GTA III Places & Locations

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Tommy Verrcity

Tommy is a penman for Grand Theft Fans, and a GTA maniac. His addiction to the series kicked in when he played GTA San Andreas for the first time. He fell in love with the game, the graphics, the characters, and the story. It became a haven, an escape from reality, and an adventure for the soul.

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Nowadays, every gamer on the planet is familiar with the letters “GTA.”  Grand Theft Auto is by far one of the greatest open-world game series. The latter was so good that it redefined the meaning of sandbox games as we know them.

Anyways, the series features a ridiculous number of installments and various editions. However, a few of the titles included in the franchise managed to make a dent in the gaming world.

Rockstar has overdone themselves with each game, but Grand Theft Auto III lit the fuse resulting in a massive bang taking everyone by surprise. The developers at Rockstar took the leap of faith with Grand Theft Auto III and dove right into the 3D world.

And it worked! The game was an instant hit and claimed accolades and world records right after its launch.

One of the best aspects of the game that caught the players’ attention is the Liberty City map, also known as the worst place in America because it is infested with crime, gangs, drugs, and prostitution.

Stay tuned because, in this guide to GTA III Places and Locations, we will show you every nook and cranny of Liberty City.

Bottom Line Upfront

When I played Grand theft auto III for the first time, I got lost too many times. And every time I get used to one area, another opens up, and I get lost again. It was unbelievably frustrating, and I failed a lot of missions because of that.

Regardless, after playing the game too many times, I learned the map by heart. I also found out that each area, street, alleyway, and corner have its perks and can be used for something.

Like mass murder! It all depends on what you like to do.

P.S: here’s a tip, try working as a taxi driver for a while. It will help you figure your way around.

Liberty City Major Boroughs

Liberty City is a megacity that consists of three major boroughs, often referred to as Islands. There are Portland Island, Staunton Island, and Shoreside Vale. Each of these sectors has different inhabitants, layouts, gangs, and rules themselves.

Rockstar got the inspiration for this map from several real-life cities, including New York, Detroit, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. As for the port, areas are based on Leith in Edinburgh, Scotland, where Rockstar HQ is situated.

Portland Island

It is the place where the player begins his journey to climb the criminal ladder and make a name for himself. Portland is located on the far east side of the map and is the home of industries in Liberty City.

Parts of Portland are inspired by Long Island, Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens alongside the ports of Leith. According to Rockstar, many areas are possibly inspired by any city in the Midwest or East Coast.

Trenton

Portland houses several districts. On the south side, we have Trenton. It includes a couple of factories and offices for import/export-related matters. Liberty City Sawmill, Bus Depot, Pharmaceuticals, Mean Street Taxis, and Bitchin ‘n’ Dog Food are some of the businesses in this area.

Although it’s not controlled by a particular gang, Joey Leone (a member of the Leone mafia) owns an auto shop in the vicinity.

Portland Harbor

Also known as the Docks, is near Trenton. It contains a set of loading docks, warehouses, cranes, containers, and a massive freighter. It also features an import/export garage that requires a set of cars/ vehicles to be delivered.

On the right side of the entrance is a parked semi-truck in case you needed it. And, if you go straight upon entry, you will notice a chain of storage units used in a storyline mission.

Atlantic Quays

South of the Harbor is Atlantic Quays. There isn’t much to say about it. It’s just like the Harbor but on a much smaller scale. It has a stunt jump required for 100% completion, and a couple of storyline missions take place there.

Callahan Point

It’s south of Trenton, west of Atlantic Quays, and passes under the entrance of Callahan Bridge, hence the name. There is a massive building on the north edge, a warehouse that belongs to the Leone mafia, and a diner. It also hosts a couple of missions and the Triads’ fish factory. Plus, a small tunnel, enough to drive a car through it, leads to an old wooden jetty. Other than that, the area is pretty much dead.

Chinatown

Possibly the worst part of Portland, thanks to the lovely Triads. As you progress through the game, they will become your enemies and shoot you whenever they can, making the game very hard. The latter are almost everywhere, on main streets and all corners.

Chinatown is south of Callahan Point, north of the Red Light District, and west of Portland View. It is based on real-life Chinatown in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The center of this area revolves around a pedestrian-only walkway with massive arches. Like the ones you see at the entrance of a Chinese village.

