Every day is built backward from the apex moment: Saturday 5:30 PM Super Mega Raid. Thursday earns the insurance voucher. Friday is pure citywide grind. Saturday closes at Lou Malnati's with the Utah Valley crew. Sunday is final cleanup + Cubs vs Giants at Wrigley. Monday is Field Museum + Pokémon Fossil Museum, then the plane.
Why it matters: First citywide day. Four Timed Research Trainer Challenges unlock (one per District). Completing ≥2 unlocks a guaranteed Mega Mewtwo X or Y encounter — your Super Mega Raid insurance.
Targets: 4 districts complete · 80+ raids (citywide pace ramps up after 6 PM raid hour) · 18+ unique gyms for free passes · 6+ eggs hatched.
Targets: 80+ raids · 8+ eggs hatched · 18+ unique gyms · all 9 free raid passes maxed.
Everything Saturday is built backward from the Super Mega Raid at 5:30 PM.
| Time | Zone | Goal |
|---|---|---|
| 2:00-2:15 | Recruitment (yellow) | Enter via official entry: S Columbus + E Jackson (closer to Pop-Up Store) or S Columbus + E Balbo (closer to Hutchinson Field) · Open Zeraora Special Research · Mega-evolve Gengar IMMEDIATELY from stockpiled energy (don't wait — normal Mega Raids in park session are NOT confirmed; you need Mega Gengar active for the SMR shield) |
| 2:15-3:00 | Recruitment | Burn through regular 5★ raids (Mewtwo, Zapdos, Raikou) · use Trainer Belonging Base for Mobility Charging if needed. Normal Mega Raids in the park session are NOT confirmed by Niantic — treat any as a bonus. |
| 3:00-4:15 | GO Rocket Hideout (red) | 4 SHADOW LEGENDARIES · Zapdos, Raikou, Kyogre, Groudon · in-park only, no remote invites · also expect Sierra battle quests here (Team GO Rocket Leader Sierra is the in-park antagonist — Spark/Instinct narrative). If running short on time, drop Shadow Zapdos last (weakest attacker meta). Sierra lineup (current rotation — GO Fest variant may differ): Slot 1 catch = Shadow Duskull · Lineup 2 = Shadow Flygon / Blastoise / Ferrothorn · Lineup 3 = Shadow Milotic / Houndoom / Steelix · Rewards: 3 Shadow Shards + 1,000 Stardust + 2 item bundles. |
| 4:15-5:00 | Cultivation (blue) · Buckingham Fountain core | Costume Bulbasaur/Caterpie · Unown forms · shiny rates boosted in wild-spawn-rich center |
| 5:00-5:15 | Cultivation (blue) | Event-themed Field Research · fill incubators · grab Hydration Station refill · top-up phone at PokéStop Powerbank |
| 5:15-5:25 | Position to YOUR designated gym | 🚨 Tokyo-confirmed May 29: Niantic emails ticket holders a designated gym assignment ~3 days before park. Assignments are PER-TRAINER RANDOM — even friends in the same group get sent to different gyms. Plan to split from the Utah crew here. Check email + in-game News tab before park entry. Arrive ≥10 min early to your assigned gym; capacity managed by Niantic. |
| 5:25-5:29 | Premier Access Lounge if your designated gym is near it (otherwise stay at your assigned gym) | Final counter-team review · Mega Gengar already evolved (Ghost doctrine — SE on both X and Y) · phone ≥70% |
| 5:30-6:00 | UNITY RAID at your assigned gym | Mega Mewtwo X & Y · 1000-trainer capacity · catch arrives at Mega Level 1, 2, or 3 · ~300 Mega Energy per kill (Tokyo-observed) · finishing move = Unity Attack (phone raised overhead) · no shields, no Mega prerequisite, no flee allowed once entered |
Targets: Mega Mewtwo X & Y caught · all 4 Shadow legendaries · Zeraora SR complete · costume shinies · 80+ total raids (in-park lobbies are fast, often sub-2-min · pre-park citywide adds 25-30 raids on top of in-park).
Without status the rule is "2 hours before departure" = 5:37 PM at ORD. With CLEAR (security in ~10 min, no ID-check queue) plus first class boarding (no boarding-group stress), 60-70 min is comfortable. That hour goes back to the museum/Loop afternoon instead.