Pokémon GO’s December 29 to January 4 week has us enter the second month of the season of Precious Paths! Say goodbye to 2025 with the New Year 2026 event and Piplup Community Day Classic!
Plus the weekly rotating Spotlight and Raid Hours, Dynamax Battles and Mega Raids.
⭐Highlights
- Raid Boss Change (January 1): Blacephalon returns to the raid pool.
- Max Monday (December 29): Dynamax Omanyte is featured in Max Battles from 6 PM to 7 PM.
- Spotlight Hour (December 30): Delibird is featured with 2x Stardust for catching Pokémon
- Raid Hour (January 1): Blacephalon is featured in Five-Star Raids from 6 PM to 7 PM.
- Winter Holiday Part 2 (December 24-29): Rolycoly debuts, boosted shiny odds for costume Dedenne and Stantler, and more
- New Year 2026 (December 31- January 4): Party Top Hat Pikachu has boosted shiny rates, and other costume Pokémon feature
- Piplup Community Day Classic (January 4): Piplup returns with boosted shiny rates and evolve to Empoleon to get the exclusive Charged Attack Hydro Cannon
Weekly Pokémon GO Schedule
Max Monday: Dynamax Spheal
Omanyte
Dynamax
On Monday, December 29th, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Dynamax Omanyte will appear in Max Battles! Dynamax Omanyte will continue to appear from December 29 to January 4 in Max Battles.
Spotlight Hour: Delibird
Delibird
2x Catch Stardust
On Tuesday, December 30th, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Delibird will be the featured Pokémon for Spotlight Hour, along with 2× Stardust for catching Pokémon.
Raid Hour: Blacephalon
Blacephalon
On Wednesday, December 31st, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Blacephalon will be the featured Pokémon for Raid Hour! Blacephalon encountered after during raid hour will know the Charged Attack Mind Blown.
Related guides:
Events in Pokémon GO This Week
Winter Holiday Part 2
Pokémon GO’s Winter Holiday Part 2025 2 runs from Wednesday, December 24, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, December 29, 2025, at 8:00 p.m. local time. Celebrate the season with the debut of Rolycoly, plus boosted shiny chances for costume Dedenne and Stantler.
New Year 2026
The New Year 2026 event brings the new year in with fireworks and style! Enjoy boosted Shiny odds for Party Top Hat Pikachu, and Costume Pokémon in the wild! Enjoy 2× XP and Stardust from raids, in-game fireworks, and increased guaranteed Lucky Pokémon!
Piplup Community Day Classic
Pokémon GO’s first Community Day Classic of 2026 features Piplup, the adorable Penguin Pokémon, returning with its exclusive move Hydro Cannon! Join the event on Sunday, January 4, 2026, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time to enjoy 1/4 Hatch Distance, increased Piplup spawns, and a chance to encounter Shiny Piplup.
Evolve Prinplup during the event, or up to 9:00 p.m. local time on January 4, 2026, to obtain an Empoleon that knows the exclusive move Hydro Cannon.
Raids
Five-Star Raids
From December 22nd to December 31st Zekrom will appear in Five-Star Raids.
Related guides:
From January 1 to January 5 Blacephalon will appear in Five-Star Raids.
Related guides:
Mega Raids
From December 22nd to December 31st, Mega Glalie will appear in Mega Raids.
Related guides:
Shadow Raids
One-star and three-star Shadow Raids will be available daily, while five-star Shadow Raids will take place on Saturdays and Sundays unless otherwise noted. Also, Shadow Cresselia will swoop into five-star Shadow Raids during Precious Paths! You may even encounter a Shiny Shadow Cresselia—if you’re lucky!
GO Pass and GO Pass Deluxe
Pokémon GO’s January 2026 GO Pass and GO Pass Deluxe feature exclusive rewards, including an encounter with Dialga, XP and Stardust bonuses, and the return of the Lucky Trinket! Trainers will automatically receive GO Pass: January on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at 10:00 a.m
GO Battle League Season 25
GO Battle League: Precious Paths begins Tuesday, December 2, 2025 at 1:00 p.m. PST (GMT −8).
At the start of the season:
- 🎁 End-of-season rewards become available
- 🔄 Your GBL rank fully resets
- 📈 Rank-up requirements remain unchanged
Active Cups and Leagues this week
| Dates | Cups |
|---|---|
| Dec 23 – Dec 30 |
|
| Dec 30 – Jan 6 |
|
*4× Stardust win rewards active during these weeks (excludes end-of-set rewards)
Season of Precious Paths
Get ready for Pokémon GO’s Precious Paths Season! Running from December 2, 2025, to March 3, 2026, this incredible season focuses on the Pokémon GO Tour: Kalos, the return of Master Ball Special Research, new costume Pokémon and more!
Season-long bonuses 🎁
The following bonuses are specific to Precious Paths:
One additional Special Trade per day.
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Increased Stardust for the first catch of the day.
Increased friendship bonus damage dealt by Pokémon in raids.
Precious Paths Egg Hatches
The following Pokémon will hatch from Eggs this Season. These are just some highlighted Egg hatches, more Pokémon can hatch from each egg group.
2km Eggs
5km Eggs
10km Eggs
7km Eggs
Adventure Sync Rewards
The following Pokémon hatch from Adventure Sync Eggs this Season. These are just some highlighted Egg hatches, more Pokémon can hatch from each egg group.
5 km Adventure Sync Eggs
10 km Adventure Sync Eggs
Routes Rewards
7 km Eggs from Mateo Gift Exchange
Research Breakthrough
Encounter Pokémon by completing the Research Breakthrough! Complete Field Research to unlock Research Breakthrough encounters with one of the following Pokémon:
