What To Do First In Animal Crossing: New Horizons 3.0

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Okay, so I was totally prepared to think Animal Crossing: New Horizons was done with updates, but WOW, the 3.0 update dropped, and it’s huge! Plus, they’ve really improved things for those of us playing on the new Switch. I’ve already seen a few guides about getting ready for the update, but I figured it’d be even more helpful to know what to do first once it’s actually here. So, I’m making this guide to help you get the most out of those first few hours back on your island – whether you haven’t played since 2020 or you’ve been a dedicated player for years. If you’re feeling a little lost or rusty, no worries! I’ve linked over 80 other guides to help you get back into the swing of things.

Table of Contents [hide]

  • Check the mail and head to the hotel
  • Track down Resetti
  • Head to Resident Services
  • Check out Slumber Islands
  • Use the new terraforming tools

Check the mail and head to the hotel

As soon as you start the game, be sure to check your mailbox. You’ll receive a letter from Luna letting you know that Slumber Islands are now open – we’ll explain more about that soon.

If you’ve already met Kapp’n, the Seaside Hotel should be ready to go right away – it doesn’t need a day to finish building! If you haven’t unlocked Kapp’n yet, you’ll need to first see K.K. Slider perform a concert and get your island rated at least 3 stars. That’s a bit of a setback, though.

When you go to the hotel, Tom Nook will show you around and introduce you to Kapp’n’s family. Interestingly, if you check the Resident Services building before going to the hotel, you’ll find that Tom Nook isn’t there.

Okay, so after the initial greetings, Leilani gave me my first task – decorating a room! Honestly, I could spend ages making it perfect, or just quickly throw things together, it was totally up to me. As soon as I finished, a guest showed up right away! Our first guest was a guy named Hugh, but I’m guessing who you get might be different.

Okay, so after getting my first visitor, Tom Nook told me about Kapp’n’s new boat service! Basically, Kapp’n asks for specific things you have to craft, and if you make and ship them to him, you get Hotel Tickets. The best part? I can finally craft a bunch of the same item all at once, which makes getting those tickets way faster. It’s a huge time saver!

Kapp’n says fulfilling these requests will make your hotel more famous, but it’s still unclear if that’s actually true. Right now, the only confirmed benefits are earning extra Hotel Tickets and getting new items from the shop.

Once you’ve chatted with Kapp’n and Tom Nook, go back inside and talk to Leilani to start decorating your second room. After you finish, she’ll let you know there will be more decorating tasks tomorrow. Feel free to decorate both rooms now to make the most of your time. You can also use your tickets to buy souvenirs from the shop or from Gram’s catalogue, but ordering from the catalogue will cost a little extra.

You can also personalize the lobby mannequins, allowing guests and friends to easily try on island attire.

Track down Resetti

There isn’t much left to do at the hotel, so let’s explore your island now. You might see a visitor wandering around, but we’re specifically looking for Resetti. When you find him, he’ll explain his new Reset services, which let you clear out either your whole island or just certain areas.

This service costs 60,000 bells each time, but you can use it as often as you want! Plus, your first time is free. You can use that free day whenever you’re ready, so there’s no rush. Simply talk to Isabelle when you need it.

We quickly signed up for the service because we had flowers we wanted to keep fresh, and this new feature lets you do just that. It’s a real time-saver, but be aware there are a few things that don’t quite work perfectly.

Okay, so this guy will pick up everything in an area once you tidy it up, which is cool, but also a little frustrating. I was hoping I could tell him to just grab flowers, but he grabbed all my furniture too! I ended up having to put everything back where it belonged. It’s a pain, honestly, but still better than having to collect all those flowers myself!

Head to Resident Services

Once you’ve had your chat with Resetti, go see Tom Nook at Resident Services. He can increase your storage space, which I suggest doing right away—it takes a full day for the change to take effect. You can also celebrate the hotel’s opening! Don’t forget to check the Nook Terminal to see if any of the new Lego furniture pieces catch your eye.

Okay, so here’s a cool thing I just found out: if you have a Zelda or Splatoon Amiibo, you can actually get some brand new villagers to visit your campsite! It’s a neat way to expand your island’s population, and I’m definitely going to try it out.

Check out Slumber Islands

Let’s return to Luna. Go home or find a bed and take a nap. You’ll then see a new option called “slumber time.” Selecting this will allow Luna to create a special island where you can build and decorate anything you like.

In this mode, you can customize your character’s appearance, create pathways, and decorate your island using items you’ve gathered. Keep in mind that anything you create here stays here – it’s all about letting your creativity flow! Also, you’ll need to unlock Dream Islands first before you can access Slumber Islands.

Use the new terraforming tools

Before we finish, let’s talk about a helpful new feature in version 3.0. Now, you can move one square at a time while building by holding the L button and using the control stick. This makes it much easier to precisely create things like cliffs, rivers, and tile patterns.

That covers pretty much everything you can accomplish on your first day. For more helpful tips and information, check out our Animal Crossing: New Horizons guides!

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2026-01-15 01:40