It also encompasses the Triads fish market, Bank of Liberty (which will be robbed), and the Old School Hall (featured in one of Luigi’s missions). In addition, Chinatown includes one of the subway stations that players can use.

Red Light District

It is located north of Chinatown and west of Saint Mark’s. It is bordered by Hepburn Heights up north and a waterfront down south. The district is awake 24/7 and houses a couple of businesses like strip clubs, “Adult” stores, and late-night escorts.

Pay ‘n’ Spray is located in this area, on the road that leads to Hepburn Heights. On the waterfront side is a safehouse to save the progress with a garage to store a car. On the main road, there is an Ammu-nation to purchase guns if needed alongside other landmarks like CitiBank, Stroker Park, a hotel, and dry cleaning.

Hepburn Heights

If you continue north of the Red Light District, you will enter Hepburn Heights. This area is infested with the Diablos gang and prostitutes. It features a station for elevated train service, a couple of apartment towers, and a nice ridge on the east side. On the west, there is a waterfront that overlooks the far Island of Staunton.

Harwood

It is located in the far north of Portland. It’s composed of small commercial businesses like a gas station, a junkyard, a car dealership with one sports car in the showroom, and 8-Ball’s garage to arm your vehicles. In addition, there is a fire station with a fire truck parked outside across the street from the gas station.

It includes the entrance to the Porter tunnel and an abandoned railroads/ train station near the dealership. If you follow the train tracks you will find four men surrounding a Molotov, which you can steal and use to burn people alive.

Portland View

It is just south of Trenton and east of Chinatown. This section of the map is a mixed bowl. In other words, this part of town features residential buildings, stores, a police station, and a hospital next to the police station.

Saint Mark’s

This area is bordered by Portland Beach to the east, Harwood in the north, Portland view to the south, and Hepburn Heights to the west. It is based on Little Italy in Manhattan featuring a lot of apartment blocks alongside some commercial businesses like Marco’s Bistro.

The famous Momma’s restaurant, home of Leone mafia capo (Toni Cipriani), is in the vicinity, and the mansion of Don Salvatore is on top of the hill overlooking Portland Beach. The area is crawling with heavily armed mafia members. The latter will be your enemy after you whack their boss.

Portland Beach

It’s on the far east coast, and it’s a lifeless location. Nothing spawns there except a bobcat. It has Don Salvatore’s mansion on top of the cliff and a lighthouse in the middle of the water.

There are some pretty places on Portland Island to be in, but the reason I don’t like it is the gloomy weather. In addition, every gang will try to kill you at some point in the future. Furthermore, it has slow and terrible cars except for the Mafia Sentinel and Diablo stallion.

Staunton Island

It takes its inspiration from the Island of Manhattan in New York. Even the name resembles that of Staten Island. Although, there is a high possibility that Staunton Island could be based on any city on the east coast or the Midwest.

Staunton Island is the commercial/ financial district of Liberty City. it contains a lot of big and small businesses alongside commercial areas where people can go and have some fun. It’s a thriving area and lovely in general.

Belleville Park

Long story short, a massive park called Belleville is located in the middle of the island. However, the area revolves around more than just a park. Around the park stand a lot of skyscrapers, a town hall similar to New York Hall, a fire station on the north end, and an underground entrance to an expressway that links Bedford to Aspatria.

Newport

It is just east of Belleville Park. It features several tall buildings, a multistory car park, and a couple of docks where you find speed boats and police boats. There are two expressways linking Newport to Fort Staunton and Torrington.

The area is controlled by the Uptown Yardies gang, but you can also see members of the Yakuza walking on the street next to the car park. That’s because the condo of Asuka Kasen, Leader of Yakuza, is located behind the parking lot near the docks.

Fort Staunton

This area is invigorated by Harlem, Manhattan. It features a set of construction sites owned by the Panlantic Construction Company. The latter is a front used by the Colombian cartel to do their shady business, hence why you find many of them in the area.

Rockford

Located on the south side of Fort Staunton. The best thing about this area is the lovely coastline view. In Rockford, you will find the Carson General hospital where a couple of missions take place.

