HAVE you met Jigglypuff at the Tanks?  Or spotted Charmander hiding in the bushes at Cape Hawke Lookout?  What about Eevee or Clefairy?

Those two are roaming our streets waiting for the inevitable “Poké balls” that will be thrown their way.

If you’ve been living under a rock recently and are not familiar with any of these cartoon monsters, you may not have heard about the Pokémon Go phenomenon that is sweeping the globe.

With more than 65 million users (and climbing) it has already become the most successful app of all time.

“We really think the game is fantastic,” MidCoast Council’s Tourism Coordinator Sharon Bultitude said.

“It’s getting people, young and old, outside and exercising.  In order to ‘catch ’em all’ people are exploring places in our region that they may not have otherwise and are discovering the nooks and crannies and hidden gems of the places they thought they knew and seeing their home town with a fresh perspective.”

“The tourism team wanted to do something to tap into the massive audience growing around the Pokémon Go app.”

The result was the launch of Pokémon Go Great Lakes – an interactive map which can be viewed on the Great Lakes regional tourism website – www.greatlakes.org.au/pokemon-go-great-lakes

The map highlights locations of Pokémonstops and Gyms across the Mid-Coast Council region.  Gamers are then encouraged to keep adding to the ever growing number of map markers.

A Pokémon Go Great Lakes Facebook Group has also been set up as a forum for people to share the best locations, show off their latest captures as well as provide game tips and hints.

“This is the first time that we’ve created a digital promotion in real-time.  It was a great opportunity for our team to work together and provide content that is helpful and offers value to locals and visitors” said Sharon.

“The engagement we’ve received is overwhelming.  Within the first 24 hours of launching the dedicated Pokémon webpage received over 1,200 visits and is still the single most visited page on our website.”

“We’ve also been talking with our local businesses about how they are, or can, potentially benefit from this so called Pokéconomy!”

A number of Great Lakes Pokémon events are planned over the next few weeks – head over to the Facebook Page for more information www.facebook.com/pokemon-go-great-lakes