Played With.” Whoever’s on the top of the list should be your newly-invited buddy.

Once they are Nintendo Switch friends, inviting them in the future becomes much easier. The next time they enter your town or you enter theirs, pull open your Nook Phone , and look at the new app called Best Friends List . There’s a page called Friends that will show you everyone you’ve recently played with. From there, you can select a name and send them an invite to become Best Friends .

Once they accept your Best Friend invite, you’ll be able to use the in-game keyboard to message them whenever they’re online. This will make setting up multiplayer sessions much easier.

When you have a large list of Best Friends, you can have Orville invite them all in a batch, which is super handy — and easier than having to deal with a bunch of Dodo Codes.

Note: Be careful who you choose as your Best Friends. Any Best Friends will have full access to wreck shop in your town, cutting down trees, and swiping whatever they want. Making that internet rando a Best Friend? Probably not a good idea.

Correction : This post has been updated on how you can invite friends to your island using the Nintendo Switch friends list.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons guides

• How to prepare for Animal Crossing: New Horizons 2.0
• New things to do in November
• Gyroids and gyroid fragments
• Happy Home Paradise unlock guide
• 8 quality-of-life additions added in Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ 2.0 update
• Food, cooking, and DIY Recipes+
• Animal Crossing farming guide
• How to get wheat
• Kapp’n’s Boat Tours
• Harv’s Island Plaza
• Permanent ladders
• Storage shed
• How to unlock Brewster
• Donation box
• How to get Shino and 15 more new 2.0 villagers
• How to invite villagers to Happy Home Paradise islands
• Glowing moss and vine DIY recipe list
• Pro Camera App
• How to get Froggy Chair
• Animal Crossing 2.01 update
• First week walkthrough
• Second week walkthrough
• Island layout selection
• Where to put your tent
• What time does the new day start?
• How to back up your island
• How to turn any photo into a pattern
• 8 tasks to do every day
• How to time travel
• Tool durability
• What does eating fruit do?
• How to poop 💩
• Sending letters and mail — Animal Crossing: New Horizons guide
• How to cure a wasp sting
• Moving rocks and making a rock garden
• Improving the game chat
• Upgrading your house
• How to unlock the Shop, the Museum, and more
• How to unlock the Able Sisters tailor shop
• Guide to the Museum
• How to move items and manage your pocket and house inventory
• How to move and rotate furniture
• How to move buildings
• How to build bridges and inclines
• How to upgrade Nook’s Cranny
• Find every fossil
• Complete fish list
• Complete bug list
• Complete sea creature list
• How to catch wasps easily
• How to catch a cricket (after you hear it)
• How to catch fleas
• How to catch ants
• How to catch a fly
• Planting flowers and creating hybrids
• How to find more Tree Branches
• Planting trees
• Find and farm Iron Nuggets
• How to get golden tools
• Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ item cloning glitch
• Balloon colors guide
• How to force balloon spawns every 5 minutes
• Fishing Tourney guide and rewards list
• How to increase your inventory
• How to upgrade tools
• Gulliver’s Communicator Parts guide
• Where to find Shooting stars, Star Fragments, and the Magic Wand
• How to get items from Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp
• How to climb cliffs
• How to get the Nook Shopping phone app
• Guide to making money (or Bells) fast
• Create a tarantula island to earn Bells
• Farming Bells from the Money Rock
• How to grow Money Trees
• How to manage, drop (and plant) Bells
• How to buy and sell Turnips on the Stalk Market
• Nook Miles Tickets and islands guide
• Nook Mileage rewards list
• Nook Miles+ rewards guide
• Full hairstyles list
• Face guide and gallery
• How to customize furniture
• How to move trees
• How to unlock reactions (or emotes or gestures)
• How to create and share custom patterns
• Guide to Terraforming
• How to delete a character
• How to make custom eyebrows, freckles, and birthmarks
• How to customize your phone
• Dream Addresses and Dream Suite
• Complete amiibo guide
• How to make a villager move out 
• How to get K.K. Slider
• How to get a 3 star town rating for K.K. Slider 
• How to sell bugs to Flick the vendor
• How to sell to the new fish vendor, C.J.
• Jolly Redd’s art, real or fake?
• Celeste Star Fragment DIY recipe list
• K.K. Slider song list
• How to catch maple leaves
• Cherry-blossom Petals recipe list guide
• Young Spring Bamboo DIY recipe list
• Summer Shell DIY recipe list
• Maple Leaf DIY recipes
• Acorn and Pinecone DIY recipes
• Mushroom DIY recipe list
• Snowflake DIY recipes
• Festive Ornament DIY recipes
• Perfect Snowboy and DIY list
• How to make custom fireworks
• Raffle guide and rewards list
• Festivale event guide
• Bunny Day event guide
• May Day event guide
• Nature Day event guide
• Wedding season event guide
• Halloween event guide
• Turkey Day guide
• Toy Day event guide
• New Year’s Eve countdown event
• The year we spent in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
• Animal Crossing kept up with all the twists and turns of 2020
• Joe Biden sets up his own Animal Crossing island for the presidential campaign
• Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a much-needed escape from everything
• Animal Crossing outsells Breath of the Wild in mere months
• Animal Crossing’s escapist fantasy is getting a reality check
• Animal Crossing reportedly removed from Chinese retailers following Hong Kong demonstrations
• Animal Crossing hacker group starts free villager service
• Animal Crossing’s fashion is unrivaled
• Animal Crossing players are starting over after dozens (or hundreds) of hours

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Animal Crossing Player Shares Epic Fallout-Themed Island

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons island-building tools allow for incredible creativity; potential keeps players engaged over multiple years post-launch.
• A TikToker creates an impressive Fallout-themed island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
• The island took over 1,400 hours to build without mods, and can be visited using its Dream Address.

An Animal Crossing: New Horizons player has shared their amazing Fallout -themed island build. Animal Crossing: New Horizons gives players the tools to build their perfect island, and one player has taken the opportunity to pay tribute to another of their favorite franchises.

The island-building tools in Animal Crossing: New Horizons are absolutely essential to the game's overwhelming success. They're extremely powerful and can be used to bring to life just about any idea that players have inside their heads. Since the game's release in 2020, there have been some truly remarkable island creations, and the fact that the tools have this much potential is part of the reason why Animal Crossing: New Horizons remains so captivating over four years post-launch. One player even created a nostalgic GameCube island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons , showcasing just what is possible with these tools.

Animal Crossing Fan Makes Adorable Celeste Plush

This particular island was posted by TikToker dammy_island_gaming, giving viewers a full tour around their Fallout -themed island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons . It has to be said that the details here are impeccable, with each area crammed with something new to discover. It would take several watches to catch everything, from the destroyed streets to the irradiated beach. To top it off, the character even wears an adorable vault suit and encounters a Fallout power armor set to tie it all into the theme.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Fallout-Themed Island

According to dammy_island_gaming, the build took a staggering 1,410 hours, which is an incredible amount of dedication to a single island, especially without the use of mods. The user was kind enough to share the Animal Crossing Dream Address for this build, which is "DA-0419-5866-5722." Considering the ongoing popularity of the Fallout TV show, it's the perfect time to hop in and give this island a visit.

It has been a long time since a new Animal Crossing game was released. However, four years between mainline titles is business as usual for the Animal Crossing series, and it'll likely be some time yet before a new game is announced. Recent rumors suggest that a new Animal Crossing game is on the way in 2026 , but this is simply speculation at this point with nothing concrete and confirmed. Even without an announcement from Nintendo, the huge critical and commercial success of Animal Crossing: New Horizons makes a future game in the series inevitable at some point in the future, even if it's not any time soon.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the fifth major game in the Animal Crossing series. This slice-of-life simulation game tasks the player with developing an abandoned island into a small town for its resident villagers. The game was released at the start of worldwide lockdowns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which catapulted it into massive success. It's currently the best selling game of all time in Japan.

Franchise Animal Crossing

Platform(s) Switch

Released March 20, 2020

Developer(s) Nintendo EPD

Publisher(s) Nintendo

Genre(s) Simulation

How Long To Beat 61 Hours

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