In addition, the entrance to the Porter Tunnel is in Rockford, behind the hospital. Furthermore, on the most northern spot in Rockford is Phil’s army surplus. It will be open for the player to buy heavy weaponry after helping Phill in a mission.

Liberty Campus

Possibly the smallest district on the entire map. This area is confined to two blocks and has buildings similar to Washington heights, Colombia College in particular. Except for the entrance to the subway, nothing else is special about this place. It’s just two blocks of puns and easter eggs.

Aspatria

It’s in the far northwest part of Staunton Island. Aspatria has a long coastal line on the west end overlooking the water towards Shoreside Vale.

A nice scenic route if you ask me.

Another hotspot for tourists is the Liberty Memorial Coliseum, with a big car park across the street. You can find some nice supercars parked there. Anyways, in that vicinity, there’s a Cartel compound where a story mission takes place.

Torrington

When you arrive at Staunton Island via the Callahan Bridge, you will end up in the downtown area. Bust a left, and you will make your way towards the Torrington area in the southeast.

It is the home of tall buildings and skyscrapers similar to the financial district in Manhattan. Most serve as offices for massive corporations and companies like AMCo, FBC Bank, FBI headquarters, and LCPD offices.

Torrington is controlled by the Yakuza leader, Kenji. His main site is the Casino near the police station.

Bedford Point

Just like Torrington, Bedford Point is also a financial and commercial district. At first glance, you will see that it’s a Times Square knock-off. It contains the majority of the City’s skyscrapers alongside museums, galleries, and tons of massive billboards.

The Church, Yakuza Dojo, Subway station, Donald Love media building, and many more businesses took this place as their home. There are no gangs in this area, but according to the “Shima” mission, the territory is protected by the Yakuza.

Staunton Island is my favorite because it is alive, diverse, and has lovely scenery. The Colombian cartel and the traffic can be annoying sometimes, but there are sick cars roaming the streets and in parking lots.

Shoreside Vale

Francis International Airport

It’s located at the south end of Shoreside Vale, and as you guessed it, it’s a massive airport. It includes a subway station, firetruck, car park, and two cabs parked in front of the terminal. The bridge linking Shoreside Vale and Staunton Island leads directly to the airport. Additionally, you can get to the terminal via Porter Tunnel.

Pike Creek

It’s a small industrial area resembling a couple of places in New Jersey. In this section, you will find several warehouses, a hospital, and a police station. Behind the police station, there is a compound with armor inside. Other services you may find around are the 8-Ball shop, a Pay ‘n’ Spray, and the import/export garage.

From Pike Creek, you can head up to the Cochrane Dam and down to Cedar Grove. A lovely shortcut in case you decide to take on taxi, paramedic, or firefighter missions. Take a second to explore the place, a couple of guns and a money package spawns there.

Wichita Gardens

The Gardens are on the lower side of Shoreside Vale. it features a couple of projects buildings and apartments alongside a safe house. The area includes access to the Porter Tunnel and a nice picnic park. This place is infested with the Purple Nines and Red Jacks gangs as well as endless prostitutes and thieves.

Cedar Grove

It is mainly a residential area occupied by the Colombian Cartel and other filthy rich people with supercars parked in their driveways. It contains massive mansions, including the Cartel’s HQ, where the final mission takes place. It’s a very beautiful neighborhood overlooking the Wichita Gardens.

And on the upper side, you can notice the observatory, which you can’t reach because it’s part of the Ghost Town behind the hills.

Well, you can reach it, but you need to fly that stupid Dodo from the airport or activate the flying cars cheat code and use the Rhino tank.

I like Shoreside Vale because it feels cozy and pretty to drive around it. Plus, it is a small area making it easy to navigate. Moreover, you can find fantastic cars roaming the streets. The only downfall is the cartel shooting at you and the horrific drives.

FAQs

Final Words

Grand Theft Auto III made a big dent in the gaming world with its features and gameplay. The map is reasonably big, and the layout can keep you hooked for days on end. It may not be as big as San Andreas or GTA V’s Los Santos, but it is worth exploring.

The absence of a map can make it difficult to navigate but the locations are pretty memorable. The only complaint I can think of is not having enough open buildings.